Ecuador, A Multicultural Country Tour

DAY 1: TUESDAY: ARRIVAL IN QUITO

Arrival in Quito, where you will be met at the airport by our guide and transferred to your hotel. Overnight.

DAY 2: WEDNESDAY: THE BEST COLONIAL SITE IN SOUTH AMERICA – OTAVALO

Quito, the capital of Ecuador, is one of the most beautiful cities in Ecuador. It is divided into the old or colonial city and the modern city. The Colonial Quito is still reminiscent of how it was 450 years ago, even though it is a small island surrounded by a fast-growing modern city.

In colonial Quito are narrow cobblestone streets are lined with whitewashed walls over which the steeples and cupolas of historic churches and a cathedral stand. The integrity of colonial Quito was assured in 1978 when the United Nations declared the city a World Cultural Heritage Site.

Today, you will visit the colonial site of Quito, where you will walk through the Main Plaza. Visit the Government Palace, the Cathedral, and some of the most important churches built around the 16th and 17th centuries. After this visit,t our guide will drive you to a local restaurant where a delicious typical lunch will be waiting for you.

Then you will continue to the north of the city until you arrive in Otavalo, en route you can stop in some places like: Guayllabamba and enjoy the exotic fruits like the delicious chirimoyas and tangerines.

Late afternoon, you will arrive in Otavalo, where our guide will contact one of the leaders of Kilago, who will drive you to one of the communities close to Cotacachi and will introduce you to your home stay families. Dinner and overnight.

DAY 3: THURSDAY: SHARING WITH AN OTAVALEÑA FAMILY – QUITO

After breakfast, you will spend the full morning with your home stay family, getting to know each other and learning about the lifestyle of Otavaleños people. This morning, you will have the opportunity to harvest some products, feed the animals, and enjoy other daily activities of the people of this area.

Also, you can help to cook your lunch and then share it with your family. Then our guide will drive you to the Otavalo market or the Ponchos market, which is considered the most important indigenous market of South America; here you can find different and colorful handicrafts like rugs, tapestries, clothes, jewelry, etc. After a full afternoon of shopping, you will return to Quito to your hotel,l where you will overnight.

DAY 4: FRIDAY: QUITO – COTOPAXI: FOLLOWING THE AMAZING PARAMO

At 7h30, our guide will pick you up at your hotel to travel through the avenue of volcanoes to arrive to “El Porvenir”, the principal hacienda of Volcano Land. It is one of the most beautiful and privileged places in the Ecuador Highlands, it is surrounded by an amazing view where beautiful mountains stand out like Rumiñahui, Pasochoa, and especially Cotopaxi volcano, considered the highest active volcano in the world.

Here you will learn how the Chagras (the people that work with cattle in this area, like cowboys) live, you will enjoy a horseback ride wearing their typical clothes and visiting the surroundings of the hacienda, riding side by side with herds of wild horses and bulls.

After a delicious lunch in the hacienda, our guide will drive you to Cotopaxi National Park, where you can learn about the amazing Cotopaxi volcano that is the highest active volcano in the world (5,897 mts., 19,342.16 ft). If time and the weather permit, you will walk to the refuge of this volcano and the glaciers located near of this place, or you can walk close to Limpiopungo lake at the base of the volcano. Late afternoon, our guide will drive you to a local hacienda where you will dine and spend the night.

DAY 5: SATURDAY: COTOPAXI: ZUMBAHUA INDIGENOUS MARKET- QUILOTOA LAKE – BAÑOS

Early in the morning after breakfast you will depart to Quilotoa Lake, on route you will stop in Zumbahua a special market that you only can visit on Saturdays, here it will be possible to see the people arriving with their products on lamas and some ones keep the tradition to exchange their products, this activity is called “trueque”. This area is less developed than the rest of the country, and you can imagine how Ecuador was many years ago; people still coexist with nature in a very simple way.

Then you will arrive at Quilotoa lake, it is a water-filled caldera of 3 km (2 miles). This caldera was formed by the collapse of the volcano in an eruption that took place approximately 800 years ago. The caldera has since accumulated a 250 m (820 ft) deep crater lake, which has an extraordinary turquoise colour as a result of dissolved minerals.

Lunch in a local restaurant, and then you will depart for Baños. En route, you will stop in Salasaca town, where you can spend a short time with the Salasaca community. Salasacas are descendants of a mitimae (colonist) group brought from Bolivia during the time of the Inca Empire. Their main economic activities are agriculture, livestock-raising, and handicrafts such as tapestries, which are woven by hand on looms. The market is located in the central plaza and it is called "Plaza of the Arts". Last afternoon, you arrived in Baño's, where you will dine and overnight.

DAY 6: SUNDAY: BAÑOS: THE WATERFALLS’ ROUTE – MACAS

After breakfast, you will explore Baños city, where you can see how people extract a delicious juice from the sugar cane, the production of melcochas, and you can buy beautiful handicrafts made from balsa and tagua. Then you will visit the famous waterfall route where you can see beautiful waterfalls like Manto de la Novia waterfall, you can cross the Pastaza river by a rustic lift, hanging for more than 200 mts above the river, Pailon del Diablo, Agoyán, and others.

After this visit,t our guide will drive you to a local restaurant where a delicious lunch will be waiting for you. In the afternoon, you will continue with your trip to Macas, where you can rest, have dinner, and overnight.

DAY 7: MONDAY: THE SHUAR COMMUNITY

After breakfast, you will have the opportunity to be with one of the most authentic communities of the Shuar people, learning how to plant, harvest, make handicrafts, prepare meals, and find out more about the secrets of their medicinal plants. You will spend time learning about survival in the Amazon jungle, where our native guides will show you how to use spears and blowguns.

The Shuar people are famous because, in ancient times, they had the custom of shrinking the heads of their enemies as a trophy during the wars. Nowadays, they practice this custom but just with animal heads. You will have a full day to share with the local people, and late in the afternoon, you will return to the hotel, where you will have dinner and overnight.

DAY 8: TUESDAY: MACAS – CHIMBORAZO PROVINCE: PALACIO REAL PROJECT

After breakfast, you will return to the Highlands, en route, you can enjoy the amazing landscape of Sangay National Park. You can stop in some strategic places to get wonderful photos.

Once in Riobamba, our guide will drive you to the Palacio Real community located 10 minutes from the city. It is an indigenous community where the local people have developed small projects, one of which is the local restaurant, where you will enjoy a delicious lunch based on lama.

In the afternoon, you can visit the museum, two small trails where you can admire the beautiful landscape, a store of handicrafts (jerseys, leather products, postcards, ointment based on lama fat, etc). Then our guide will drive you to Chimborazo lodge, where you will have dinner and overnight

DAY 9: WEDNESDAY: RIOBAMBA: PAQOCHA PROJECT – INGAPIRCA RUINS – CUENCA

After a delicious breakfast, you will depart for the south of our country to visit a couple of local indigenous communities located in Chimborazo province, where you can experience the process of textiles with the Paqocha project. One of them is Jatari Campesino, where you can see how skillful women obtain the wool of lamas and alpacas, and then you can learn about the process of spinning the wool.

Box lunch en route, and then you will continue to Cuenca, you will stop in Ingapirca ruins, these ruins are the best and most important Inca archaeological site in Ecuador, Ingapirca that means "walls of the Inca" is located in the province of Cañar, about 1 hour and 45 minutes from Cuenca.

In the afternoon, you will depart for Cuenca, with time to rest and walk close to your hotel, overnight.

DAY 10: THURSDAY: CUENCA CITY TOUR: THE ATHENS OF ECUADOR

Cuenca, also known as the Athens of Ecuador, because of the numerous artists, novelists, poets, and other lettered people who were born in the city.

After breakfast, you will have a full day to explore the wonderful Cuenca’s city. You will walk through magnificent churches, beautiful old buildings with wrought iron balconies and carved wooden doors, flower and handicrafts markets, art galleries, workshops, and all the wonders that Cuenca, with its colonial style and pleasant atmosphere, offers to its visitors.

You will also ride along the Tomebamba River, admiring the ancient houses perched on the riverbank above. Also, you can visit some modern neighborhoods and enjoy a panoramic view of the city from the vantage point of Turi. Return to your hotel, time to rest or walk in the surroundings. Overnight.

DAY 11: FRIDAY: CUENCA: SARAGURO COMMUNITY – FLIGHT BACK TO QUITO

After breakfast, you will depart for the south of Cuenca to visit the Saraguro community. The Saraguro is a very important ethnic group of the southern Ecuadorian Highlands, which has survived centuries of Spanish colonization without losing its identity, way of life, traditions, beliefs, or even its dress, which is black and white, of pure wool, woven in ancient looms.

The Saraguro communities are very much willing to participate in programs of cultural tourism, focusing on an intercultural perspective, and invite visitors into their homes to learn about their vision of life, enjoy some live music, craft workshops and a snack consisting of traditional local food and drink, served on wooden plates with wooden spoons, according to custom.

After this unforgettable full day, you will return to Cuenca, and then you will be transferred to the airport in order to catch your flight back to Quito. At the exit of the airport, our driver will be waiting for you in order to transfer you to your hotel, where you will overnight.

DAY 12: SATURDAY: QUITO - GALAPAGOS EXTENSION OR INTERNATIONAL FLIGHT

After an unforgettable experience in Ecuador, you will be transferred to the airport to catch your extension to the Galapagos Islands or an international flight home.

END OF THE SERVICES

A NOTE ON THE ORDER OF THE ITINERARY:

Itinerary subject to change based on local conditions. It could be flexible according to the client’s interests.

PRICES INCLUDE:

Private transportation, bilingual naturalist guide, accommodation based on double room in all the hotels and haciendas detailed in the itinerary or similar depending on availability; meals as described on the itinerary, entrance fees to: churches and museums in Quito and Cuenca, host family in Otavalo, horseback riding, Cotopaxi National Park, Quilotoa Lake, waterfalls and lifts in Baños, Shuar community, Paqocha project, Ingapirca ruins, Saraguro community; and local flight Cuenca – Quito.

NOT INCLUDED:

Travel insurance, meals not specified, soft and alcoholic drinks, tips, and personal expenses.