From early on in our planning process, I knew that we wanted to spend the majority of our time in the Galapagos on Isabela Island, and after just a little bit of research I knew that Iguana Crossing Boutique Hotel was the only hotel on the island that I wanted to stay in. The hotel itself looked absolutely gorgeous and its oceanfront views were stunning.
As my research progressed and I started prioritizing the activities we wanted to do on the island, I discovered that Iguana Crossing offered packages that included all of my top tours. Wanting to maximize our time on Isabela while still keeping things as simple as possible, we booked the 5 day / 4 night tour. The 5D/4N itinerary included the following:
- Day 1 – arrive on Isabela, hotel pickup from the dock (or airport), overnight at hotel
- Day 2 – Las Tintoreras tour in the morning, Muro de las Lagrimas (Wall of Tears) tour in the afternoon, breakfast included, overnight at hotel
- Day 3 – Sierra Negra tour, breakfast and lunch included, overnight at hotel
- Day 4 – Los Tuneles snorkeling tour, breakfast and lunch included, overnight at hotel
- Day 5 – breakfast at hotel, hotel drop-off at dock (or airport)
Isabela Crossing is a boutique hotel that focuses on environmental sustainability. Staying true to its surroundings, local craftsmen designed and built the hotel using materials endemic to the island. Its eco-friendly features include “self-closing” showers. These get a lot negative comments on the hotel’s reviews. The showers operate by push button – you can either pump it a few times and then hold it down while you shower or push it every ten seconds or so, giving you short bursts of water. Our first showers we had difficulty getting hot water, which was more problematic than the push button aspect. Once we figured out the hot water it was fine. These certainly were not the most relaxing showers we’ve ever taken but they got the job done and we appreciate their water conservation efforts. In my opinion, this can be as big or as little of a deal as you want it to be. We chose to focus on the many amazing features of the hotel and not the inconvenience of the shower.
The hotel has 14 total guest rooms ranging in size from 350 sq ft to 600 sq ft. There are 4 volcano view rooms, 7 ocean view rooms, 2 junior suites and 1 master suite. Our family of 4 stayed in an ocean front room and while we would have preferred two queen beds to two doubles, there was enough room for all of us. The rooms all feature tile floors, which make them a little less warm and welcoming but is a sensible choice for the hotel’s beachfront location. The rooms were clean and very nice and undoubtedly the best on the island, but you should not come here expecting the equivalent of a room at the Ritz. It is important to keep things in perspective – you are in a luxury hotel… but a luxury hotel in the Galapagos.
And more than the individual rooms, it is the hotel itself, its shared spaces, and its location that are the real attraction. Beautifully designed and executed, the hotel somehow both stands out and fits in on the island. The exterior of the building is gorgeous and the landscaping utilizing only endemic plants ensures that it fits in with its surroundings.
The restaurant is really a dining room, bar and lounge all in one. It has beautiful wrap-around glass windows, showcasing the amazing ocean views. We ate many of our meals there, partly because the food was good and it was just easiest at the end of a long day and partly as a way to support the hotel. We had booked and fully paid for the package almost 18 months earlier (due to covid rescheduling) so we knew that the only money they were making off of us at this point was from food and tips. We so appreciated them allowing us to rebook and wanted to be sure that they received some new income from our stay.
For our first three nights, I think it was only us and one other guest in the hotel and we were the only ones eating in the restaurant. Because of the limited demand, they asked us to order ahead and tell us what time we wanted to eat so that their restaurant staff could schedule accordingly. The dinners were very good and featured fresh sea food, traditional Ecuadorian dishes, as well as some kid-friendly options. Breakfast was included with our stay and the fresh fruits, breads, eggs, and juices were excellent.
The hotel really capitalizes on its ocean views. Although it is actually across the street from the beach, it feel like a true oceanfront location. The sandy dirt road between the hotel and the beach was almost solely traversed by people on foot or bike. Cars were very rare and traffic noise was non-existent. The road really just seemed to blend right into the dunes behind it.
The views from the ocean front rooms simply cannot be beat. With gorgeous ocean views in front of you and volcanoes off in the distance, it is hard to imagine any other place like this in the world.
The hotel gets its name from its location next to the natural path that the marine iguanas follow each day between the beach and the mangroves behind the hotel.
And you can follow the iguanas’ path too! The boardwalk path behind the hotel leads through the mangroves and to a flamingo lagoon. The easy access to this trail and the flamingos is another unique and amazing feature of this hotel.
One of my absolute favorite memories of our entire trip was when we went across the street after lunch one day to visit the marine iguanas only to discover that they were not on their signature spot on the rocks. But within minutes we saw an amazing site – one after another they started swimming in from the ocean! There was a series of lava rocks out in the water that created a calm, shallow pool between the open water and the rocks on the beach. The marine iguanas swam in from the ocean, stopped to rest (and eat) on the outer rocks, and then swam across the protected pool before scampering up on the rocks on the beach to lounge in the sun. It was incredible to see them all returning en masse.
To be able to watch these amazing creatures swimming home on one of the most stunning beaches I have ever seen is an experience I will never forget.
We built much of our trip around staying at Iguana Crossing Boutique Hotel and have absolutely no regrets. The views were amazing, the hotel gorgeous, and the accommodations the best on the island. I was really glad that we decided to book one of their packages. While I could have spent many hours pouring over reviews and choosing specific guides (which is what I usually do!), I was happy to put that part of the trip in the hands of the hotel. All tours that enter the National Park require a licensed National Park Guide, and while I’m sure there are some that are better than others, we found them all to be friendly and knowledgable so I’m not sure that my research would have made a huge difference. The logistics of getting to the Galapagos are quite complicated and it was nice to have the logistics of our time on Isabela taken care of for us. I loved just coming down in the morning and having the concierge tell us where to go and when for our activities of the day. For our family of four I really felt like the package (and the hotel!) was perfect for us.
