ECUADORIAN AMAZON

Day 1: Quito

Upon arrival at Mariscal Sucre International Airport in Quito, our representative will be waiting to assist your transfer to your hotel located in Colonial Quito. Quito became a World Cultural Heritage by UNESCO in 1978. The colonial churches and monasteries dating back to 1535, when the Spaniards first colonized South America.

Overnight: Hotel of your choice

Day 2: Quito City Tour

Your guide will be at the Hotel at 9:30 AM to start a full day Quito program with lunch in a typical restaurant in the old city. Later you will go up to Pichincha by cable car.

Due to the beauty and history of colonial Quito, the main emphasis is given to Independence Square, where it is possible to see and photograph the House of the President, the Cathedral and the City Hall.  After that you’ll get the chance to visit the Compañía de Jesus and the San Francisco Square and monastery.

Overnight: Hotel of your choice

Day 3: Napo Wildlife Center 5 days / 4 nights program

After breakfast, you will have a transfer to the airport for your flight to Coca.

The short flight will take you over the Eastern Andes Mountain Range, crossing the equator and looking at snow-capped volcanoes from the air.  You will navigate in a motorized canoe the Napo river, a headwater of the Amazon. You’ll go on a 2 hour boat ride downstream through the largest Ecuadorian tributary to the Amazon. To access the lodge you may either take a guided hike 2 ½ km (1,5 miles) following a trail inside a rich forest or embark on a quiet canoe ride with the company of your guide. The journey takes about 1 1/2 hours through a thick palm forest. At the end of the walk or canoe ride, you will reach Añangu Lake and have a superb view of the lodge, which is located at the other side of it.

Overnight: Napo Wildlife Center                            

Day 4: NAPO WILDLIFE CENTER. The TOWER AND TERRA FIRME FOREST

The day will start off with a buffet breakfast, followed by a short walk to reach the tower of 36 m high.  It takes a while to reach the top, but the view is amazing as you can observe the jungle from above.  In the area they have recorded 567 species of fauna; amongst these are tanagers, macaws, toucans, flycatchers and different species of monkeys and other mammals, such as river otters and armadillos. You’ll then return to the lodge for a typical Ecuadorian lunch. In the afternoon you’ll have plenty of options to choose from, such as climbing the tower to go bird-watching, go on a beautiful hike through the forest, swimming in the lake, or just relaxing in your hammock surrounded by the sounds of the forest.

Dinner is served at 7:30 pm.

Overnight: Napo Wildlife Center    

Day 5: NAPO WILDLIFE CENTER, PARROT CLAY LICK

In the morning you’ll head to the parrot clay lick.  It’s an early start where you’ll have to paddle downstream on the Añangu creek. From there you will take a motorboat to view hundreds of parrots as they eat the salt and other minerals from the clay walls alongside the Napo river.

Later, there will be a short hike to the clay lick, where several cobalt-winged parakeets lie on the top of the trees waiting for their turn to eat minerals found in the clay walls.

You’ll be provided with a box lunch in the Añangu community, and after that you’ll visit the interpretation center where you will learn about the traditions of the ancestral river Quechua community. In the afternoon you will you’ll then return to the lodge following the creek. When canoeing down the river you will see a lot of wildlife along the riverbanks or on the trees.  It is common to see monkeys, alligators, snakes, and many species of birds.

Dinner at 7:30 PM

Overnight: Napo Wildlife Center    

Day 6: NAPO WILDLIFE CENTER, SWAMP FOREST AND TERRA FIRME

After breakfast you will have the option to go on a hike through the Tiputini trail in the terra-firma and swamp forests (Varsea), searching for wildlife such as the: Golden Mantled Tamarins, White-Faced capuchin monkeys, three toed sloths, pygmy squirrels, and more. You will go back to the lodge for lunch and a well-deserved rest. In the afternoon you will be able to paddle and explore the surrounding creeks with more possibilities of seeing unique wildlife.

Dinner will be served at 7:30 PM

Overnight: Napo Wildlife Center    

Day 7: Anangu Creek. Pm:  Drive To Baños

After an early breakfast you’ll go on your last excursion through the Napo River. There may be a chance to see Giant Otters, Saki Monkeys, Hoatzins and many other species of birds. The motorized canoe will then take you back to Coca, where you’ll drive due south and west, towards Baños de Agua Santa, located in a valley of waterfalls, on the Eastern Cloud Forest.

Baños is a popular destination for people seeking a small-town atmosphere and adventure, as it is the base for exploring the great Ecuadorian outdoors. You will have the chance to rappel down a waterfall, cross a canyon on a cable car while enjoying the spectacular views that the Andes, white water rafting, bungy jumping.

Overnight: Hotel of your choice     

Day 8: Day At Leisure In Baños

Today you will enjoy the Hotel surroundings, the spa or if you are more adventurous you can venture into Baños town to visit the village and to sign up to different activities, river rafting, biking, rappelling, and other fun activities.

Overnight: Hotel of your choice

Day 9: Quilotoa / Cotopaxi

After breakfast, you will depart due west to Latacunga, Pujili and then the Quilotoa Crater Lake and volcano, a spectacular crater lake filled with emerald green waters.

In the afternoon, you will drive towards Cotopaxi National Park where you will spend the night and enjoy a delicious dinner at the Hotel.

Overnight: Hotel Los Mortiños or similar 

Day 12: Cotopaxi National Park

In the morning you will visit and make the best of Cotopaxi National Park, where you can find natural springs, patches of native forest and vegetation, tundra-like landscape and wildlife.  You will enjoy the most outstanding scenery, with Cotopaxi Volcano standing 5,897 meters above sea level.  Its cone shape and the snow peak make the most beautiful photographs and sights.  Lunch will be served in Tambopaxi, and once you’re finished, you’ll return back to Quito.

Overnight: Wyndham or San Jose.

Day 13: Return back home.

Early morning you will have a private transfer to the airport for your flight back home.

Note: Prices will vary depending on the hotel of your choice and if you choose to go on shared or private tours.