An unforgettable trip, highlighting the best of Ecuador travel! Galapagos, Amazon, Sacha Lodge, Otavalo Market, 1 night Historic Hacienda.
Tour Itinerary:
Day 1: Arrive Quito. Overnight.
Day 2: Sacha Lodge (L,D)
Begin your Ecuador travel with a short flight over the high Andes and down to the Amazon frontier town of Puerto Francisco de Orellana. From here you travel by motorized canoe two and a half hours down the Napo River, followed by a short walk through a thick palm forest to Sacha Lodge.
Days 3-5: Sacha Lodge (3B,3L,3D)
Days at Sacha Lodge are filled with discovery. Sacha Lodge has something for everyone. A favorite activity includes paddling dugout canoes along black water creeks and lakes past luxuriant lianas, bromeliads, and enormous palms. During excursions, visitors are divided into small groups (max 6), each with its own native guide and bilingual naturalist. Native guides carry a lifetime of knowledge about the medicinal and functional uses of rainforest plants.
Naturalists, educated in biology and ecology, translate for native guides and compliment your Amazon tour excursions with explanations of the scientific workings of the rainforest.
Swimming and piranha fishing are also popular (the piranha here are harmless, really!). And for the adventurous there are night walks and canoe trips in search of caiman and other nocturnal creatures. Sacha Lodge also offers three very unique sites to visitors.
The first is a 130-foot observation tower that gives visitors a chance to get above the rainforest canopy for incredible views of the area. This is also a great place to observe toucans and macaws and with luck spot noisy howler monkeys or a three-toed sloth. The second site is the butterfly house where over 40 local butterfly species are bred.
Visitors can see the process of breeding and raising these colorful insects and wander through the "flying room." Finally, there's the Yasuní Macaw Lick. Just a short distance from Sacha Lodge is Ecuador's most famous macaw lick, where visitors can observe dozens of the magnificently colored birds feeding on the clay's salt.
Day 6: Sacha Lodge to Hacienda Pinsaqui
Complete your Amazon tour with a flight back to Quito. Two hours north of Quito lies one of Ecuador's finest haciendas. Nestled in the Otavalo Valley in the shadow of Imbabura Volcano, the 200 year-old Hacienda Pinsaqui was a favorite haunt of the revolutionary General Simon Bolívar. The thick whitewashed walls seem to whisper stories of a by-gone era.
From the hacienda, go mountain biking in the countryside, visit the white city of Ibarra and the leather shops of Cotacachi, or take horses around Cuicocha Lake. Pinsaqui, with its gardens and old textile shops, is yours to explore.
Day 7: Otavalo Market/Quito
After a pleasant breakfast at Pinsaqui, the day's adventures are open to you. Visit the villages around Otavalo, share a traditional lunch with an Otavaleño family, or hike around the volcanic crater of Cuicocha. The choice is yours! Saturday is market day in Otavalo when indigenous people from the mountains descend into the valley to sell their crafts, textiles, cows, and goats in the tiny town of Otavalo.
This is the most famous Indian market on the continent, and the Otavaleños are certain to win your heart. This afternoon you'll return to Quito to prepare for the next day's Galapagos adventures!
Day 8: Galapagos (D)
An early morning flight from Quito brings you to the Galapagos Archipelago. Upon arrival, you will be picked up and transferred to your yacht. This afternoon we head to our first island to begin your Galapagos cruise and a week filled with mysteries of the natural world and exception wildlife.
Days 9-14: Galapagos (B,L,D)
You will visit 8 to 10 islands during your unforgettable voyage. Each day you leave the comfort of your yacht and go ashore in a panga (the local word for dinghies, Zodiacs, etc.) to remote areas of the islands for natural history walks through the Galapagos's unique ecology. Your crew will take excellent care of you with delicious meals and attend to all of your creature comforts onboard. On the islands your naturalist guide shows you the diversity of Galapagos life and teaches you about the area's natural history. This is everyone's chance to photograph unusual marine iguanas, snorkel with playful sea lions, and just take in the unique landscape of ancient volcanic turmoil. Except for a few settlements, the entire archipelago is a national park and the beaches and meandering footpaths invite relaxation and fanciful dreams.
Day 15: Fly Quito (B)
This morning you visit one last island and say good-bye to Darwin's inspiration as you complete your Galapagos tour. You will be transfered back to the airport for your return to Quito.
Day 16: Return Home
Want an alternative yacht? Ask us for a custom quote based on the Galapagos yacht of your choice.
Need a shorter trip? Many boats offer a shorter cruise which spends 5 day 4 nights in the islands, which shortens your trip by 3 days.
Accommodations: 3 nights comfortable hotels, 4 nights rainforest lodge, twin share cabins on board yachts
Food Includes: All meals as indicated (B=Breakfast, L=Lunch, D=Dinner); most of our hotels offer free continental breakfast.
Transportation: Local flights, taxi, motorized canoe, 12-100 passenger sailing and motor yachts.
Weekly departures
Notes:
Airfare is not included in the tour price.
Price is based on the Galapagos yacht, Millennium, standard cabins. Alternative yachts and shorter cruises available. Contact us for a quote.
Single Supplement: US$555 applies only towards the Sacha and Otavalo segments.
Personal Budgeting: Allow US$35 for meals not included, $10 Galapagos Park tax, US$100 park entrance fee, US$41 international departure tax (drinks and tips onboard are extra).
Pre & Post Tour Accommodations: SShare US$45, Single US$75
Arrival / Departure Transfers: 1 person US $50 each. 2 or more people US $25 /person
Note: The flights Quito-Galapagos-Quito and Quito-Sacha-Quito are not included. Please add US$535 for Jun 15 - Sept 14 and Nov 1 - Apr 30; for other months add US$480 (flight cost subject to change).
Prices are based on a 3% cash discount
Also see tour packages in:
South America
Ecuador
Boating and Sailing
Rainforest
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