Like much of Ecuador, the Galápagos Islands are extremely welcoming to nomads. For most people, the Galápagos Islands are an escape for the rich, floating around on their cruises between the islands, but there’s a whole hive of life and activity on the islands themselves and are much more accessible for the less affluent among us. You can see more about life as a nomad on the Galápagos Islands in my trip report.
For this article, I’m focusing on the island of Santa Cruz, which is the Galápagos’ most populous and second-largest island. Santa Cruz is connected to Baltra (GPS) Airport, which is the main airport serving the islands, so it’s a key focal point for many that visit the islands. The island itself is impressively large, the drive from the airport to the town centre itself is upwards of 45-minutes.
Once you arrive in the town centre of Puerto Ayora, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to find a wealth of coffee shops, restaurants and gift shops. With that, read on for our recommendations for the top cafés that digital nomads can work from in Santa Cruz.
1. Islander Coffee Roasters
Wifi: 12mbps
Food: Yes
Power Points: No
Outside Space: Yes
As the name implies, they roast their coffee in-house. There’s plenty of seating here both inside and outside and it’s open Tuesday to Sunday from 8am to 1pm and again from 4pm to 8:30pm. Note that it closes at 2pm on a Sunday.
As well as some of the best coffee you can get in the Galápagos they have an extensive menu of food including bowls, sandwiches and pastries. Note that their wi-fi is the slowest on the list and whilst it’s fine for browsing, you’ll struggle with streaming video or calls (not that you should be doing the latter in a café anyway!).
2. ØY
Wifi: 130mbps
Food: Yes
Power Points: Yes
Outside Space: Limited
ØY, pronounced “uy” is Norwegian for “island” and is just across the street from Islander. ØY opens at 9am Thursday through Monday and, like Islander, they take a break for lunch. This is a great little spot for a coffee with some seating inside and a couple of little tables outside too – the real benefit are the power points! Just note it’s the most expensive coffee I found on my Galápagos travels at a whopping $5.50 a cup, yikes!
3. Tantum Galápagos Coffee Shop
Wifi: 90mbps
Food: Yes
Power Points: Yes
Outside Space: Yes
This is a hard little place to find as it doesn’t show up on Google Maps (note: I’ve just added it, hopefully it shows up), but you can find it on Avenida Charles Binford, specifically, here, next door to Serial Chiller clothes shop.
This is a proper specialty coffee shop and idea for the coffee snob with ample seating indoor and out, plus they have power points. Like many places in Santa Cruz, they open in the morning from 9-12, close for the afternoon and then reopen at 4pm.
4. Art Coffee Galápagos
Wifi: 60mbps
Food: Yes
Power Points: No
Outside Space: Limited
Art Coffee can be found en route to the Charles Darwin Station. They’re situated on the first floor and offer everything you’d expect of a typical café, but what’s nice about here is that they have a little balcony with a raised table which is perfect for working from your laptop.
5. 1835 Restaurant & Coffee Shop
Wifi: 120mbps
Food: Yes
Power Points: Yes
Outside Space: Yes
1835 is probably Santa Cruz’s most popular spot, open all day serving breakfast, lunch and dinner. They’re on the corner of Avenida Charles Darwin and Calle 63, which makes a great people-watching spot. And if you get peckish? They have a comprehensive menu of food, too.
