Highlights:

· Admire the famous blue-footed boobies

· Share time with playful sea lions

· Engage, dance, and eat with an indigenous community in the Amazon

· Discover the misterious world of the Amazon

· Raft the Amazon rivers with a native guide

· Visit Quito’s Colonial Center, declared World Culture Heritage 

· Visit the Middle of the World and straddle the line separating the northern and southern hemispheres at the ¨Mitad del Mundo¨ monument

Welcome to Ecuador! We will pick you up from the airport and drive you to your hotel. Once settled in, we will enjoy dinner in Quito and have a briefing about the tour to prepare for the adventure ahead.

Day 2

After late brekfast we will start driving south in the Andes. We will cross the Cotopaxi National Park. If lucky we will admire the Cotopaxi snow capped volcano. On the way we will have a stop at a rose farm plantation where we will admire the process of growing one of the finest roses in the world. Arrive to Baños de Agua Santa nested in the bottom of the Tungurahua active volcano. Check in hotel, and time to wonder around town, discovering this unique town. Dinner.

Day 3

After brekfast you will visit the local market where we will have the opportunity to try local fruits and observe the local products. Continue with a visit to a cable car ride, where we will cross the ravines of the Agoyán river, going over the waterfall. Espectacular view of the mountains and waterfall. 

After lunch we will have a drive around Baños to explore the place from different interesting look out points. Dinner 

Day 4

After we will drive deeper into the amazon basin of Ecuador. We will follow the river ravine until we reach Tena city, nested in the amazon Napo province. Arrive to Huasquila Lodge. In the afternoon we will visit an indigenous community and have the chance to learn about their typical dances, customs and traditions. They teach us to preparate guayusa and make the famous chicha.

Day 5

We will start the day with a 1.5 hour drive to the Anzu River. There, we will raft down the calm river, giving us the chance to admire the surrounding flora and fauna, truly one of the best ways to experience the magnificence of the Amazon.

During the trip, we can stop at several points of interest to take pictures and relax on the river.

We will finish our journey around 3:00 pm. Dinner and the rest of the evening are for relaxing and chatting at the lodge (play games, cards, etc.) while enjoying delicious tropical juice or wine.

Note: Even though the river is very calm, for safety reasons, we will raft down the river with a security kayaker at all times. Additionally, each traveler will wear a safety jacket, helmet, and all safety equipment. For the transfer in and out of the boat, we manually assist the guest by using a sliding board and/or manually lifting the guest into the boat.

Day 6

Prepare to go off-roading! With the use an off-road wheelchair, we will go hiking through the secondary rainforest and learn about medicinal plants from a native guide. The path into the rainforest is maintained by the logde and it includes stops along the way. If the weather allows it we will reach a small waterfall and one huge Ceibo tree to finish our hike. After lunch, we will visit local towns of Archidona and Tena to share with locals a typical afternoon in these cute, cozy towns.

Day 7

We will leave the tropical rainforest to enjoy a half day in the Andes at one of the best thermal baths and spa of Ecuador in Papallacta. Here you can enjoy a chocoalte bath or deep massage as well as the mineral healing volcanic pools. In the afternoon we will arrive in Quito. Check in hotel and dinner

Day 8

In the morning we will discover Quito´s famous historical center and admire its unique colonial architecture. We will enter one of its churches and several plazas from the spanish time. 

In the afternoon we will visit the “Mitad del Mundo” (Middle of the World), where we can get a photo straddling the line separating the northern and southern hemispheres. We will also partcipate in different experiments in the interactive museum and have some time to wonder around the central plaza to buy local souvenirs or enjoy a cup of coffee.

Day 9  

Our Galapagos adventure begins with an aprox. 2 hours flight from Quito to San Cristobal Island. After bringing you to your hotel we will have lunch and give you a briefing on the tour. In the afternoon we will snorkel at Lobería Beach, where there is a sea lion colony and around the shore you might see brown pelicans and other sea birds. We can also see sea iguanas and in the snorkel we have again chances to see sea turtles.

Day 10

After breakfast we will visit Cristobal´s Giant Tortoise breeding center. This is a great opportunity to make great pictures of the famous turtles, but also to make a short stop at El Junco Lake in the highlands of the island, see some frigate birds and enjoy the beautiful view from this point. In the afternoon we will go kayaking around the bay to see more birds at the rock son the shores, sea lions and hopefully more interesting wildlife.

Day 11

Today we will enjoy one of Galapagos highlights, snorkel at Kicker Rock. After breakfast we will make a boat ride of aprox. 45 minutes to this natural volcanic formation and have the chance to snorkel with rays, sea turtles and hopefully hammer head sharks. It is also a great opportunity to see blue footed boobies, gulls and frigate birds. In the afternoon after a good rest we will visit the San Cristobal Interpretation Center to learn a bit about its history, present and challenges for the future. We will also go to Tijeretas View Point to admire the island from the top.

Day 12

After breakfast, we will have a last chance to enjoy the beach before we catch our flight. Flight to Quito and connect with international flight out.