Annual visitor numbers to the Galápagos have risen by around 138% in two decades, and the argument over Galápagos tourism is moving on from whether people should go to how they should go about it.
That question comes to London on 8 October 2026, when Galapagos Conservation Trust holds its annual Galapagos Day under the title “Should you go to Galapagos?”
For UK businesses, the debate has a practical edge. The islands are a natural extension for staff working in Ecuador or elsewhere in South America, and firms that report on the footprint of travel will want any leave or incentive time added to a trip to stand up to scrutiny. One model on offer is Montemar Eco Luxury Villas, founded by Ecuadorian conservationists Reyna Oleas, an ecologist, and Roberto Plaza, a biologist, within 43 acres of restored giant tortoise habitat in the highlands of Santa Cruz.
Should you go to the Galápagos?
A growing number of conservationists say yes, provided growth is carefully managed. Writing in 2009, Sir David Attenborough called tourism a “necessary evil”, arguing that conservation cannot succeed unless local communities gain from protecting their home. Galápagos tourism brings income to those communities and to conservation work, but its rapid expansion also adds environmental pressure. This year’s Galapagos Day, hosted by Kate Humble at 1 Wimpole Street, is listed on the Galapagos Conservation Trust events page.
Reyna Oleas, co-founder of Montemar Eco Luxury Villas, said: “The question is not simply whether people should visit the Galápagos, but what kind of tourism we want to support. Visitors can play an important role in the islands’ future, but tourism needs to work within the limits of this extraordinary ecosystem. For us, that means keeping things small, restoring habitat and helping guests understand that conservation is not separate from their experience of the Galápagos – it is at the heart of it.”
Almost 191 years after HMS Beagle arrived with Charles Darwin aboard on 15 September 1835, science is turning to the highlands. The GArua project, launched in 2026 and coordinated by Marburg University with the Charles Darwin Foundation and the Galápagos National Park Directorate, is studying how climate change and invasive species could affect the cloud forests and the garúa, the seasonal mist that waters them. In June, researchers also reported a record breeding season for the Little Vermilion Flycatcher on Santa Cruz, with 56 fledglings against 39 in 2025.
A smaller-scale approach to Galápagos tourism
Villa Tortuga sleeps up to eight and Villa Lechuza up to four, and both can be booked together for exclusive use. There is no fixed itinerary: stays are planned with the hosts and local naturalist guides, taking in giant tortoises, wildlife trips, snorkelling and diving, yacht excursions to neighbouring islands or tastings of coffee grown on the estate, with guests returning each evening to the same base.
Montemar is B Corp certified, with solar energy and water systems, organic growing and locally sourced food. Its organic coffee helps fund conservation, and meals are cooked privately at the villas.
What it means for business travel
For companies, the appeal lies in the scale. Two villas sleeping 12 between them suit a small leadership group, a client reward or a family joining an employee after meetings on the mainland, without a cruise timetable dictating the days. A single base on Santa Cruz also brings the islands’ farms, producers and communities into the trip, a side of the destination that is easy to miss from the water, as our feature on protecting Galápagos biodiversity amid tourism challenges explains.
With Galápagos visitor numbers still climbing, the B Corp certification gives travel managers something concrete to cite when signing off a stay, and the model sits within the wider move towards regenerative travel for business travellers. It also chimes with the appetite for low-density luxury in places such as the Galápagos.
Montemar accepts that any trip to the islands carries an environmental cost and argues the point is to make that impact count. For employers weighing Galápagos tourism against their sustainability commitments, that is a fair test.
