• Ecuador’s ministry of tourism has announced that tourists to the Galapagos Islands will be asked to pay twice as much in entry fees from this year.

• The move comes amid concerns that a rise in visitor numbers is putting pressure on the ecologically sensitive destination.

• This is the first increase in Galapagos entry fees since 1998.

• The additional money will go toward conservation efforts for the islands

Galapagos Islands

• The Galapagos Islands are located in the Pacific Ocean some 1,000 km from the Ecuadorian coast.

• It is composed of 127 islands, islets and rocks, of which 19 are large and four are inhabited. 

• About 97 per cent of the total surface (7,665,100 ha) was declared National Park in 1959. Human settlements are restricted to the remaining 3 per cent in specifically zoned rural and urban areas on four islands. 

• The islands are surrounded by the Galapagos Marine Reserve which was created in 1986 and extended to its current area in 1998, making it one of the largest marine reserves in the world. 

• The marine reserve includes inland waters of the archipelago in addition to all those contained within 40 nautical miles, measured from the outermost coastal islands. 

• The Galapagos Marine Reserve is an underwater wildlife spectacle with abundant life ranging from corals to sharks to penguins to marine mammals.

• Airports on two islands (Baltra and San Cristobal) receive traffic from continental Ecuador with another airport on Isabela mostly limited to inter-island traffic. 

• All the inhabited islands have ports to receive merchandise. The other uninhabited islands are strictly controlled with carefully planned tourist itineraries limiting visitation. 

• Around 30,000 people live on the islands, and approximately 170,000 tourists visit the islands each year.

• This archipelago and its immense marine reserve is known as the unique  “living museum and showcase of evolution”. 

• Its geographical location at the confluence of three ocean currents makes it one of the richest marine ecosystems in the world.

• It is also known as the “world’s most extensive biodiversity laboratory”.

• To preserve this open-air biological museum, whose uniqueness made it the first site inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List.

• The main threats to the Galapagos are the introduction of invasive species, increased tourism, demographic growth, illegal fishing and governance issues.

• The La Cumbre volcano on the island of Fernandina is one of the most active in the Galapagos Island chain.

• The archipelago is famous for helping 19th century British scientist Charles Darwin develop his theory of evolution.

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