Itinerary
- Day 1
Quito
Your transfer arrives from Quito airport and takes you to your hotel. If timing allows after checking in, the Historic Center offers cobblestone streets lined with basilicas, plazas and museums worth walking through. Alternatively, head to Otavalo market if you're looking for souvenirs and local goods. At 6 pm, you'll meet with your group leader, and then dinner follows to try some Ecuadorian cuisine.
- Meals
- Dinner (Welcome dinner with group featuring Ecuadorian cuisine)
Included Activities
- Airport transfer
- Welcome meeting at hotel
- Welcome dinner with group
Optional Activities
- Explore Quito's Historic Center - cobblestone streets, basilicas, grand plazas and museums
- Visit Otavalo market for local souvenirs
Landmarks Quito Historic Center Otavalo Market 
- Day 2
Equator
Starting the day, your leader walks you through historic Quito's plazas and cathedrals while introducing you to local artisans along the way. Next comes the Agave Museum where you'll taste mezcal and agave cocktails plus traditional Andean food. Later, you'll drive out to the equator and visit the Middle of the World Monument and Inti Nan Equator Museum for interactive experiments. The evening is free once you return to Quito.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Included Activities
- Historic Quito colonial city tour
- Agave Museum visit and tasting
- Agave cocktail tasting
- Traditional Andean food experience
- Middle of the World Monument visit
- Inti Nan Equator Museum visit
Landmarks Agave Museum Middle of the World Monument Inti Nan Equator Museum - Day 3
Cotopaxi National Park
After breakfast, you'll drive to Cotopaxi National Park to see the world's highest active volcano standing at 5,897 m (19,347 ft). A hike around Limpiopungo Lagoon lets you spot wildlife, and the park museum and Interpretation Centre teach you about Cotopaxi's geology and ecology. By afternoon, you'll settle into your hacienda accommodation where you can relax in the charming farmhouse and gardens.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Included Activities
- Drive to Cotopaxi National Park
- Limpiopungo Lagoon hike
- Wildlife spotting at Cotopaxi
- Park museum visit
- Interpretation Centre visit
Optional Activities
- Browse souvenir shop at the park
Landmarks Cotopaxi National Park Cotopaxi Volcano Limpiopungo Lagoon 
- Day 4
Banos
Leaving Cotopaxi, you head toward Banos with a stop in Latacunga at a family barley flour workshop to learn traditional machica production and taste the products. Lunch happens in San Bartolome de Pinllo at Casa El Recreo where the Gallina de Pinllo, a juicy chicken with potatoes and peanut sauce from a 1948 recipe, is the signature dish. In Banos, you'll walk through town and check out an artisan candy factory that makes Melcocochas, the region's famous guava sweets.
- Meals
- Lunch (Gallina de Pinllo - juicy chicken served with potatoes and peanut sauce at Casa El Recreo, a legendary restaurant featuring a recipe passed down since 1948)
Included Activities
- Machica barley flour workshop
- Learn about sowing and roasting barley
- Machica product tasting
- Gallina de Pinllo lunch at Casa El Recreo
- Banos town walk
- Artisan Candy Factory visit
Landmarks Latacunga San Bartolome de Pinllo Casa El Recreo Banos 
- Day 5
Banos
Your local guide leads a morning walk through Banos, explaining how the city sits surrounded by mountains, hot springs and waterways. Then you'll hike to El Pailon del Diablo, an 80 m (262 ft) waterfall where you can cross a suspension bridge or descend stairs to the 'Devil's Balcony' for close-up views. After that, the famous Swing at the End of the World offers an adrenaline rush and photo opportunity before you return for a free evening.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Included Activities
- Banos orientation walk with local guide
- El Pailon del Diablo waterfall hike
- Suspension bridge crossing
- Devil's Balcony descent
- Swing at the End of the World visit
Optional Activities
- Relax at El Refugio Spa Garden - an ecological spa
- Visit La Casa de Arbol viewpoint - a paradise for hummingbirds
- Visit the Basilica Church of the Virgin of the Holy Water
- Explore Route of waterfall
Landmarks El Pailon del Diablo Swing at the End of the World El Refugio Spa Garden La Casa de Arbol Church of the Virgin of the Holy Water - Day 6
Amazon Rainforest Lodge
You arrive at the Amazon rainforest lodge in time for lunch. The afternoon gives you free time to use the onsite pool, try massages, or join optional activities like visiting the butterfly house, nature walks or animal sanctuary. Spend time watching locals mold clay from the riverbed into ceramics while lodge naturalists teach you about jungle ecology. Evening brings a night walk to spot wildlife active in the darkness.
- Meals
- Lunch, Dinner
Included Activities
- Amazon Rainforest Night Walk
Optional Activities
- Butterfly house visit
- Nature walks
- Animal sanctuary visit
- Lodge pool use
- Massage services
- Watch local clay moulding and ceramic production
Landmarks Amazon Rainforest Lodge - Day 7
Amazon Rainforest
This full rainforest day starts after breakfast with a hike led by a local expert who points out medicinal plants and explains their uses. Next, you visit a nearby coffee plantation to learn production methods and sample some coffee. The afternoon involves spending time with an indigenous community for cultural exchange and learning about their Amazon lifestyle. Dinner back at the lodge is followed by relaxation.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Dinner
Included Activities
- Medicinal plant hike with local expert
- Coffee plantation visit
- Coffee tasting
- Indigenous community visit and cultural exchange
Landmarks Amazon Rainforest - Day 8
Quito
The drive back to Quito includes a lunch stop in Papallacta where you'll break up the journey with time at natural hot springs surrounded by thermal pools and spas. This scenic rest eases the long drive. Once in Quito, a farewell dinner with your leader and group lets everyone reflect together on the trip.
- Meals
- Lunch, Dinner (Farewell dinner in Quito with group at a local restaurant)
Included Activities
- Papallacta Hot Springs visit
- Thermal pools and spa access
- Farewell dinner in Quito with group
Landmarks Papallacta Hot Springs - Day 9
Quito
You have a free day to explore Quito on your own, whether revisiting sites from earlier in the trip or simply taking it easy. That evening, a hotel meeting welcomes new travelers joining for the next portion of the adventure. Afterward, dinner with your group happens at a small local restaurant featuring traditional Ecuadorian dishes like locro, a potato soup, plus quinoa, pork and vegetable dishes cooked with local herbs and rich sauces.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Dinner (Traditional Ecuadorian cuisine including locro (traditional potato soup) and quinoa, pork and vegetable dishes cooked with herbs, lemongrass and rich sauces from local farms)
Included Activities
- Welcome meeting for new travelers
- Dinner with group at local restaurant
Optional Activities
- Explore Quito at own leisure
- Revisit any missed sites from beginning of trip
Landmarks Quito - Day 10
Isla Baltra - Punta Carrion
A very early morning transfer takes you to Mariscal Sucre International Airport with a boxed breakfast where you'll meet your naturalist guide. The flight to Isla Baltra leads to a transfer onto the M/Y Queen Beatriz, your home for the Galapagos. After lunch with the group, you'll sail to Punta Carrion for your first snorkel and swim, looking for blue-footed boobies, Galapagos herons and great blue herons while swimming near rays and white-tipped reef sharks. Evening brings a welcome cocktail and crew presentation onboard.
- Meals
- Breakfast (Boxed breakfast provided en route to airport), Lunch
Included Activities
- Flight to Galapagos
- Transfer to Isla Baltra
- M/Y Queen Beatriz boarding
- Punta Carrion snorkeling (1 hour)
- First Galapagos swim
- Wildlife viewing from boat
- Welcome cocktail
- Crew onboard presentation
Landmarks Mariscal Sucre International Airport Isla Baltra Punta Carrion Blue-footed Booby habitat 
- Day 11
Isla Isabela
You wake on Isla Isabela, the largest and youngest Galapagos island, formed by five still-active volcanic craters less than 1 million years old. A visit to Las Tintoreras shows white-tipped reef sharks and lava flows with blue-footed boobies, penguins, marine iguanas and crabs. Later, a coastal lagoon walk takes you to Isabela's Giant Tortoise Breeding Center where tortoises at different development stages are on view along with flamingos. The afternoon gives you a choice between swimming at the beach or shopping in Puerto Villamil.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Included Activities
- Las Tintoreras visit (1.5 hours) - dry landing
- White-tipped reef shark viewing
- Lava flow walk
- Blue-footed booby viewing
- Penguin viewing
- Marine iguana viewing
- Crab spotting
- Arnolda Tupiza Tortoise Breeding Center visit (2 hours) - dry landing
- Giant tortoise observation
- Flamingo Lagoon viewing
Optional Activities
- Swimming at Puerto Villamil beach
- Shopping in Puerto Villamil
Landmarks Isla Isabela Las Tintoreras Arnolda Tupiza Tortoise Breeding Center Flamingo Lagoon Puerto Villamil - Day 12
Isla Floreana
Isla Floreana stands out as a cruise highlight with a panga ride spotting marine iguanas, sea lions and crabs. You'll leisurely walk to Post Office Bay where 18th-century whalers left a barrel as an informal mail drop, and you can post your own postcards home. Snorkeling brings sea turtles into view plus pink flamingos, pintails and stilts in the lagoons. Devil's Crown, an eroded volcanic cone, features boobies, pelicans and frigates, with snorkeling inside the cone showing sea lions and colorful fish. The day finishes at Punta Cormorant's distinctive olive-green beach made of olivine crystals.
- Meals
- Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Included Activities
- Panga ride around Isla Floreana bay
- Marine iguana viewing
- Sea lion viewing
- Crab spotting
- Post Office Bay walk (1.5 hours) - wet landing
- Post Office Bay snorkeling (45 minutes)
- Sea turtle snorkeling
- Pink flamingo viewing
- Pintail and stilt bird viewing
- Devil's Crown snorkeling (1 hour)
- Seabird viewing at Devil's Crown
- Punta Cormorant walk (1.5 hours) - wet landing
Landmarks Isla Floreana Post Office Bay Devil's Crown Punta Cormorant - Day 13
Quito
Since mid-morning flights mean an early start, you'll wake on Isla Santa Cruz and head to Puerto Ayora, the archipelago's economic center. The Charles Darwin Research Station shows conservation work while letting you see giant tortoises, baby tortoises and land iguanas. From there, you head to the airport for your flight back to Quito. An optional farewell dinner with your group that evening lets everyone toast the excellent adventure.
- Meals
- Breakfast
Included Activities
- Charles Darwin Research Station visit (1 hour) - dry landing
- Giant tortoise observation
- Baby tortoise viewing
- Land iguana viewing
- Flight back to Quito
Optional Activities
- Farewell dinner in Quito with group
Landmarks Isla Santa Cruz Puerto Ayora Charles Darwin Research Station 
- Day 14
Quito
After breakfast this morning, your adventure finishes with no activities planned. The tour concludes here, though booking agents can help arrange additional accommodation if you'd like to extend your stay.
- Meals
- Breakfast
