15D14N Ecuador: Natural Wonders & Ancient Cultures with Galápagos Cruise

Welcome to Ecuador, where your Quito hotel is available for mid-afternoon check-in.

On an included city tour with a Local Guide, see Independence Square with its Government and the Bishops Palace as well as the Cathedral. On the way to San Francisco Square, visit the church of La Compañia, which has the most ornate and richly sculptured façade and interior. Afterwards, step inside the church of San Francisco. Then enjoy a behind-the-scenes immersion on a specific topic of pre-Colombian art at the El Alabado Museum, one of the best archaeological collections of Ecuador. Its non-conventional design is housed inside a restored patrimonial house. Tonight, enjoy dinner at a local restaurant featuring Ecuadorian dishes.

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Travel to Otavalo and appreciate the stunning landscapes: the arid and fertile Guayllabamba gorge, the snow-capped Cayambe volcano that represents the highest point on the equator line in the world, and the San Pablo Lake with its stunning backgrounds that offer picture-worthy panoramas. En route, visit the Quitsato Sundial Monument Located, situated exactly on the equator. The circular platform, with a 178ft (54m) diameter, aims to share the astronomical knowledge of pre-Hispanic cultures. Continue to Otavalo for a visit to a fascinating wool weaving workshop. Later, visit the Otavalo Market, hosting a variety of handcrafted items. This ancient market boasts colorful stalls filled with an excellent selection of handwoven crafts: belts, tapestries, ponchos, carpets, sweaters, and other textiles. This is the perfect place to get yourself or your loved ones a souvenir! Return to Quito for a free evening.

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After breakfast, travel to the Amazon region. En route, visit a rose plantation for a guided tour. Continue into the Amazon—a stone’s throw from the eastern slopes of the Andes. At the edge of the Napo River, you’ll find Ahuano Point, a small but growing village, where many Quichua people do their daily shopping. It was here, in this reverie hamlet, where Swiss expatriate Beni Ammeter opened a general store in 1985. In those days, when foreign travelers made their way to Ahuano and needed a place to stay, they were inevitably directed to La Casa del Suizo. Happy to have visitors from afar, Beni warmly welcomed them into his home. Eventually, his residence became so popular that he constructed a few cabins to better accommodate the steady flow of travelers. Enjoy a 2-night stay here in a rustic, yet tastefully constructed cabaña, nestled comfortably above the banks of the Napo River. Take in the exquisite views, which can be peacefully enjoyed from the privacy of one’s own hammock.

Please note: The itinerary in the Amazon is subject to favorable weather conditions and water levels. When conditions are unfavorable, alternative accommodations and excursions will be provided.

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• Each morning, join a Quichuan Local Guide for a motorized canoe ride to different trails for excellent opportunities to observe the wonderous diversity of life in the forest. Known as the Ecuadorian Orient, this area is particularly rich in biodiversity, as it was a refuge for plants, animals, and insects during the last great Ice Age. The Indigenous guides share an impressive insight and knowledge of local flora and fauna, in addition to the medicinal uses of many plants. Return to the lodge for lunch followed by your choice of activity. Later, enjoy dinner at the resort featuring fresh dishes with Ecuadorian influences.

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After your morning explorations with a Quichuan Local Guide, enjoy lunch at the ecolodge before continuing west, traveling through stunning landscapes with some of the highest and most beautiful mountains and volcanoes of the Andes. Arrive in Baños, known as the “Gate to the Orient” due to its tropical jungle-like vegetation and climate. Located in the shadows of the Tungurahua Volcano, it’s also home to a Cathedral where the Virgin of the Holy Water, one of the nation’s miraculous virgins, is venerated. Small street cafés, restaurants, and gift shops of Baños invite you to enjoy a stroll with a free evening in town.

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After breakfast, follow the River Cutuchi and admire the views over the Amazon basin as we wind our way to Riobama. En route, take a short and easy hike for about 1.5 mi. (2km) to the stunning Devil’s Cauldron waterfall. Enjoy the verdant forest landscape, walk along the hanging bridge, and get splashed by the waterfall’s plunging water. Continue south to Riobamba, the capital of the province of Chimborazo, where a great number of indigenous communities live. Visit the base of Ecuador´s Chimborazo volcano. Continue to Riobama for a night to remember.

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After breakfast, travel from Riobamba to Cuenca. En route, visit the ancient Inca ruin site of Ingapirca, the most important monument of pre-Spanish culture in Ecuador. Continue to Cuenca, where Humboldt recovered from his exhausting journey. This afternoon, a sightseeing tour of Cuenca’s includes the historic Santa Ana de los Rios de Cuenca square, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Plaza Mayor, surrounded by its two distinct cathedrals and city hall. Admire this historical center’s colorful buildings that have maintained their colonial magnificence. Pass by the vibrant flower market and appreciate the smell of different perfumes floating in the air. Then, visit the eclectic style church Todos los Santos by the Tombamba River. Peak inside to appreciate the beautifully painted ceilings. Tonight is free to explore this lively historic city at leisure.

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Today we venture to a few key villages around Cuenca where skilled artisans work wonders. Among those is Gualaceo, with its markets where you can find hand woven shawls, ponchos, and local fruits and vegetables. You’ll also visit Bullcay for Ikat weaving and Chordeleg’s “Chorro de Oro” (waterfall of gold)—a village specialized in jewelry, mainly gold and silver with fine filigree work, and handmade ceramic pottery. Continue to southwest of Cuenca to the small district of Sigsig, famous for its handicrafts. Here, watch the people known as “Toquilleras” make the famous Panama hats and other straw objects. Then, try to make something with straw and bring your craft home. Return to Cuenca for a special dinner at a local restaurant.

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Today, on the drive to Guayaquil, you will notice the dramatic changes of vegetation. Observe the typical Páramo grassland, small colorful flowers, mosses, lichens and fungi abruptly change once you reach the lowlands where rice, cacao and banana plantations abound. En route, visit the Cacao Project, a woman-owned small business and plantation producing the fruit to make traditional sweets and chocolates. Continue to Guayaquil for a free evening.

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Take a morning flight to Baltra and visit the highlands of Santa Cruz, marked by extinct volcanoes, lava tubes, and astonishing plant life. Here, witness giant tortoises in a natural reserve and learn about efforts to conserve these ancient creatures. Continue to the port where you will board the Galápagos Legend.

NOTE:
Itinerary in the Galápagos are subject to change.

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Your Naturalist guided tour take you up Prince Philip’s Steps, where you will see large nesting colonies of Nazca and red-footed boobies, as well as many other fascinating feathered locals. After lunch on board, visit Darwin Bay to observe frigatebirds, red-footed boobies, herons, lava gulls, and many other bird species. At the tidal lagoon you may also see the rarest gull in the world, the endemic lava gull.

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On South Plaza Island, take a walk through an impressive cactus forest populated with land and marine iguanas. Due to the proximity of land iguanas and marine iguanas here, this is the only place on Earth where you will find the Galápagos hybrid iguana. From the summit, watch for tropicbirds, Nazca and blue-footed boobies, and swallow-tailed gulls. On Santa Fé, a large sea lion colony greets you on its white-sand beach. Walk through a cactus forest in search of the endemic Santa Fe land iguana, the largest in the islands. This island is home to a number of endemic species, including the Galápagos hawk, Galápagos snake, a variety of finches, and one of the four species of Galápagos mockingbirds. You also have time to snorkel in the turquoise waters with sea lions, turtles, reef sharks and spotted eagle rays.

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Your final visit takes you to Bachas Beach named for some wrecked World War II barges whose ribs are still visible in the sand. This site offers great swimming, a lovely walk along the shore, and a visit to a lagoon with wading birds, marine iguanas, and sometimes flamingos. The area is also a frequent nesting site for green turtles. Later, disembark and fly to Guayaquil.

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Your vacation ends with breakfast this morning.

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