Water Temperature in Galapagos

Jenny Waack (founder of Galapagos Shark Diving®) and Jonathan Green (Tour Leader of Galapagos Shark Diving® and Director of Galapagos Whale Shark Project) discuss, “What is the Temperature in Galapagos Islands?” The information in this post was extracted from a Travel EmOcean podcast episode recorded on July 1, 2020. Click here to listen to the full episode.

When visitors come to the Galapagos, they expect the Islands to be tropical, hot, and steamy all year round. The Galapagos does have a hot season, but around about May and June, as the trade winds are picking up, you get two powerful marine currents that affect the area massively. One comes in the west around Fernandina and Isabella and is the Cromwell Current. And that's an upwelling submarine current. And the other one is the Humboldt Current, which originates down in the south, comes up the Chile Peru Coast along the equator, and arrives in the Galapagos from the south. Both currents enter the Galapagos between 9 and 11 degrees Celsius, or 52 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit, so very cold waters. But the counterpart is the almost hot water coming from Central America. This is the Panama Current, and it's coming into the Galapagos with water around about 29 to 30 degrees Celsius, about 90 to 92 degrees Fahrenheit. This warm water mixes with the very cold water, resulting in an average sea surface temperature around the Galapagos, with some parts being cooler than others. 

The Galapagos Archipelago experiences varied temperatures across its regions due to unique geographical and oceanographic factors. Here’s a breakdown of average temperatures by region and how it may influence your dive experience.

Northern Islands (Wolf and Darwin) 

In the northernmost islands like Wolf and Darwin, sea surface temperatures during the cooler season (June to November) typically range between 22 to 26 degrees Celsius (72 to 79 degrees Fahrenheit). However, temperatures here aren’t static; they fluctuate due to the movement of the Equatorial front—a shifting boundary between the warm northern waters and cooler southern waters. This moving boundary causes temperature shifts of up to 2-3 degrees Celsius (around 5-10 degrees Fahrenheit) on a regular basis, varying from season to season and even week to week.

Western Islands (Isabela & Fernandina)

The western side of the Galapagos, including the islands of Isabela and Fernandina, tends to be much cooler. Average sea surface temperatures here range from 16 to 18 degrees Celsius (61 to 64 degrees Fahrenheit) during the cool season. This makes the western waters noticeably colder than those around Wolf and Darwin, so divers should be prepared for a cooler experience in these areas.

Eastern Islands (Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, & Santiago)

The main islands along the eastern side of the archipelago, such as Santa Cruz, San Cristobal, and Santiago, generally experience milder temperatures. Average sea surface temperatures here range between 19 and 20 degrees Celsius (66 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit), providing a more moderate diving environment.

If you’re sensitive to colder water, a 7mm wetsuit is usually sufficient for the Galapagos. In the cooler regions, like the western islands, consider layering with a hood or vest for extra warmth. While a drysuit isn’t typically necessary, it’s an option if you prefer additional warmth—just keep in mind it might impact your air consumption and dive duration. It’s always better to be prepared for colder water; you can remove a hood during a dive if you get too warm, but it’s impossible to add layers once underwater!

For more information on our recommended dive gear for Galapagos diving, take a look at our detailed blog post. Click Here

One of the surprises for everybody, when they go to the Galapagos is that you find penguins on the equator. It's the only penguin species worldwide that occurs on the equator and goes up into the Northern hemisphere. It followed the marine currents up from Antarctica to Chile, Peru, out along the equator, and then established in the Galapagos Islands and the Galapagos Penguin endemic species. You do see different species there because of the water temperatures. One of the things about the Galapagos is the diversity of the fauna you find out there and the different conditions you find when diving. If you want to divide it into different biological or geographical areas, you could say that Galapagos has three mini-worlds within one cosmos. So you have tropical areas, subtropical areas, and temperate or cold water areas.

In May/ June, the trade winds, or the Southeast winds, start to pick up in this region. Ecuador and the Galapagos are in what we call the doldrums in terms of the climate, so it’s an area that for several months of the year that has no wind whatsoever. During the era of the sailing ships, when they were trading up the Pacific coast, it was the fear of every mariner to be caught in the Doldrums because, with a sailing boat, you can’t move when there is no wind. The trade winds begin in June and are constant until the end of the cool season (November/ December). This time of year was good for the old sailing vessels. However, for us divers aboard a liveaboard, it means when you are getting into the water and when you are getting out of the water, it can often be a little bit chilly when getting back on the vessel itself. 

In summary, the best recommendation we can give you is to take a pair of long trousers and a sweater or fleece for the evening and the night. When you go to the Galapagos, ensure that you are prepared for very diverse conditions above and below the water.