The best time to visit the Galápagos
There is no bad month, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling a cabin in a quiet week. What there is: months of warm calm water and months of cold rich water, months when the seabirds are courting and months when the sea lions have pups — and one narrow window in which the albatross are on the islands at all.
The short version
- December to May — warm, calm, clear water. Best for swimming, snorkelling without a wetsuit, and land wildlife.
- June to November — cool, choppier, nutrient-rich. Best for marine life, seabirds and whales. Bring a wetsuit.
- Waved albatross are only there April to December. This is the single real deadline in the calendar.
- April, May, September and October are the sweet spots for weather-versus-crowds.
- High season is June–August and mid-December to mid-January. Book those months a long way out.
Two seasons, and what they actually feel like
| Warm · Dec–May | Cool · Jun–Nov | |
|---|---|
| Air | 25–31°C | 19–26°C |
| Water | 22–27°C | 18–22°C |
| Sea state | Calm | Choppier crossings |
| Sky | Sunny, short showers | Garúa mist, little rain |
| Underwater visibility | Best of the year | Reduced, but full of life |
| Wetsuit? | Optional | Yes, 3 mm |
The cool season is misleadingly named. It is the dry season, with grey mornings that usually burn off, and the cold water is the whole point: the Humboldt Current brings up nutrients, the food chain switches on, and the marine life becomes extraordinary. If you are prone to seasickness, note that the crossings between islands are rougher then.
Month by month
| Month | What is happening |
|---|---|
| January | Warm season settles in. Land birds nesting; male marine iguanas turn green and red. |
| February | Warmest month. Sea turtles nesting, flamingos courting, clearest water of the year. |
| March | Peak of the rains — sporadic and tropical, with fierce sun between. First albatross arrive on Española around the equinox. |
| April | Many guides' favourite month. Albatross courtship begins, turtle and iguana hatchlings, water still warm, crowds still low. |
| May | Albatross laying eggs, blue-footed booby courtship starts, superb visibility. The other favourite. |
| June | The Humboldt arrives and everything changes. Humpback whales begin. Giant tortoises migrate on Santa Cruz. |
| July | Seabird breeding at full volume. Excellent snorkelling with penguins and sea turtles. Busy. |
| August | Coldest water and windiest seas. Sea lion pupping. Busy. |
| September | Penguins and sea lions at their most active. Quieter, and good value. |
| October | Booby chicks on Española, fur seals mating. The divers' month: whale sharks and hammerheads at Darwin and Wolf. |
| November | Seas calming, visibility improving, sea lion pups bold and curious in the water. Very quiet. |
| December | Warm season returns. Tortoise eggs hatching; young albatross fledge and leave. |
The one genuine deadline
Almost everything in the Galápagos is there all year in some form. One thing is not.
The waved albatross — the only migratory species among the islands' headline animals, and one that breeds essentially nowhere else on earth — is present on Española from around April to December. In January, February and March they are out at sea and you will not see one.
Their courtship, all beak-clacking and synchronised swaying, is among the great wildlife spectacles anywhere. If it is on your list, your dates are decided for you. If it is not, ignore this entirely.
If you want one thing in particular
- Warm water and easy snorkelling — February to April.
- Underwater visibility — February and March.
- Marine life in quantity — August to November.
- Whales — June to September.
- Whale sharks and hammerheads — around October, and only on a diving liveaboard to Darwin and Wolf.
- Albatross — April to December, Española.
- Blue-footed booby courtship — roughly May to August.
- Sea lion pups — August to November.
- Baby tortoises hatching — December to April.
- Fewest people — April, May, September, October, November.
Crowds and cost
High season is June to August, driven by northern-hemisphere holidays, plus mid-December to mid-January. Cruises fill months ahead and rates are at their highest.
The value months are April–May and September–November: shoulder weather, better availability, lower prices, and in several respects better wildlife than the peak. If your dates are flexible at all, this is where to put them.
What this means for your days in Quito
Here is the part that connects to the rest of your trip, and it is simpler than you would think.
Quito is the same in every month. It sits on the equator at 2,850 m with no real seasons: highs of 18–21°C and lows of 9–11°C all year, twelve hours of daylight every single day, and a reliable pattern of clear mornings and wet afternoons. There is no month in which Quito is a bad idea — see when to visit Quito for the detail.
So the logic runs one way: choose your month for the islands, then plan Quito around it. A few consequences worth knowing:
- Going in the cool season (Jun–Nov)? You will want a wetsuit, and you are travelling in Quito's dry season — the best months here for mountain views. Cotopaxi and the volcanoes will be visible far more often.
- Going in the warm season (Dec–May)? Easier water, and Quito will be wetter — but the rain comes in the afternoon, so mornings still work for everything.
- Landing in early December? You have walked into Fiestas de Quito, the best week of the year to be in this city. Consider an extra night.
- Travelling at Easter? Quito's Holy Week processions are extraordinary, and it is the only fortnight you can eat fanesca.
- Peak season on the islands is also peak season here. Book both together and early.
Once you have your month, the packing list for that season is the next thing to read — the difference between a warm-season and a cool-season bag is a 3 mm wetsuit and a lot of comfort.
How far ahead to book
Further than feels necessary. Cruises for July, August and Christmas sell out six to twelve months ahead, and the good small boats go first. Flights from Quito to the islands are also cheaper the earlier you buy — see the flight guide.
Book the cruise first, then the island flights, then Quito. Doing it in that order saves rearranging everything twice.
What we do here
Tell us your month and we will tell you what it means on both ends — what the water will be doing, whether you need the wetsuit, and what is happening in Quito that week. We hold rooms either side of island trips, store the luggage you are not taking, and get you to a dawn flight without drama.
Pick the month for the islands. We will handle the rest.
Nine rooms in a restored 1914 house in San Blas, and a front desk that has planned a lot of these trips. Book direct for our lowest rate and send us your dates.
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