Ecuador in Contrasts: From the Andes to the Galápagos

Day 1: Arrival in Quito
Arrival in Ecuador’s Andean capital and private transfer to the hotel. Settle in and prepare to discover a country where dramatically different landscapes, cultures and experiences unfold within surprisingly short distances.

Day 2: Quito
Discover the many layers of Quito, beginning with the sights, aromas and flavors of a traditional local market. Prepare a fresh fruit juice and learn about traditional herbal cleansing practices before exploring the UNESCO-listed historic center, with its plazas, churches and colonial architecture. Ecuadorian cacao adds another dimension through a chocolate tasting experience. The journey then continues to the Equator, with views over the Pululahua volcanic crater and a visit to the Intiñan Museum. End the day at Casa Agave, exploring the traditions and innovation surrounding Andean agave through its museum, botanical garden, distillery and tasting.

Day 3: Quito to Mindo
Leave the high Andes behind as the scenery transforms into the lush Chocó Andino cloud forest. In Mindo, discover its remarkable biodiversity at a butterfly garden and hummingbird sanctuary. Follow Ecuadorian cacao from fruit to finished chocolate before experiencing the forest from a completely different perspective on a canopy adventure above the vegetation.

Day 4: Mindo to Otavalo
Continue through the cloud forest to Tulipe, an archaeological site connected to the ancient Yumbo culture, where ceremonial pools reveal the relationship between people and their natural surroundings. At Frajales Coffee Farm, discover how the cloud forest shapes locally grown coffee. After lunch, ascend once again into the Andean highlands, watching the tropical landscape gradually give way to the cultural scenery of Otavalo.

Day 5: Otavalo
Explore the colorful Otavalo Market and visit artisan workshops in Agato and Peguche to discover traditional techniques that remain part of everyday life. At Kawsaymi, a Kichwa Otavaleño family introduces travelers to ancestral gastronomy through an interactive cooking experience in a traditional tulpa kitchen. Prepare and share dishes made with native ingredients while learning the stories and knowledge passed down through generations.

Day 6: From the Andes to Galápagos
Transfer to Quito Airport and fly to Baltra, where the Andean journey gives way to the volcanic landscapes of Galápagos. Continue into the Santa Cruz highlands to encounter giant tortoises roaming freely in their natural environment. Depending on conditions, explore a lava tunnel and/or Los Gemelos, surrounded by Scalesia forest and rich birdlife, before continuing to Puerto Ayora. Here, extraordinary wildlife and modern island life coexist side by side.

Day 7: Santa Cruz
Discover another face of Galápagos in the agricultural area of El Cascajo. Visit an organic farm surrounded by coffee and sugar cane plantations, learn about traditional production methods and see a handcrafted sugar cane mill and small distillery. Meet local wood artisans whose work is inspired by the islands’ biodiversity, then visit Santa Cruz Brewery for a tasting of locally crafted beers.

Day 8: Santa Cruz
Board a motor yacht for a full-day exploration of one of the neighboring islands. Depending on Galápagos National Park regulations, the excursion may visit North Seymour and Bachas, South Plazas, Santa Fe, or Bartolomé and Sullivan Bay. Wildlife encounters, volcanic landscapes and the vast Pacific reveal Galápagos at its wildest, providing a striking counterpoint to the inhabited landscapes explored the previous day.

Day 9: Galápagos to Mainland Ecuador
Transfer to Baltra Airport for the flight back to Quito or Guayaquil, bringing to a close a journey that has crossed Ecuador’s colonial cities, Andean traditions, cloud forests and remote Pacific islands.

Included services:

All services, lodging, food and beverages, tourist tickets and entrance fees mentioned in the trip description.
English-speaking guides and/or assistance as specified
Local naturalist English-speaking guides in Galápagos
** Our prices include entrance fees and tourist ticket costs to determine historical, natural, or religious landmarks that are managed by the local authorities in many cases. Costs may increase without prior warning. Condor Travel will notify you of these immediately and adjust the prices accordingly.

Recommended travel period:

All year

Excluded services:

Early check-in, late check-out
Services and food not listed in the itinerary
Beverages during the meals, hotel extras, and personal expenses.
Please make sure to request special services during the consultation process and we can always add extra services 30 days before departure ideally.
Tips for guides, drivers, and waitresses, if not specified in the description.
Air ticket to/from Galapagos: US$590.00 per person (subject to change).
Transit Control Card: US$20.00 per person (subject to change).
Galapagos National Park entry fee: US$200.00 adults, US$100.00 children under 12 years old. (Subject to change).
International airfare.
Insurance (prior to your journey please ensure your travel insurance is valid in your country of origin)

Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel
Image source: LCC Condor Travel