Ecuador Overview
Day 1 (SUN): Quito
Arrival and transfer to your hotel. Overnight at Fuente de Piedra (or similar).
Day 2 (MON): Quito/Otavalo
Early morning departure from your hotel to Otavalo in the picturesque province of Imbabura. The town is renowned for its outdoor market where you can buy ponchos, embroidered blouses, ceramics, wall hangings lake locally worked jewelry of the highest quality. After lunch, we take a short drive to Cuicocha, a beautiful lake situated in a crater followed by a visit to Cotacachi, famous for its leather crafts. We spend the night at a nearby Hacienda. Lunch included at Casa de Hacienda or similar. Overnight & dinner at Las Palmeras (or similar).
Day 3 (TUE): Otavalo/Cotopaxi
After breakfast, we will take am approximate 3 hours drive to the Cotopaxi National Park and its exceptional surroundings. Different hikes will allow you to discover this unique environment with all your guide explications. We will have lunch at the Tambopaxi Lodge, and in the afternoon we will have a hike around Limpiopungo Lake located in the park.
Overnight La Cienega (FB)
Day 4 (WED): Cotopaxi / Baños / Patate
This morning, we will visit a local market (depending on the day). Local culture and habits will surprise you! After lunch we will go to Baños our next stop! An approximate 1 ½ hour drive will allow us to reach our new site. We will have lunch in this tiney towns well known for its hot springs, and in the afternoon we will take a hike to reach the Devil’s cauldron waterfall- Overnight Hacienda Manteles (FB)
Day 5 (THU): Patate / Guamote / Riobamba
The Guamote market takes place every Thursday. Looking onto the town from afar you are faced with a sea of red filling the streets, squares and public areas, produced by the arrival of the many indigenous people that come to the market, all donned in the traditional red ponchos. They come in their thousands to sell sheep, pigs, cattle, horses, llamas, potatoes, cereals, wool, handicrafts, clothing and tools. Others simply come out of custom and ancestral ritual to meet with friends and take advantage of this time to catch up on the fascinating cosmo-visions that they share. Then we will reach Riobamba where we will have lunch and visit the town in the afternoon. Overnight Abraspungo (FB)
Day 6 (FRI): Riobamba / Devil’s nose train / Ingapirca / Cuenca
You’ve got a full but exciting day ahead of you. Early morning departure to Alausi (approx. 2 hours drive). Alausi is a small town, and is the entrance point for the Devil’s Nose Train. This ride lasts approximately 2 hours.
After having lunch in Alausi, you’ll drive to the Ingapirca Ruins (approx. 2 ½ hour drive). The Ingapirca fortress was first a religious and administrative complex built by the Cañaris, and later conquered and rebuilt by the Incas several hundred years before the Spanish arrived. This is the most important archaeological site in Ecuador.
You’ll then travel on to Cuenca (approx. 1 ½ hour drive). Overnight hotel Carvallo (B,L)
Day 7 (SAT): Full day Cuenca
Cuenca, Ecuador’s third largest city is known locally as “The Athens of Ecuador” in honor of its numerous poets. The city’s cobblestone streets, colonial plazas and religious art treasures recall her distant past, while the flower market on the little Plaza del Carmen and the new and old Cathedrals on the main Plaza CalderĂłn provide some spectacular color and impressive architecture.
Overnight hotel Carvallo (B,L)
Day 8 (SUN): Cuenca /Quito
You will enjoy your morning at leisure in Cuenca before reaching the local airport for your midday domestic flight to Quito. Assistance will be provided at Quito’s airport to reach your hotel. Overnight Fuente de Piedra. (B)
Day 9 (MON) : Transfer out
END OF SERVICES
N.B. The itinerary is there as a guide and may change due to unusual weather patterns, wildlife movements, the strength of the group and so on. We will do our very best to keep to the set itinerary however we cannot be held responsible for any last minute changes that might occur. In all such circumstances your expedition leader will have the final word.
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