From Quito to Baños and back

<p>We start our tour from Quito early in the morning. The first day we will drive to Quilotoa Crater Lake but on the way we will have some stops. Depending of the day of departure we will stop at one of the traditional indigenous markets. This can be in Pujilí or Zumbahua that operate once a week and where the locals from the area congregate to sell their products. Another stop Tigua village and their famous painters who have achieved a prestigious name for painting indigenous traditions and Andean landscapes on goatskin. One stop more will be in the Toachi canyons before we continue to Quilotoa. This is our destination, where it will be possible to hike part of the edge of the crater or hike down to the lake (this hike is demanding but it is possible to hire a mule for the return climb. (This cost is not included). We will have lunch at one of the locally own restaurants in the area and will move to Baños. On the way we will stop to try traditional ice-creams elaborated in the area. Our final destination this first day is a little town called “Baños” one of the most popular and interesting towns on the way to the Amazon Rainforest. </p>

<p>We have breakfast at the hotel and we will move east to visit the amazing route of the waterfalls where we have the chance to have a little ride on a gondola crossing the big Pastaza River to get a close view of one of the waterfalls called “Manto de la novia”. We will also visit another waterfall called “Pailon Del Diablo” or Devil’s cauldron in English. To get here we will have a hike along a forest path for around 45 minutes. We will return to Baños for lunch. In the afternoon we will go swinging on the swing at the end of the world and visit the town. The rest of the afternoon will be free for you to explore the area. </p>

<p>This third day we will start our return to Quito. On the way we will visit the Salasacas indigenous group and their textile shops located in the main square of this town. We will continue to “Cotopaxi Volcano and National Park”, a volcano of 5.897-m-high considered the highest active volcano in the world. This is an impressive sight to see if weather conditions are in our favor. During our stay at the National Park we will admire its natural environment, its Flora and Fauna with the explanations provided by your naturalist guide. We have a hike around Limpiopungo Lake which is located at the foot of the volcano. We will have lunch in the area of Cotopaxi and will return to Quito afterwards.</p>