Ecuador Through Local Eyes: A 13-Day Adventure full of Culture, Volcanoes & Amazon Journey
In addition to visiting Ecuador as a destination, this 13 day trip allows you to experience in depth the essence of the country: people, landscapes, tastes and traditions. After having visited Quito for a few days and walked through the central square of this colonial city, with its gold churches, its colorful artisan streets as well as the current rituals and ceremonies, you will head off to the north of the country with your private guide, traveling through the Andes to local farms and homes where you will get to know how the local families live and work and how they manage to maintain their traditions and ways of producing and making. You will visit agave plantations as well as the famous rose greenhouses and you will get to know the local markets in depth, in particular the world famous market of Otavalo. You will enjoy local specialties for lunch with the people who make them. Afterwards, you will visit Cotopaxi, Antisana, Chimborazo as well as the beautiful waterfalls and canyons of Banos, a pretty town in the Andes, from where you can enter the Amazon by canoe. You will hike through the forest with your local guides and you will learn about the many medicinal plants. You will visit a Kichwa community and you will explore the many lagoons full of wildlife. Finally, you will return to the highlands and you will bathe in the volcanic waters of Papallacta.
What's included
Itinerary
Ecuador welcomes you! After your flight you will need some rest to regain strength after your long haul flight. Once landed and out of the airport, your personal driver will pick you up and take you to your hotel in the heart of the capital. After a short walk from your hotel, historic Quito, one of the most beautiful colonial cities of South America, awaits your discovery.
After breakfast, meet your private guide for an insightful introduction to Quito's UNESCO-listed historic center. Admire the city from the Virgin of Quito viewpoint, then step into the richly decorated Church of the Society of Jesus, one of the capital's most dazzling baroque landmarks. Continue through Plaza Grande, framed by the Presidential Palace and the Cathedral, before exploring La Ronda, a charming district known for artisan workshops, traditional crafts and local character. You will also visit an archaeology museum for deeper context on Ecuador's ancient cultures. The evening is yours to enjoy Quito at your own pace, perhaps with dinner in one of the capital's atmospheric restaurants.
Begin your visit to Casa Agave! Here you can experience how to mix a variety of great cocktails from agave based miske (Ecuador’s spirit) and get very familiar with an very important plant of the local culture. Then you will head to Cotacachi, to visit the Runa Tupari community. Together with your local guide you will go to an alpaca farm and visit the family living at the foot of Cotacachi Volcano. You will look into their garden, at their animals and see their daily lives in a very natural and friendly way.
Surrounded by volcanoes and lakes, Otavalo is one of Ecuador's great cultural crossroads. Start at the famous market, where stalls overflow with woven textiles, ponchos, leatherwork, jewelry and regional produce. It is a colorful place to browse, meet local vendors and appreciate the craftsmanship of the northern Andes. Continue to Peguche, a village known for Andean music and traditional instrument making, before enjoying a scenic walk near Lake Cuicocha, a volcanic crater lake framed by orchids and views of Cotacachi Volcano. In the afternoon, join a local family for a cooking experience, learning how regional dishes are prepared before sharing a meal together.
The rose from Ecuador is known all around the world and today you will find out why this flower is so special for growers and enthusiasts all over the world. You will visit a rose plantation in this vast area of flowers. You will see all kinds of flowers and learn how the growers work as specialized cut flower growers. They cultivate, cut and care for these flowers. After visiting the rose plantations you go to the Antisana Nature Reserve. This reserve is located in the highlands of Ecuador near the Antisana Volcano. It is a beautiful park where you can go trekking in the open landscape of the Andes. You can see the stunning scenery and along the way you can see some animals and birds near Mica Lagoon. The reserve is perfect for nature lovers because there are lots of birds and more animals living in this area. In the afternoon we continue our journey to Cotopaxi where we have dinner and spend the night.
Set out along the Avenue of the Volcanoes to explore Cotopaxi National Park, home to one of the world's highest active volcanoes. With its perfectly shaped, snow-capped cone, Cotopaxi is one of Ecuador's most iconic natural sights. Begin at the Interpretation Center, then walk around Lake Limpiopungo beneath the slopes of Ruminahui Volcano. The park shelters wild horses, llamas, foxes, deer, spectacled bears, condors and a range of high-altitude birdlife. Depending on weather, altitude conditions and your energy level, you may continue to the Jose Rivas Refuge area for sweeping views across the volcanic landscape.
You depart today for the Chimborazo Reserve, a highland environment surrounded by majestic mountain landscapes. You shall go to the upper part of the highest volcano in Ecuador where vicunas, condors, caracaras, hawks and many other species of animals that inhabit this type of highland environments can be seen. For the more adventurous you will hike from the parking area of the Carrel Refuge to the Whymper Refuge and from there continue to Condor Cocha Lagoon. In the afternoon you can return down and have lunch with a local community at the foot of the volcano. Lunch is prepared by the Indigenous women of the local Indigenous community that lives in the area. After lunch you continue to Riobamba where you spend the night.
Leave Riobamba and follow the celebrated waterfall route toward Banos, a lively town set beneath Tungurahua Volcano. The road reveals dramatic mountain scenery, lush vegetation and rushing cascades along the way. Stop at the powerful Pailon del Diablo waterfall, one of Ecuador's most impressive natural spectacles, before continuing to Manto de la Novia, where you can admire the falls and the surrounding river gorge. Arrive in Banos in time for lunch, then spend the afternoon exploring the town and meeting local artisans.
Leave early in the morning for Punta Ahuano to start your adventure along the Amazon waterways. You will visit an artisan chocolate workshop where you will learn about cacao and taste some of the finest handcrafted chocolate made in Ecuador. You will also visit a wildlife refuge where injured and orphaned animals of the Amazon live. Enjoy a light picnic lunch in Cayman and then go tubing down Cayman Lagoon. After lunch you will go on a peaceful canoe trip to Jungle Lodge where you will go on a short guided night walk after dinner to witness the sounds and creatures of the Amazon at night.
Wake up surrounded by the sounds of the Amazon and set out on a guided forest walk. Your local guide will introduce the plants, insects, birds and animals of the rainforest, explaining how certain species are used in traditional medicine and daily life. In the afternoon, visit a Kichwa community on a river island to learn about their relationship with the forest. You will discover local customs, taste chicha, a traditional cassava drink and gain a deeper appreciation for the culture that has shaped life in this region for generations.
After breakfast you will head to a peaceful bird lagoon which is part of a wetland of trees and plants with a variety of birds including herons, egrets and kingfishers. You will give traditional piranha fishing a try, plying the river where the local people live and work. After lunch you will go and meet some local gold prospectors and see their small equipment that they use to pan for gold on the banks of the Napo River. The afternoon will be free to do as you wish. Feel free to take a swim to cool off before returning to the lodge in time to watch the sunset as the forest ends another day.
Enjoy a final morning in the jungle before setting out by boat across the bird lake and reconnecting with your vehicle for the last stage of the journey. Your destination is Papallacta, a mountain village known for its volcanic thermal pools. Fed by the Antisana and Cayambe volcanoes, these naturally heated waters are cherished for their soothing qualities. Spend the afternoon soaking in the springs or walking through the surrounding highland scenery, letting the calm of the Andes bring the journey to a restorative close.
After breakfast, your driver will collect you from the hotel and transfer you directly to Quito's international airport for your onward flight. You leave with memories of volcanoes, markets, forest trails, river journeys, warm local hosts and an Ecuador experienced through genuine connection.
