Santiago Island & Surrounding Dive Sites

Cousins Rock

A well known dive site north of Bartolome on the east side of Santiago. This triangular shaped rock made up of wafer like basalt layers and is a frequent site for both live-aboards and day tours. Its popularity of this site is due to the interesting series of ledges and overhangs and the vast number of species that can be seen here. An excellent spot for macro photography with smaller animals like sea horses, frogfish, hawkfish, nudibranches. There are also hammerheads, whitetip reef sharks, large groups of golden eagle rays, starfish, black coral, turtles, creolefish, barracuda, and fur seals.

Cousins Rock information

Bartolome

The most recognized and photographed spot in Galapagos, this site is always combined with diving at Cousins Rock. Highlights include stingrays, turtles, whitetips, plenty of fish, invertebrates, interesting rock formation with crevices and penguins.

Bartolome information

Albany

Off the northwest end of Santiago lies the small crescent shaped island of Albany Rock. This protected cove with little current has an interesting sloping rock wall covered in sea fans, yellow black coral, large boulders rocks, and underwater pinnacles with many crevices. Large groups of pacific barracuda school in the currents. Playful sea lions, marine turtles, golden eagle rays and Galapagos sharks are all seen here. Other species can be found among the rocks and protected crevices including abandoned barnacles, large banded blennies, tiger nudibranch and in the sand the red-lipped batfish.

Albany information

Beagle Rocks

These three large exposed rocks located on the southeast of Santiago Island, about 1 1/2 hours from the channel. This beginner to intermediate drift dive begins along a underwater platform and leading to a sloped wall, covered with black coral and sea fans. This area has an abundance of fish including grunts, surgeonfish, yellowtail snapper, king angelfish, butterflyfish, creolefish, flag cabrilla, and schools of brown-stripped salema. Moray eels, golden eagle rays, golden cowrays, turtles, hammerheads and Galapagos sharks are frequent sites.

Beagle Rocks information

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