Amazon Rainforest & Central Andes close to Quito

<p>This day you will visit the amazon region. The flight is to Coca city and it is in the morning so your guide will transfer you from the hotel to the airport to assist you with the check in. After a 30 min flight you will land at Coca city where someone from the lodge to visit will be waiting for you. After a short ride on a private bus we get to the next part of the journey, a motorized boat ride. The ride will take approximately two to two and half hours on the river. After this ride you will have a short walk and canoe ride. This time crossing a creak and a lake in a paddle canoe that will take you to the Lodge. This journey itself is already part of the adventure in the amazon region. </p><p>At the lodge you will receive a briefing from the administration about the lodge and the activities that you will be doing during your stay in the Amazon region. You will also meet the naturalist guide that will be with you for the following days.</p><p>This evening you will start with one of the night activities offered at the lodge. It can be an evening walk or an evening canoe ride. </p><p></p>

<p>Breakfast is served early because there is so much to see and do! There are a number of activities that you might do, including a visit to the parrot clay lick, a trip to a local community, or an excursion to the observation tower to see birds and monkeys. The activities you do will depend on many factors, mostly the weather. If you do not wish to do the morning activity, you are under no obligation to do so. Some guests prefer to remain in the lodge and relax. A delicious lunch is served in the dining room at 13:00. After lunch, guests can take a nap or read a book during the hottest hours of the day. Afternoon activities tend to be more low-key than morning ones. You might go for a canoe ride around the lagoon, take a short trail to hopefully see some of the animals living in the amazon. A gourmet dinner awaits in the dining room as afternoon turns into evening. On your last evening, you will be asked to clear up your bill in case you had any extras, such as drinks or a massage. </p>

<p>Breakfast is served early because there is so much to see and do! There are a number of activities that you might do, including a visit to the parrot clay lick, a trip to a local community, or an excursion to the observation tower to see birds and monkeys. The activities you do will depend on many factors, mostly the weather. If you do not wish to do the morning activity, you are under no obligation to do so. Some guests prefer to remain in the lodge and relax. A delicious lunch is served in the dining room at 13:00. After lunch, guests can take a nap or read a book during the hottest hours of the day. Afternoon activities tend to be more low-key than morning ones. You might go for a canoe ride around the lagoon, take a short trail to hopefully see some of the animals living in the amazon. A gourmet dinner awaits in the dining room as afternoon turns into evening. On your last evening, you will be asked to clear up your bill in case you had any extras, such as drinks or a massage. </p>

<p>Although you must depart the lodge early in order to get to Coca in time for your flight, breakfast will be served before you leave. You’ll go out the way you came: a canoe ride, followed by a short walk, and then a two-hour, two and half hour ride on the motorized canoe to Coca. Once you reach Coca, you will be taken to the airport, checked in and directed to the waiting room for your return flight to Quito. At Quito airport your guide will be waiting for you to take you back to the hotel in Quito and will provide all information about the following day activities.</p>

<p>Today we will visit Otavalo Indigenous Market. This is one of the most famous indigenous markets in the world and the biggest in South America. A market full of color and life. Though the market is biggest on Saturdays, it is possible to visit it any day of the week and find great variety of fabrics and crafts. Our tour starts in the morning with the pick up at your hotel. We will drive out of Quito to a rose plantation and will enjoy of the beauty of this flowers that are exported around the world. Ecuador is consider the Rose capital of the World. After this visit we will continue to a view point of one of the lakes in the area called San Pablo. We will arrive to Otavalo and “Plaza de Ponchos” where you will have time to walk around and do some shopping for textiles and handicrafts. The locals will always give you a higher price so don’t forget to bargain with them, it is part of the experience. The tour includes lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon we will visit the village of Peguche, were we will visit a family to see the traditional making of textiles and Andean musical instruments. We will return to Quito in the late afternoon.</p>

<p>This day we go looking for the majestic Andean Condor in one of the most beautiful reserves of Ecuador. This bird is the symbol of Ecuador and one of the species in danger of extinction in the country with no more than 103 resident individuals. The Antisana Ecological Reserve is a protected area occupying part of the Andes and part of the eastern Cloud forest. This time we focus only in the Andes with the high mountains, steep cliffs and the extensive Andean grasslands (Paramo). </p><p>The Andean Condor has made this reserve its home because of the many places found for nesting. </p><p>We start today’s adventure after the pick up at your hotel. We will drive out of the eastern part of Quito to the protected area and the mountain landscapes. Before arriving to the reserve we will have our first stop to try to find the Andean Condor perched on the very steep cliffs of this region. From this point on we will be looking for Condors and other different birds and wildlife occurring in the protected area until we arrive to “La Mica” Lake. Here we will take a short hike enjoying the landscapes and the explanations about this amazing ecosystem from your naturalist guide. We leave the Reserve to have lunch and return to Quito.</p>

<p>Today we drive northwest of Quito and along the way we will admire the impressive change of vegetation and weather until we reach the Northwest Cloud Forest. Called cloud forest because it is covered by a temporary or seasonal mist at the canopy of the forest. This ecosystem also known as “Chocó” holds a great diversity of species of flora and fauna many of which are endemic. We will first visit a hummingbird reserve where we will have the chance to see an amazing number of individuals of approximately 22 species, together with other colorful and beautiful birds. We will continue to Mindo town and the butterfly farm which contains some of the most attractive butterflies of the region, like Blue Morphos and Owl-eye Butterflies. We will have lunch at a restaurant in the town and have a little time to enjoy the place before continuing to our next destination. </p><p>We will visit one of the best artisanal chocolate factories in the region and learn about the process of making one of the best chocolate in Ecuador. After this activity we will return to Quito.</p>