Compare Highlands of Ecuador by G Adventures vs Backbone of Ecuador - Andean Adventure by Adventure Unbound
Compare details and see what other travelers are saying.
| Trip |
5 | Excellent
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5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 8 days | 10 days |
| Price From | $ 839 | $ 3,850 |
| Price Per Day | $ 105 | $ 385 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Small group tour | Small group tour |
| Lodging Level | Standard | Standard |
| Physical Level |
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| Travel Themes |
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| Countries Visited | ||
| Cities and Attractions |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included | Ground transport included |
| Activities |
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| Meals Included | 7 breakfasts, 1 lunch | N/A |
| Description |
If you’re short on time it doesn’t mean your cultural experience in Ecuador shouldn’t be colossal. This eight-day tour mixes exciting stuff like cities listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, lively markets, and natural wonders like Cotopaxi volcano, so you get to soak in impressive cityscapes as well as sweeping vistas like a well-travelled, insightful sponge. |
A Cultural Journey Ecuador's Andes Mountains The backbone of Ecuador is the Andean Cordillera: a continuous chain of glaciated peaks and snow-capped volcanoes that stretches four hundred miles from Colombia in the north to Peru in the south, while to the west the mountains give way to jungle which stretches, more or less uninterrupted |
Day 1 Quito
Arrive at any time.
There are no activities planned until the evening. Please check at the hotel reception for a welcome note from your CEO advising on the time and location of the welcome meeting.
Opt to pre-book the "Quito City Tour & Equator Line" activity on the checkout page ahead of time to include this optional on your tour.
Day 2 Quito/Otavalo
Explore the largest handicraft market in South America, Otavalo market. Villagers from the surrounding countryside come every week to sell handmade goods as well as livestock, fruits, and vegetables.
Day 3 Otavalo/Cotopaxi
Travel by bus to Cotopaxi National Park. In the afternoon, opt to explore the area or mountain bike with views of Cotopaxi Volcano. Spend the night in a mountain lodge near the national park.
Day 4 Cotopaxi/Cuenca
In the morning, visit Cotopaxi National Park before continuing on with a full day of travel to Cuenca. Enjoy a boxed lunch on the way at a viewpoint overlooking the Andes Mountains.
Day 5 Cuenca
This morning embark on a half-day city tour of the colonial city of Cuenca, including the Turi viewpoint, a Panama hat factory and the historical centre. Spend the rest of the afternoon exploring or at one of Cuenca’s many cafes.
Day 6 Cuenca
Enjoy a free day to explore beautiful Cuenca. Opt to go hiking in Cajas National Park, visit Ingapirca ruins, or soak in nearby hot springs.
Explore the city’s sights, including cobblestoned streets, red-tiled roofs, art galleries, flower markets, shaded plazas, and museums.
Day 7 Cuenca/Quito
Fly back to Quito and enjoy the night in this historical city.
Your CEO will escort you and assist you at the airport in Cuenca and once you arrive to Quito our G representative will be there to escort you to the hotel and give you additional information for optional activities in your free day in Quito.
Day 8 Quito
Depart at any time.
Depart at any time.We recommend booking pre or post nights in Quito for additional time to explore. The optional activities may require additional time, speak to your CEO/ G representative for assistance booking these activities on trip.
Day 1: Welcome to Ecuador
Meals: Dinner
Accommodation: Hacienda Rumiloma
Custom Trip Note: Below is our most popular Andean itinerary in Ecuador, however, we can customize this trip at every turn to fit your availability, trip preference, activities, budget, lodging preferences or any other reason. Please call us at 800-451-6034 to customize a trip.
Arrival in Quito, meet & greet at the airport and transfer to your hotel for overnight.
Day 2: Quito and Mitad del Mundo
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Hacienda Rumiloma
A tasty breakfast will be followed by exploration of the busy squares and streets of the biggest historical urban centres in the entire Americas. You will access its key churches including the attractive Cathedral, grandiose ¨La Compañía¨ and archetypal San Fransisco. These are custodians of an amazing heritage of many cultures and ethnicities. Their interiors (pulpits and altars) are largely covered with gold and contain immeasurable collections of sacred art.
The end of your colonial history visit culminates on Panecillo hillside which has incredible views of modern as well as ancient areas of this metropolis which is bound by the undulating Andean hills and eclipsed by the impressive Pichincha Volcano.
Lunch will be served at a superb restaurant within the city after which you will tour the imposing monument which is positioned at 0º 0´ 0´´ latitude thus providing a precious and unique chance to overlap the southern and northern hemispheres. Eventually, the cheerful “Intiñan” museum will host you and give you the opportunity to carry out some stimulating experiments which can only happen on the authentic equatorial line.
Day 3: Otavalo Market
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Hacienda Rumiloma
The hotel will provide breakfast after which you will visit Otavalo Indigenous market. It is renowned for many textiles of various colors. Take your time and look for crafts, arts and souvenirs of different kinds. Later you will tour a dead volcano called San Pablo Lagoon or the Cuicocha Lake which towers over Cotacachi, a town famed for beautiful leatherwork. Your journey back to Quito takes place at night.
Day 4: Quito to Cotapaxi
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation : Hacienda San Agustin de Callo
This morning will witness you travelling south to Cotopaxi National Park which is found along the Pan-American Highway via the renowned avenue of volcanoes. You will arrive at the gate of the park, drive to Limpiopungo lagoon before proceeding on foot to the shelter of the volcano, where you will get the most stunning view of the gorge. The Inca Hacienda is your next step. You will drive to this facility in the afternoon for both dinner and accommodation for the night.
Day 5: Cotapaxi to Baños
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Luna Runtun
Baños town awaits you after breakfast. This urban centre is renowned for the “Waterfalls Route”, that also includes “Pailón del Diablo” and the chance to trek to the great waterfall and partake of the “tarabita” or cable way. A country bus (¨chiva¨) will be your mode of transport to the city’s view point.
Day 6: Baños, Chimborazo, Riobamba
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Hacienda Abraspungo
On this morning you will tour Baños town to view handicrafts before driving to Riobamba city. Along the way, you have the chance to see a Salasaca community and understand the process they followed in making their famed tapestries.
During the morning, visit Baños town to see handicrafts and then drive to Riobamba city. En route you will have the opportunity to visit a Salasaca community to see how they made the famous tapestries. You will spend the night in the Riobamba area.
Day 7: Devil's Nose Luxury Train
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Mansion Alcazar
Today breakfast will be followed by the journey to the train station at “Alausi”. Here you will begin the journey called ‘Devils’ Nose’ via the mountains. You will find no steeper railroad on the globe than this one which was finalized in 1902. It is a genuine technical work of art! The train will meander down the track and ‘Nariz del Diablo’ stretch or the Devil’s Nose at a hundred meters elevation at a walking speed. You will then take private transport from Alausi to the gorgeous Cuenca city. You will stop over at Ingapirca, which in Quechua means “wall rocks of the Inca”. This is the most significant and best conserved Inca ruins within Ecuador. You have the opportunity to roam around the impressive site and tour the local museum.
Day 8: Cuenca City Tour
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Mansion Alcazar
This morning will find you exploring the imperial city which has craft and art shops, churches and a stunning flower market. You will find all these features in old impressive houses within a neighborhood which in 1999 was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. Cuenca is regarded as the capital city of Ecuador’s craft and art industry. Moreover, you can purchase embroidery, baskets, ceramics and leather goods in the city or its rural outskirts.
Gualaceo and Chordeleg towns are you destination in the afternoon giving you the chance to see the biggest Ecuadorian Orchid farm. Create time to purchase traditional handiworks before going back to the hotel for the night.
Day 9: Cajas National Park
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner
Accommodation: Hilton Colon Guayaquil
After breakfast, take a private guided transfer to Guayaquil visiting “El Cajas” National Park, renowned for its lakes, flora and fauna.
Day 10: Departure
Meals: Breakfast
Breakfast included in the hotel, private transfer to the airport of Guayaquil for your return flight or your extension to the Galapagos Islands or somewhere else in Latin America.
