Tortuga Bay, Beach in Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz Island, Ecuador

Tortuga Bay is a beach on the south coast of Santa Cruz Island in the Galápagos, reached by a paved trail from Puerto Ayora. It splits into two sections: Playa Brava, where swimming is forbidden, and Playa Mansa, a sheltered cove with mangroves and a tidal lagoon.

The Galápagos Islands were first recorded by Europeans in 1535 and appeared on maps by Gerardus Mercator and Abraham Ortelius around 1570. The name of the islands came from the giant tortoises found there, and Tortuga Bay keeps that reference alive on Santa Cruz Island.

The name comes from the Spanish word for turtle, a nod to the giant tortoises that shaped the identity of these islands. Today visitors share the sand with marine iguanas, red and black crabs, and sea lions, and the quiet lagoon near Playa Mansa is a common spot for watching whitetip reef sharks below the surface.

The trail from Puerto Ayora takes about 30 to 45 minutes on foot, and you must sign in at the small national park hut at the trailhead. Bring your own food, water, sun protection, and snorkel gear, since there are no shops, cafés, bathrooms, or changing rooms after the trail begins.

Marine iguanas on this beach often snort salt from their noses after diving for algae, a behavior that surprises many first-time visitors. Green sea turtles also nest in the dunes behind the sand, leaving faint tracks that are easy to miss unless you look closely.