Is the Highlands Tour in Santa Cruz, Galapagos worth it?

The Highlands Tour in Santa Cruz is a great experience to include in any land-based Galapagos tour, as it is unique, affordable, and relatively quick!

The tour allows you to see a famous species of Galapagos giant tortoise up close and in their natural environment, walk through ancient lava tunnels, and a quick trail around twin craters.

I went on this tour during my 2-week Galapagos trip, and in this post, I’ll share everything you need to know along with my honest review!

TL;DR? Here is the most important information about the Highlands Tour
✅ Where to book the tour? In person upon arriving or online
✨ What are the main attractions? Seeing giant tortoises in their natural habitat, lava tunnels, and two large pits!
🐧 What animals may I see? Giant tortoises, birds (especially Galapagos finch)
♥️ Is the Highlands Tour Worth It? Yes if you have free time in Santa Cruz and won’t be seeing giant tortoises on other islands

What’s included in the Highlands Tour?

The Highlands Tour is a very common “taxi tour” in Santa Cruz – just tell any taxi driver that you want to do the Highlands Tour and they’ll drive you to three attractions:

Both the giant tortoise sightseeing (1) and the lava tunnels walk through (2) are inside a complex named El Chato Ranch. There, you’ll need to pay a $10 entrance fee which covers a guided tour of the grounds.

How long is the Santa Cruz Highlands Tour?

If you’re deep into optimizing your time in the Galapagos, you can plan the tour to be held during a taxi ride to/from the Baltra airport, as the highlands of Santa Cruz are on the way!

How much is the Highlands Tour in Santa Cruz?

If booking in person, the taxi ride from downtown Puerto Ayora, which fits 4 people, goes for USD 45 – 75 total. Additionally, you’ll need to pay an extra USD 10 per person to access El Chato Ranch, where the giant tortoises and lava tunnels are located.

If you want to book online in advance, the tour typically costs USD 105-175 for two people.

During my visit, I shared a taxi with two other travelers I met in my hostel and only ended up paying a total of $25 for the Santa Cruz Highlands Tour!

How to book the Highlands Tour?

1. Ask your accommodation to arrange a taxi

Independently going on the Highlands Tour by taxi is the most budget-friendly and flexible way to explore the attractions!

There are lots of taxis in Santa Cruz, and a call from your hotel receptionist can get you a driver almost immediately! They can also help you book a taxi in advance, though I don’t think that’s necessary.

2. Include the tour as part of your airport transfer

If you’re planning on getting a taxi the airport route to your hotel/hostel, you can mention your interest in completing the Highlands Tour during the transfer – no matter if you booked online in advance or with a taxi driver on the spot.

Obviously, the cost of your transfer will be higher if you include the Highlands Tour, but in the end of the day this is the most time-effective way to complete the tour!

Important to note: If you’re planning to get a taxi on the spot, make sure to fully understand how the route from the airport to your accommodation looks like. The airport is located in a different island, so you’ll need to get a quick bus or taxi and a short boat ride before getting to the port where you can hire the taxi to drive you directly to your hotel (whether you include the Highlands Tour or not).

3. Book a guided tour with a local agency

This is the most expensive option, but the one that works best for those who love planning things in advance, as you can completely book and pay online!

When to go on the Highlands tour?

For the average tourist, the Highlands tour is pretty much the same any time of the day. Avid birdwatchers, however, should aim to visit the Los Gemelos (Twin Craters) early in the morning to spot the most activity.

What to pack for the Highlands Tour?

• Sunscreen
• Insect repellent
• UV Protective clothing (like hats, shirts, and pants)
• Cash (for the El Chato Ranch entrance fee, snacks, and taxi)
• Binoculars

There’s no need to pack special shoes for the short walk around El Chato Ranch, as rain boots are provided if the trail happens to be muddy during your tour.

My experience in the Highlands Tour in Santa Cruz

As someone solo traveling the Galapagos on a budget, I wanted to go on the Highlands Tour as cheaply as possible – so I spent a good half an hour in my hostel lobby asking other travelers if they’d like to split a taxi until I found my companions for the day!

The hostel receptionist was kind enough to call in a taxi that arrived in less than 5 minutes and drove us to El Chato Ranch, in a ride that lasted about 35 minutes.

Upon arriving, we paid our entrance fees and waited in their cafe for the next guided tour of the ranch.

The wait was not boring at all, as we were served refreshments, took pictures inside the shells of giant tortoises, and got to see some of the tortoises walking around!

Some of the giant tortoises got quite close to the waiting area, which was very exciting!

Once the tour started, our guide started telling us a lot of interesting facts about the giant tortoises, and I surprisingly learned more about the species there than in the famous Charles Darwin Research Station.

As we walked around the grounds, we got to see 50+ giant land turtles, and some of them were close to or even on the trail!

As a wildlife enthusiast, I absolutely loved every second watching these giant (and old) creatures, but some of the other travelers in the group complained about the slow pace of the tour.

After seeing lots of tortoises, it was time to enter the lava tunnels!

I was surprised by the infrastructure, with the trails having easy accessibility through stairs and plenty of light!

In all honesty, the tunnels looked cool and the history was interesting but I got tired of it quickly as I’m not super into geology.

After seeing the tunnels, we returned to the reception area of the ranch and hopped on the taxi to the last stop: Los Gemelos.

The view was interesting, but I did not feel the urge to explore the short trail there and only spent 5 minutes looking into the giant sinkhole!

The wrap-up: Is the Highlands Tour in Santa Cruz worth it?

For me, the Santa Cruz Highlands Tour was absolutely worth it because it gave me the chance to see the famous giant tortoises up close and freely going about their day in their natural environment.

On my 2-week land-based itinerary, this was the only opportunity I had to see giant tortoises in the wild, as the ones I saw in the Charles Darwin Research Station were in captivity.

The lava tunnels were an interesting stop, though I’ll admit they weren’t really my thing since geology isn’t a major interest of mine. The same goes for the Los Gemelos sinkholes—I didn’t mind visiting, but as someone who isn’t particularly into birds or geology, they didn’t stand out as highlights.

Overall, this tour was worthwhile to me for the tortoises alone. That said, if your itinerary already includes places where giant tortoises live in the wild—such as Floreana Island—you might find the Highlands Tour less essential.

Planning a trip to the Galapagos? Check out our other helpful guides!
✅ Here’s how to do the Galapagos on a budget (for real)
✅ All the Necessary Permits to Go to Galapagos: A Checklist

Other fun things to do in Santa Cruz!
✅ Is Bartolome Island Worth It? An honest day tour review
✅ Snorkeling in Las Grietas, Galapagos: Is It Worth It?
✅ Is Visiting The Charles Darwin Research Station Worth It?