Concha de Perla Lagoon

In Isabela, Galapagos

The Concha de Perla Lagoon in Isabela is a beautiful lagoon full of mangroves that you can visit just a short walk from Puerto Villamil town. You don’t have to pay for the entrance and is great for a family escape or snorkeling adventure.

Concha de Perla Lagoon: General Details

To reach the Concha de Perla Lagoon or Pearl Shell’s lagoon, you can either go by taxi, bike, or on foot. I advise you to go on foot as it’s almost literally in the middle of the city.

• Distance to town: 1 km
• Walking time:  15 minutes
• Opening hours: 6:00 h - 18:00 h

Important: It’s not permitted to fish, or disturb the animals around the lagoon. There’s a sign at the entrance. More information on the official Isabela website here.

How To Get to Concha de Perla Lagoon?

To get to the Concha de Perla lagoon just leave the passenger pier of Puerto Villamil and on your right side, you will find a wooden board with the directions. You will have to walk on the wooden path for 200 meters and you will find the beautiful lagoon at the end. If you come from downtown and you have the beach on your back just walk straight to the main avenue “Antonio Gil”  and go to your right and you will eventually reach the pier after 12-13 minutes.

Concha de Perla Lagoon location

What to Bring to the Concha de Perla Lagoon?

Clothing & Accessories:

• Tshirt: Breathable Tshirt (Tech or Merino), or a Lycra
• Shorts: Swimming Clothes
• Shoes: Flip Flops
• Hat: Cap
• Sunglasses
• Dry-fast Towel
• Earth Pak Waterproof Dry Bag
• Change of Clothes

Useful Extras:

• GoPro/Camera
• Snorkeling Gear: Mask, Tube, and Fins
• Mosquito Repellent: The beaches on the Galapagos islands, especially at sunset, have a lot of mosquitos and usually also horseflies or “Tabanos” as they are called in Spanish and they are silent and leave you with a huge unpleasant swollen bite.
• Sunscreen 50 SPF
• Food / Snacks
• Thermos or Water-filtering Bottle

Check out my complete guide on What’s in My Backpack - From photography gear, and clothing for Hiking, Mountaineering, Scuba Diving, Rainforest, and City-Street Photography.

What Can i See on the Concha de Perla Lagoon?

You will definitely see marine iguanas on the wooden deck before entering the water and exotic beautiful fish. With luck, you might spot some turtles and perhaps some reef sharks and rays. For your own safety and for the animals, don’t touch any of the animals or corals as they are all living things and can get damaged if you do so.

The wooden passage

My Experience on the Concha de Perla Lagoon

I went to the lagoon right after arriving from the Sierra Negra Volcano Tour. I changed my wet clothes from the previous tour, put my snorkeling kit in the bag, and started walking to the lagoon. Once I arrived there there were already a couple of people on the wooden deck, together with a dozen marine iguanas. The weather wasn’t so pleasant but I eventually jumped in. People were saying they saw eagle rays and some baby reef sharks so I tried my luck.

A marine iguana chilling on the wooden deck

Swimming in the these beautiful turquoise waters

I could see many fish, some turtles, and a sting ray, but no other special encounter. As it was getting close to sunset time there were many mosquitos on the surface of the water which wasn’t so pleasant. There were also many cleaning fishes biting my feet, which was also a bit annoying. All in all, it’s a beautiful lagoon and if you come a bit earlier and there’s sun it’s possibly very enjoyable. Don’t forget your snorkel kit or you will not see the fish biting your feet and I guess it’s worst than seeing them. What about you, have you already been to the Concha de Perla Lagoon in Isabela island?  Leave me a comment down here if you did and after you’ve been, your impression. Thanks for reading through and I hope you have fun exploring the lagoon!

Puerto Villamil passenger pier

The beginning of the path to Concha de Perla