Las Grietas and Playa de los Perros: Puerto Ayora’s swim half-day

By David Brito, Galapagos Dana Tours · Mindo, Ecuador · Updated 5 October 2026

Las Grietas is a natural canyon of turquoise water tucked into lava cliffs a short hop from Puerto Ayora, and Playa de los Perros is the quiet, iguana-strewn beach on the walk to it. Together they make the best low-effort afternoon in town: a water taxi, a short walk, a swim in water so clear it looks poured, and a beach most visitors skip. No boat day, no early start, no cruise required.

Las Grietas: the canyon of three pools

Las Grietas is exactly what its name says: a fissure between tall lava walls, filled with brackish water fed by the sea filtering through the rock and rainwater sitting on top of it. Three pools stack up along the canyon, and the water clarity is the attraction — the first pool is the swimmable one for most visitors, with the second and third requiring a bit of rock scrambling and calm water.

The practicalities have changed in recent years, so take these as the current shape of the visit:

• Access: a water taxi from the Puerto Ayora dock across the bay to Playa de los Alemanes, then a roughly 10-minute walk over the headland to the canyon entrance. Budget 30 minutes of walking in total for the walking legs.
• Since 2021 there is a $10-per-person fee for the mandatory guide at the entrance (check current rules); the site is no longer the free-for-all swim it once was.
• The canyon holds a visitor cap, so mornings are quieter and mid-day can queue.
• Swim, don’t climb: the walls are higher than they look, the upper pools require scrambling over wet rock, and the rocks are sharp. Bring reef shoes and a towel; there are no facilities.

Playa de los Perros

The beach sits on the same headland walk, and it is not really a swimming beach: its name (“dogs’ beach”) refers to the sea lions that haul out here. What it offers instead:

• A large colony of marine iguanas on the lava at the beach’s edge, among the most reliable near Puerto Ayora.
• A short trail from the beach to Las Grietas, so the two combine naturally in one outing.
• A small lagoon behind the sand where flamingos sometimes feed, and snorkeling off the rocks when the sea is calm.

Compare it fairly with the alternatives: Tortuga Bay is the archipelago’s postcard and 45 minutes on foot, while Las Grietas and Los Perros take half the time and none of the crowd. Doing both in one trip is entirely reasonable: Tortuga Bay in the morning, the canyon in the afternoon. Our snorkeling guide ranks the swim sites, and the Santa Cruz island guide lists the rest of the island’s walks.

Logistics

• Time needed: half a day, or a long morning.
• Costs: water taxi across the bay, plus the $10 guide fee at Las Grietas since 2021 (confirm on arrival; this is the kind of fee that adjusts).
• Bring: reef shoes, water, sun protection. The lava radiates heat by mid-day and there is no shade in the canyon.
• The standard Galápagos fixed fees still apply to your trip as a whole ($200 park entry for foreign adults, $20 transit card), covered in the entry fee guide.

This is a land-based traveler’s day, and one of the better arguments for sleeping in Puerto Ayora: swim before breakfast, work after, no boat involved. If you are weighing that style of trip against a cruise, cruise vs land is the honest comparison, and getting your bearings shows where the sites sit relative to town.

How the visit runs now

Since the park introduced the guided system, a visit to Las Grietas follows a set rhythm. Water taxis leave from the main pier in Puerto Ayora and cross the bay in five minutes; from the landing at Playa de los Alemanes, the trail passes the salt flats and Playa de los Perros before reaching the canyon entrance, where a park guide meets each group. Groups are capped at 32 people in the canyon at a time, so arrive between 7 and 9 in the morning, when you walk straight in; by late morning there is a wait, and the slots turn over roughly every two hours.

In the water, the first pool is the one most people swim; the second and third require clambering over boulders at the far end and are only open when the guide judges conditions safe. The water is a mix of sea and rainwater, so it is cooler than the bay and clear enough to see the fish at the bottom of the fissure. Bring water shoes, a towel and reef-safe sunscreen, and leave valuables at the hotel: there is nowhere to lock anything, and the rocks are no place for a phone.

Frequently asked questions

How much does Las Grietas cost?

US$10 per person for the mandatory park guide, since 2021, plus the water taxi across the bay from Puerto Ayora. Groups are capped at 32 people in the canyon at a time.

Can I swim at Playa de los Perros?

It is not really a swimming beach; the attraction is the marine iguana colony and the sea lions that rest there, plus snorkelling from the rocks on calm days.

How long does the visit take?

Half a day: a five-minute water taxi, a 10-minute walk to the canyon, time in the pools and the walk back past the beach. Go early to avoid the midday queue.

Sources

• Visitor sites of the Galápagos National Park, Galápagos National Park Directorate
• Visiting rules, Galápagos National Park Directorate
• Marine iguana assessment (2020), IUCN Red List

Last verified: October 2026