How To Get To Galapagos From UK (LHR to GPS)

If you live in the UK, and if scuba diving the Galapagos Islands is on your bucket list, you may be wondering how to get to Galapagos from the UK.

To get from the UK to Galapagos, first book a flight from your nearest international UK airport to Ecuador’s Guayaquil. Then book an internal flight from Guayaquil to Seymour Airport on Baltra Island or San Cristobal Airport on San Cristobal Island depending on your liveaboard departure port.

You can book flights for the complete trip from the UK to the Galapagos Islands if you prefer, but this tends to be more expensive when you book internal flights as a part of an international route plan. Internal flights are often cheaper when you book them independently of the international leg of the journey.

Plus some of the Galapagos liveaboards will help with the internal flight booking in any event, which will leave you to just book the flight from the UK to Guayaquil in Ecuador. Of course you will have to pay the liveaboard operator for the internal return flight, but hopefully this will be cheaper when booked this way.

When you arrange your international flight from the UK to Ecuador, make sure to book a flight that arrives in Ecuador in time for your flight that departs from Guayaquil, as many flights from Guayaquil to Galapagos depart first thing in the morning.

The best way to dive anywhere in the world, including scuba diving the Galapagos Islands, is by a scuba diving liveaboard. You can check the latest and best deals on liveaboards using the following window:

For travel to Galapagos National Park, this involves an international flight to Ecuador, which is followed by a domestic flight to one of two islands, depending on where your Galapagos liveaboard departs.

Top Tip: The quickest and cheapest option is to book flights from your chosen UK airport to José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport (GYE), Guayaquil, and then book a connecting flight to one of two airports on Galapagos, and chose the best airport on the island nearest to your departing liveaboard. I recommend this route, as the connecting flights from Guayaquil to the Galapagos are cheaper and quicker than from Quito.

You can still fly via Quito, but your outbound and inbound flights to and from Galapagos will stop in Guayaquil and this will add at least an hour to your overall journey time.

So can you fly direct to Galapagos from the UK?

Can you fly direct to Galapagos Islands from the UK?

There are no direct flights from the UK to Galapagos, so you’ll need to fly to Guayaquil in Ecuador and connect from there to Baltra Seymour Airport or San Cristobal Airport in Galapagos. Airlines that fly to Guayaquil from the UK are KLM via Amsterdam, Avianca via Bogota or Air Europe via Madrid.

Most flights from Quito stop in Guayaquil, so it’s best to fly to Guayaquil for a shorter overall journey time from the UK to Galapagos, which can be booked with flights going via Miami, New York or Bogota from the UK.

Best way to organise your flights from the UK to Galapagos

The best way to book your flights from the UK to Galapagos is to work backwards from which Galapagos Island port your chosen Galapagos liveaboard departs from.

When flying to Galapagos, most people use LATAM Airlines as this airline flies to Baltra Seymour Airport and San Cristobal Airport.

As there are no direct international flights to Galapagos from the UK, you need to stop via one or other of the Ecuadorian cities of Quito or Guayaquil.

But it’s quicker to go via Guayaquil, as most flights to Galapagos from Quito stop in Guayaquil. Whereas flights from Guayaquil fly direct to Galapagos, thereby reducing your overall travelling time by at least one hour.

When you arrange your flights to Galapagos, it’s important you select flight times that carefully consider your Galapagos liveaboard departure and return days. You don’t want to miss the departure of the liveaboard, and you don’t want to miss your home-bound flight back to the UK at the end of your trip either.

The last night of your dive trip will be spent on the liveaboard, and on the following morning you will be transferred by the liveaboard team to your departure Galapagos airport.

Top Tip: Before you arrange and book your flights to Galapagos from the UK, research the Galapagos Liveaboards first. Only once you’ve chosen a liveaboard and reserved a cabin should you proceed to booking your flights. This makes sure you have a place on your chosen liveaboard, before committing to pay for flights to Galapagos from the UK. Having said that, before you choose your Galapagos liveaboard dates, make sure that flights are available to Ecuador for these dates that arrive and depart inline with your liveaboard’s departure and return dates. Only after you’ve booked and paid for your flights should you confirm and pay the deposit on your Galapagos liveaboard trip.

How do you get to the Galapagos from the UK?

To get to the Galapagos from the UK, firstly choose your departing UK airport and book a flight to Guayaquil Airport (GYE) in Ecuador. Then book an internal flight from Guayaquil to one of the two Galapagos airports; Seymore Airport on Baltra Island or San Cristóbal Airport on San Cristóbal Island.

How you get to the Galapagos from the UK in more detail.

Firstly, there are two major airports in Galapagos:

• Seymour Airport (Airport code: GPS) on the island of Baltra (and connects to Santa Cruz via water taxi and bus);
• San Cristóbal Airport (Airport code: SCY) on the island of San Cristóbal (and connects to Isla Lobos Island).

You can fly to either Galapagos airport from the following two major airports in Ecuador:

• José Joaquin de Olmedo International Airport (Airport code: GYE) which is located in Guayaquil;
• Mariscal Sucre International Airport (Airport code: UIO) is in the capital city of Quito (flights go via Guayaquil).

Liveaboards depart from the following Galapagos Islands:

• Baltra Island liveaboards: Fly to Seymour Airport (GPS) from Quito or Guayaquil and the liveaboard crew will pick you up from the airport.
• Santa Cruz Island liveaboards: Fly to Seymour Airport (GPS) from Quito or Guayaquil, which is on Baltra Island and transfer by water taxi or bus, but the liveaboard crew will collect you from the airport on arrival.
• San Cristobal Island liveaboards: Fly to San Cristóbal Airport (SCY) from Quito or Guayaquil and the liveaboard crew will pick you up from the airport.
• Isla Lobos Island liveaboards: Fly to San Cristóbal Airport (SCY) from Quito or Guayaquil and the liveaboard crew will transfer you from the airport to Isla Lobos Island.

Please note that all Galapagos dive liveaboards provide airport transfers, most of which are free but some will charge for this service. To find out which ones charge for airport transfers, please click on the “Review Link” or the “Booking Link” in the table of Galapagos liveaboards below when you have chosen a Galapagos liveaboard you like.

However, the first table includes some of the flight options for getting from the UK to Ecuador enroute to The Galapagos Islands from Heathrow (LHR), Gatwick, Manchester, Birmingham and Newcastle airports.

It’s important to note that the flights in this first table are flights from the UK to Guayaquil in Ecuador only and not to Galapagos. Which means that in addition to booking this first flight, you will also need to book a flight from Guayaquil in Ecuador to either Seymour Airport or San Cristóbal Airport in The Galapagos Islands.

Some Galapagos Liveaboards leave from Baltra Island, but many don’t. This means you need to arrange the correct internal flight from Ecuador. But some liveaboards will arrange flights from Ecuador to Galapagos for you, then you simply arrange your flights from the UK to either Quito or Guayaquil in Ecuador.

There is no accommodation on Baltra Island, so you may be better to book into a hotel near Quito or Guayaquil airports on your day of arrival in Ecuador enroute to Galapagos, and on the night before your flight departure back to the UK, especially if your flight departs early morning.

Flights from Guayaquil take 1.5 hours to get to Galapagos, whereas flights from from Quito take 2.5 hours, as the flights stop on route via Guayaquil Airport. Most Galapagos liveaboards depart between midday and 1pm, which means that if you arrive to the Galapagos airport in the morning, you will have plenty of time for the transfer to the boat.

Flights From the UK To Guayaquil in Ecuador, enroute to Galapagos

Starting Airport in the UK	Airline	Stops	Duration	Final Destination
London Heathrow Airport (LHR)	Iberia	(1 Stop) Madrid, Guayaquil	14:20-16 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Heathrow Airport (LHR)	Finair	(Up to 2 Stops) New York, Miami, Guayaquil	17-23 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Gatwick Airport (LGW)	Air Europa	(Up to 2 Stops) Madrid, Quito, Guayaquil	15:45-21:2 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Heathrow (LHR)	Royal Dutch KLM	(Up to 2 Stops) Amsterdam, Quito, Guayaquil	15-17 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Heathrow (LHR)	Avianca	(1 Stop) Bogota, Guayaquil	15-16:2 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Heathrow (LHR)	Lufthansa	(1 Stop) New York, Guayaquil (2 stops on return via Bogota)	21-20:4 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
London Heathrow (LHR)	British Airways + Iberia	(1 Stop) Madrid, Guayaquil (2 stops on return via Quito)
Manchester Airport (MAN)	Royal Dutch KLM	(Up to 2 Stops) Amsterdam, Quito, Guayaquil	15:30-17:30 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
Birmingham (BHX)	Royal Dutch KLM	(Up to 2 Stops) Amsterdam, Quito, Guayaquil	15:15-17:45 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador
Newcastle (NCL)	Royal Dutch KLM	(Up to 2 Stops) Amsterdam, Quito, Guayaquil	15:30-17:40 hours depending on outbound or inbound flight chosen	Guayaquil (GYE), Ecuador

The above flight information is a sample of flights from UK airports to Guayaquil Airport is taken from Skyscanner.net. Please note: In addition to booking a flight to Guayaquil Airport, you also need to book return flights to Galapagos too.

Table of Galapagos liveaboards

This list of Galapagos liveaboards is in descending customer rating order, followed by Scuba Diving Luxury Rating (SDE Lux Rating, see below), so the liveaboards with the highest customer rating and the best SDE lux rating will be at the top of the list. If you want to change the list order, use the “Sort by” dropdown below. For example, if you want to see these Galapagos liveaboards in “Liveaboard Departure Port” order, use this column to sort the list.

The Scuba Diving Earth Luxury Rating (SDE Lux Rating) is explained on each liveaboard review when you click the “Discover Liveaboard” link, and is my own Liveaboard Luxury Rating I’ve assigned to all liveaboards. Choosing between liveaboards is helped by customer scores, and if you get stuck choosing between two or three liveaboards, where each one has a high customer score out of 10, you can use the SDE Luxury Rating to help narrow down your choice.

Think about it like using Booking.com when searching for the best hotel. Booking.com also use a customer score where each customer rates hotels out of 10. This is similar to the liveaboard customer rating, which is also rated out of 10. But let’s say you only like to stay in hotels rated 8 and above on Booking.com, but you also want the hotel to have WIFI or parking, or to have a swimming pool etc. The features each hotel has is usually secondary to the score out of 10. The same applies to liveaboards, as different liveaboard features are more important to each person.

Map of the Galapagos Islands

You will see from the map of the Galapagos Islands that the small Island of Baltra is on the tip of the larger Island of Santa Cruz, and is closest for the liveaboards going to Darwin and Wolf Islands.

So if your intension is to scuba dive Darwin and Wolf Islands in the Galapagos, a liveaboard departing from Baltra Island might be your best bet. Plus it means the transfer from Baltra airport will be the quickest too.

How long does it take to get to the Galapagos Islands from the UK?

Total flight time from the UK to Galapagos is about 16 hours, depending on which UK airport you fly from and the airline you fly with. Your journey is split between an international flight to Guayaquil in Ecuador, and an internal flight from Guayaquil to Galapagos which of itself takes 1.5 hours.

Often times one of journeys between Galapagos and the UK is slower depending on how many stops are made on the journey.

I hope you enjoyed this article about how to get to Galapagos from UK

I’d love to hear from you. Tell us about your adventures of diving and snorkeling, in the comments below. Please also share your photos. Either from your underwater cameras or videos from your waterproof Gopro’s!

If this article hasn’t answered all of your questions. If you have more questions either about snorkeling or scuba diving (or specifically about how to get to Galapagos from UK), please comment below with your questions.

There will also be many more articles about scuba diving (and snorkeling) for you to read and learn about these fabulous sports.

Have fun and be safe!