Bound by the Sierra Nevada and the Sierra de la Culata, the region has unparalleled biodiversity and Venezuela’s tallest peaks. Its main city, Mérida, boasts the highest and longest cable car in the world. Meet the people, explore the mountain paths, experience the unique Páramo ecosystem. The Andes offer a whole range of options for adventurers and nature lovers.
With Venezuela’s highest mountains (Bolívar, Humboldt, La Concha, Bomplandt and León) and the Páramo, Mérida has to be top of your list for trekking and hiking. The Páramo is an ecosystem peculiar to the Andes where high moisture levels and very fertile soil create perfect conditions for plants, like frailejones, not seen elsewhere; it covers 2600 Km2 — 23 per cent — of the state!
Our programs in Mérida, designed to be sustainable and environmentally responsible, encompass a wide variety of activities, from extreme sports to bird watching. The local people will be your hosts at the mucu-posadas and your guides through this breathtaking landscape. Your visit to Mérida will be unforgettable.
Itineraries (12 nights / 13 Days)
Caracas
Day 1: Arrival To Venezuela / Aeropuerto Internacional Simón Bolivar de Maiquetía / On arrival you will be met by our staff members and transferred to a local hotel / Briefing about the trip where the itineraries will be explained in details / Welcome drink / Dinner.
Andes Mountains
Day 2: Caracas-Merida / Arrival to Mérida Airport and transfer to the hotel (charming mountain guesthouse) check-in / Midday lunch in town / 2:00 p.m. Excursion to Chorreras Las Gonzales Waterfalls, beautiful landscape with farmland and pristine cloud forest / Visit to Jaji (picturesque village with colonial architecture) / Back to Mérida along Chama River Canyon (fantastic desert-like ecosystem with cactus plants and eroded valleys) / Hotel / Dinner.
Day 3: Merida / 8:00 p.m. Visit to “Sistema Teleférico de Mérida” / The highest and longest Cable Car in the World! (5 stations, more than 12 kilometers and almost 5.000 meters sea level!) / Spectacular mountain scenery with tropical forest foothills and snowcap peaks / A soft walk around the area is recommended to see the unique flora and fauna / Breakfast at the first station / Short horse-back-riding (optional) / Some of the bird species to be seen in this area are: Bearded Helmetcrest, Plumbeous Sierra finch, Andean Tit-Spinetail, Bar-winged Cinclodes, Andean Teal, Black-chested Buzzard Eagle, Tyrian Metaltail, Streaked-back Canastero, Ochre-browed Thisletail (endemic), Merida Flowerpiercer and others / 1:00 p.m. back in town for lunch / Afternoon visit to the Guinness Book of Records “Heladería Coromoto” , the ice-cream place with more flavors in the World / Back to the hotel / Dinner.
Day 4: Merida / Sierra Nevada National Park / Check-out and early excursion (6:00 p.m.) to La Mucuy Recreational Area located at the Sierra Nevada National Park / Pic-nic breakfast and bird-watching along the Humboldt Trail in search of some of the typical Andean bird species reported in the area like: Andean Toucanet, Chestnut-bellied Thrush, Saffron-headed, Beryl-spangled, Black headed, and Blue and Black Tanagers, Masked Trogon, Rose-crowned Parakeet (endemic), Merida Sunangel (endemic), Long-tailed Sylph, Golden-breasted Fruiteater, Golden-headed Quetzal, White-capped Dipper among many others / Pic-nic lunch / Afternoon visit to some of the nearest mountain rivers to see the beautiful Torrent Duck, an emblematic species of the Andean Mountains / Return to the guesthouse / Dinner.
Day 5: Merida / Piñango / Check-out and breakfast / Rest of the day excursion to Piñango (picturesque little village in a remote valley in the northern Venezuelan Andes) on the way to the Paramos (word that describe a type ecosystem of grassland vegetation of high elevations in the Andes) / Fantastic journey along pristine mountain landscape / Lunch on the way / On route we will visit the Condor Station and the famous Eagle pass (one of the highest paved roads in the world!, with more than 4.200 meters sea level) / Absolutely a breathtaking scenery / Check-in at the guesthouse at 5:00 p.m. approx. / Dinner.
Day 6: Piñango / Early excursion (before dawn) to the successful Spectacled Bear (or Andean Bear) monitoring-site, established and leaded by Fundación Andigena in 2003, with infrared cameras and electrical fence, located in a private land and encircled by fascinating high-montane forest with some animal and plant species reputed to be new to science! / Pic-nic breakfast and lunch / Full day safari bird-watching in search of some of the most intriguing species of the high Andean mountains, like the mysterious Mountain Coati, (with no specimens in zoos, never seen by scientists , film or photograph in the wild!) or the elusive Andean Bear (this is one of the few places with a realistic chance to see one!) / Some bird species includes: Rusty-faced Parrot, Purple-backed Thornbill, Golden-tailed Starfronlet (endemic), Merida Flower-piercer (endemic), Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, Sword-billed Hummingbird, Black-collared Jay, Andean Guan, Ochre-browed Thisletail (endemic), Lachrimose Mountain Tanager, Slaty-backed Hemispingus (endemic), White-browed Spinetail, among several others / Back to the guesthouse / Dinner.
Day 7: Piñango-Los Frailes / Check-out and early excursion (second day) in search of the elusive Spectacled Bear and the unique flora and fauna of this region / Half a day safari looking for more intriguing birds and other wildlife / Breakfast and lunch on the way / In the afternoon we will make a stop at Mucubaji Lake and walk at the surroundings in search of the endangered Paramo Deer (an endemic species of the Venezuelan highlands) / Accommodation in Los Frailes (Fransiscan Monastery restored in 1973 and adapted to be a mountain hotel) located in a beautiful valley and surrounded by Paramo vegetation / Check-in / Dinner.
Day 8: Los Frailes-San Isidro / Early transfer to the famous San Isidro Trail to see the display of one of the most beautiful birds in the World: the Andean cock-of-the-rock / Pic-nic breakfast and rest of the day bird-watching in the area / Some spectacular species are: Yellow-billed Toucanet, Red-headed Barbet, Saffron-headed Tanager, Russet-backed Oropendola, Chestnut-breasted and Blue-naped Clorophonias, Golden-rumped Euphonia, Cliff Flycatcher, Cinnamon Flycatcher, Booted Racquet-tail, Long tailed Sylph, Collared Trogon, Golden-headed Quetzal, Red-ruffed Fruitcrow, Black-and-chestnut Eagle, Grey-breasted Wood-wren, Chestnut-bellied Thrush among many others / Lunch on the way / Afternoon visit to Las Tapias Trail, look for: Blue-backed Conebill, Black-collared Jay, Ocellated Tapaculo, Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, Sword-billed Hummingbird, Golden-tailed Starfrontlet, Pearled treerunner, Blue and Black Tanager and several others / Return to Los Frailes / Dinner.
Los Llanos
Day 9: Los Frailes / Apure River / Breakfast, check-out and beginning the spectacular trip to descend the Andes Mountains to the lowlands / Breakfast and lunch on the road / Afternoon excursion to San Vicente ( a small fishing village on the banks of the Apure River) / Boat trip in search of the amazing wildlife of the Llanos region that includes so many Green Iguanas, Hoatzins, Kingfishers, Herons, Birds of prey, and three of the most wanted animal species of South America: Green Anaconda, Pink River Dolphin and the Red-bellied Piranha / We continue our boat trip till sunset for a night safari / Cool box with ice and drinks is included / Accommodation in a Hotel in the near town of Bruzual / Dinner.
Day 10: Bruzual / El Cedral / Early excursion-safari (before dawn) to the nearby savannas in search of another intriguing and fantastic creature: the Giant Anteater (one of our star animal species in this trip), continuing our safari with the amazing wildlife along the road that include a good chance to see Giant River Otters, also fabulous numbers of birds along the road specially in the dry season / Check-in before midday at the famous Hacienda El Cedral, (a huge cowboy ranch with 80,000 hectares completely packed with wildlife) in this place we can see so many Capybaras, Scarlet Ibises, countless Spectacled Caymans and of course the rare and endangered Orinoco Crocodile (three more in our list of top ten animal species) / El Cedral is renowned for having a realistic opportunity to see the elusive Jaguar / Afternoon safari by boat where we can see great numbers of birds / Back to the Ranch / Dinner.
Day 11: El Cedral / Breakfast / Safari in an open truck for the rest of the morning and boat trip in the afternoon with a midday break for lunch at the camp / Some of the birds species to be seen are: Black-bellied and White-faced Whistling Ducks (thousands!), Fulvous Whistling Duck, Muscovy Duck, Brazilian Teal, Orinoco Goose, Jabirú, Maguari and Wood Storks, 7 Ibises including Buff-necked, Glossy and Sharp-tailed, more than 10 herons including Cocoi, the splendid Agami Heron and Capped Heron, more than 20 raptors including Crested Caracara, Savanna Hawk, Black-collared Hawk, Laughing Hawk, White-tailed Hawk, Aplomado Falcon, Great-black Hawk, Osprey and many others, 5 Kingfishers, Flycatchers, Parrots including Scarlet Macaws, and many migratory ones / Back to the Lodge / Dinner.
Day 12: El Cedral / Breakfast / Full day at the ranch / Look for: Red-capped Cardinal, Troupial (the national bird), Yellow-crowned Parrot, Fork-tailed Flycatcher, Black-crested Antshrike, Great Kiskadee, Vermillion Flycatcher, Lineated, Crimson Crested, Spot-breasted and Red-crowned Woodpeckers, Yellow-knobbed Curassow, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Russet-throated Puffbird, Glittering-throated Hummingbird, Burrowing Owl, Band-tailed, Pauraque and Nacunda Nighthawks, Brown-throated Parakeet, Yellow-crowned Parrot, Pale-vented Pigeon, Scaled Dove, Large-billed and Yellow-billed terns, Black Skimmer, Sunbittern, Wattled Jacana, Grey-necked Woodrail, Pied Plover and Southern lapwing, Horned Screamer and much more.
Day 12: El Cedral-Barinas / Breakfast and half a day safari at the Ranch / Midday check-out / Lunch and transfer to Barinas City / Accommodation in a hotel near the airport / Dinner.
Day 13: Barinas-Caracas / Breakfast / Check-out and transfer to the local airport for the morning flight to Caracas / Once at the airport you will be transferred to the international Airport to reconfirm your afternoon flight back home / End of our services.
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
4 pax a 7 pax = 5.472$
8 pax a 11 pax = 4.500$
Also see tour packages in:
South America
Venezuela
Walking Tours
Wildlife Viewing
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