Isabela Island, Ecuador

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Step into the past in Puerto Villamil where the streets are made of sand. Puerto Villamil is Puerto Ayora twenty years ago, and now is the time to visit before it's overrun with tourism. Isabela, being the largest island in the Archipelago, is not often visited because most animal life is on the western side - too far for most cruise ships. It looks as if this is going to change in the next few years.

Here, you can see the second largest volcanic crater in the world - Santo Tomas. On the western side are the penguin and flightless cormorant colonies, the only flightless cormorant in the world. Again, the only way to get to these colonies is via a bigger, more expensive cruise, or a longer, two-week cruise.

Even though you can't make it to the western side of the island, Puerto Villamil is worth a week. You can rent a cabin on the beach for about $24.00/day in low season. Split amongst friends, it turns out to be pretty inexpensive. You can hire horses to get to Santo Tomas or trek over to the Muro de las Lagrimas, a historical visitor site reportedly built by convicts. There are countless marine turtles as well as nests. Oftentimes, during nesting season, The Charles Darwin Foundation is looking for volunteers to help them mark nests. If you've got the time, sign up to get an up close and hands on experience with these amazing animals. Snorkeling is fantastic as well as the ambiance.

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