A thousand kilometres from mainland South America, life on the Galápagos follows different rules. Cormorants can't fly. Iguanas can swim. Tortoises don't die (OK, they do, eventually, but some have lived nearly 200 years). Animals, having lived so long without us, don't fear us, and barely blink at a camera snap. The islands are famed, of course, as the place where Charles Darwin developed his ideas on evolution by natural selection. The process is more obvious here than elsewhere on Earth, since animals that otherwise look alike diverge subtly from island to island, depending on their environment. Nearly 200 years after Darwin's journey on the HMS Beagle, naturalists and laypeople alike continue to be astonished by the archipelago's stunning diversity and sheer strangeness. Here you'll find blue-footed boobies performing cartoonish mating dances, colonies of inky- black marine iguanas creeping through the spiky brush, penguins zooming underwater like cruise missiles, puppy-like fur seals lounging on volcanic rocks. The landscape has an off- kilter beauty - brackish lagoons edged with rusty-red carpetweed, bulbous prickly pear cacti (the tortoises' favourite food), copses of fern-draped Scalesia trees, black volcanoes disgorging fresh lava. The 17 islands are part of the Galápagos National Park. Here, the label 'ecotourism' isn't just greenwashing. The airport runs on wind and solar power and is made mostly from recycled materials. Each municipality has a strict sustainability plan. Tour operators must adhere to clean water and energy rules. Still, it behoves travellers to use companies that go the extra mile. It doesn't take much a stray plastic bottle, a stowaway mouse - to irrevocably alter this enchanted place.

Why is the Galapagos island so famous?

Facts Six hundred miles off the coast of Ecuador are the volcanic Galapagos Islands, which are found nowhere else in the world due to their abundance of unique flora and fauna. The Galapagos Islands were the origin of Darwin's theory of evolution and remain a valuable laboratory for scientists today.

Why it is called Galapagos?

In 1570, the Galapagos Islands were included in a world atlas by the Flemish cartographer Abraham Ortelius. He named these islands "Insulae de los de Galapagos". The shell of the giant tortoises reminded visitors of a horse's saddle, and Galapagos is derived from the Spanish word for saddle.

Where are the Galapagos?

Now you are wondering where the Galapagos Islands are and how to get there. The Galapagos Islands are located 1000 km off the coast of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean. The Galapagos archipelago consists of 13 large islands, 6 smaller islands, and many islands.

Why is Galapagos Islands so expensive?

Galapagos is not a cheap destination and cheap travel is not recommended. The Galapagos Islands are more expensive than mainland Ecuador, mainly because of their location and the logistics of maintaining tourism sustainability and contributing to community development.