Ecuador Adventure | Trip Itinerary

 

Day 1: Arrival to Quito. You will be met as you exit the airport, and transferred to your hotel.

Day 2: Quito City Tour. Enjoy a leisurely tour through Colonial Quito taking in the most important and famous sights. You will visit the Plaza de Independencia overlooked by the Parliament Building, scene of many revolutions in Ecuador’s brief but dramatic history. Included in the itinerary is a visit to the Compañia and San Francisco churches with their impressive façades and gilt interiors that have changed little since the days of the Spanish occupation. The tour is completed with a drive up to the Panecillo Hill where you can enjoy a spectacular panoramic view of Quito and the surrounding mountains. Overnight at hotel (B)

Day 3: Pintag In the early hours of the morning, you will leave Quito on a one and a half hour drive to the rural area  of “Pintag” from where you will start your trek at 8,600ft. You will enjoy a moderate uphill walk through Haciendas and past typical Andean houses. The trek continues until you reach the Ubillus rural area where you will set up camp by a natural spring at 9,100ft. (B, L, D)

Day 4: Sincholagua Mountain Today you will start walk through typical Andean vegetation on a beautiful scenic cobblestone road for about 2 hours, and continue walking through farmlands for about one hour. After your picnic lunch you will start a 3-hour uphill trek to a small valley and enjoy the beautiful sight of the Paramo landscape. You will continue uphill until reaching the slopes of the Sincholagua Mountain where camp will be set up at 12,450ft. (B, L, D)

Day 5: Sincholagua – Pita River. After an early breakfast we start our trek uphill towards the highest pass (14,430ft) on our trek and from here we start our descent passing through a native forest and highland Paramo vegetation with extraordinary views or the Cotopaxi (on clear days) as we continue our descent we will be able to see the Sinig Lagoon to our left, to then follow-on and across the Pita river in order to reach our camp a very nice and sheltered place. Camp (12,210ft). (B, L, D)

Day 6:   Manantial-Limpiopungo-Patate After breakfast, this morning we will continue our trek for another 4 hours that will take us to the Manantial, a great location surrounded by a few small hills and a small river that comes straight out of the bottom of one of this hills. Continuing our trek we will reach the archeological site called Incahuasi, a beautiful plain lying between Sincholagua and Cotopaxi, before walking on to Rumiñahui (4,712m/15,455ft) and the Limpiopungo lake in the valley of Cotopaxi. After lunch, a 2-hour drive, passing along the picturesque "Avenue of the Volcanoes" takes you to Patate where you will spend the night at a nice hacienda. (B, L, D)

Day 7: Bike tour to – Baños . Today in the morning we will bike downhill to Baños, a small town nestled in the shadows of the Tungurahua volcano high above the Amazon Basin. The area is rich in vegetation and orchids and is famous for its nearby hot springs that provide hot running water to the local baths. Enjoy lunch in Baños, and time to stroll around the town. Afternoon return to hacienda for overnight (B, L, D)

Day 8: Baños-Puyo –Cotococha. We wake early the next morning and head east to the Amazon rainforest. The first thing that hits us when we arrive is the air. It's so heavy with oxygen and humidity it envelops and surrounds you with a rich stillness. Overnight at jungle lodge. (B, L, D)

Day 9: Cotococha - Jatunyacu Rafting. The adventure begins where the road ends, at the highest accessible point of the Rio Napo, in a remote spot in the jungle. Here we begin our raft of the upper Rio Napo, known locally as the Rio Jatunyacu, “big water” in native Quechua dialect. Afternoon return to lodge for a jungle walk . (B, L, D)

Day 10: Cotococha – Quito. After breakfast, we begin our return to Quito. On our way we stop at the Papallacta Hot Springs for a soothing dip in the clear healing waters of the thermal pools surrounded by lush vegetation. We dip into the many warm springs and cool off in the fresh mountain air, refreshed after our jungle excursion. We will have lunch on this place. Overnight Quito (B, L)

Day 11: Departure. Transfer to the airport for your departure flight. (B)

B=Breakfast; L=Lunch; D=Dinner

Departures

Any day June thru December

Price

$1875 p/p

$240 single supp

Travel Style
recommended custom itinerary