Ecuador - from the Clouds to the Ocean

• Meet a local representative who will transfer you after clearing customs and collecting your luggage to Casa Gangotena Hotel (± 50 minutes)

• Stay at Casa Gangotena Hotel in a Standard Room for 2 nights

• Breakfast included

• Half Day Colonial City Walking Tour

Ecuador has history, fascinating indigenous cultures, slow winding rivers and lush tropical forests, spectacular snowcapped volcanoes and some of the most exciting wildlife on earth. The place to start is Colonial Quito: a city of narrow cobblestone streets lined with whitewashed walls and, rising above, the steeples and cupolas of the city ́s many spectacularly decorated historic churches. The city has one of the best preserved colonial centers in all South America and its integrity was assured in 1978 when the United Nations declared Quito a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage site.

Walk through the Main Plaza, where you will see the Government Palace and some of the most important churches built around the XVI and XVII centuries, including the La Compañía, and the San Francisco Monastery which was begun 5 days after the founding of the city in 1534.

You will also visit the city’s most famous colonial street, La Ronda, and learn about traditional work in Colonial Quito.

• Travel overland from Casa Gangotena Hotel to Mashpi Lodge (± 3.5 hours)  - journey takes you along the foothills of the western Andes, as you cross the equator and pass the archealogical site of Tulipe
• Stay at Mashpi Lodge in a Wayra Room for 2 nights
• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included

After settling into your rooms, enjoy a brief introductory presentation by the the guides before lunch, outlining the itinerary of conservation activities.

Afternoon walk along the Napa Path

Learn about the ecology of Mashpi and the importance of forest conservation. Observe how small organisms that inhabit the forest floor are the key to understanding the ecosystem. It is a path of great scenic beauty and an excellent opportunity for bird watching as you continue to one of Mashpi's most unique attractions - the pambil (Iriartea deltoid), a palm over 130 feet tall. Its wood is considered as hard as steel. 

Evening lecture by the resident biologist outlining the biodiversity around Mashpi, the geological history of the Andes and Choco, and updating you on current  research projects in the reserve.

Early morning  bird watching

Embrace the dawn light with a cup of coffee, tea or hot chocolate in hand, on the terrace, and enjoy the many bird species that come to feed on insects and fruit trees nearby.  The guides will be on hand to assist with identifying species and the telescopes will offer up close viewing. 

Morning activity: Air Bike and the Observation Tower  - enjoy a short walk to the tower (15 minutes) for a magnificent view from above (100 feet tall).  The treetops are home to 70% of the biodiversity and worth the climb of 162 steps to reach the top.

Return to the hotel via either the Path Oxibelis, via a small waterfall OR a more rigorous route via the waterfall of San Vicente.

Afternoon visit to the Life Center

The route to the Life Center via  "Monkey Howler Trail "runs through a forest dominated by ancient trees, including the copal (Dacryodes cupularis). Your guides, always attentive to the sounds of rustling leaves and birds, will seek elusive monkeys while explaining the ecology of the environment and the medicinal use of the plants.

Highlights of the Life Center include the beautiful, expansive deck, the butterfly center where you discover the many species found in the area and learn about the metamorphosis from larva and caterpillar to chrysalis and butterfly. Discover different species of plants that make up the habitat.

For those interested in learning more about the cloud forest of Ecuador, you have the opportunity to enjoy a 30 minute talk about the research projects, including a video presentation on camera traps, a project developed by the resident biologist who displays the amazing diversity of the forest.

• Enjoy a final morning walk before breakfast and check out
• Road transfer from Mashpi Lodge to the Wyndham Quito, with picnic lunch (± 3 hours)
• Stay at the Wyndham Quito in a Deluxe Room for 1 night
• Dinner and Breakfast included

• Transfer from the Wyndham Quito hotel to Quito Airport (± 5 minutes)

• Scheduled flight Quito - Baltra Airport (Cost not included)

• Road transfer from airport to harbor for boarding onto M/C Endemic

• Stay on the M/C Endemic in a cabin for 4 nights

• Breakfast, lunch and dinner included

Santa Cruz Island  Afternoon visit to Dragon Hill 

Located on the north-western part of Santa Cruz island. Here you will have the opportunity to view the land iguana. Be amongst these magnificent reptiles, that just a few decades ago were on the brink of extinction.

Other highlights include the flamingos’ lagoon, pintail ducks and other endemic birds including flycatchers and warblers. After a short trek, an amazing view awaits you up the hill. Enjoy some offshore snorkeling before returning to the yacht.

• Possible Activities: Walk amongst iguana, excellent bird watching
• Type of Landing: Dry landing
• Difficulty:Easy

• San Cristobal Island - Morning briefing and La Galapauera 

Highlights: Kicker Rock, an impressive geological formation due to erosion and nesting place of sea birds. Additionally, curious sea lions and while snorkeling marine life such as fish, turtles, sharks, rays can be found.

• Activities: Circumnavigation
• Type of Landing: No landing

Witch Hill, a tuff cone hill located southwest of San Cristobal. This name comes from the Spanish name of the bird known in English as vermilion flycatcher.

A zodiac ride will take passengers into amazing rock formations along the island shore. A white sand beach and crystal-clear waters are part of this enchanted location and offer a fantastic opportunity for snorkeling.

• Possible Activities: hike, zodiac ride, snorkeling & kayaking
• Type of Landing: Wet landing
• Difficulty: Easy

In the afternoon, you will be taken to Lobos Island, where a small population of blue-footed boobies, frigates, marine iguanas, and great frigate birds nesting can be observed. Snorkeling with sea lions in this calm bay

• Possible Activities: Short Hike (less than 0.6 mi/1 km), zodiac ride, Bird watching, zodiac ride and/or snorkeling
• Type of Landing: Dry landing
• Difficulty: Easy/Moderate

Espanola Island  -  This is the southernmost island in the Galapagos archipelago, and home to several wildlife species, including the endemic Hood mockingbrid, masked and blue-footed boobies. Spectacular views from the top of a cliff.

Gardner Bay - breeding site of nearly all of the world´s 12,000 pairs of waved albatrosses. It has an ample white sandy beach with a myriad of sea lions, perfect for relaxing. Its rocky shores make this site a great place for diving and snorkeling. 

Highlights: White sandy beach, sea lions, mockingbirds; snorkeling: colorful fish, sea lion nursery

• Possible Activities: Snorkeling, dinghy ride, kayaking, and short hike of (0.6 mi / 1km)

• Type of Landing: Wet landing

• Difficulty: Easy

Or visit the Osborn and Gardner islets that are amazing for underwater discovery. Snorkeling is a highlight.

After lunch, Point Suarez will be visited, which represents one of the most outstanding wildlife areas of the archipelago, with a long list of species found along its cliffs and sand.

Highlights: Hood mockingbird, Nazca boobies, waved albatross, red-billed tropicbirds, lava lizards, Galapagos gawk, blue-footed Boobies, blowhole, amazing landscapes.

• Possible Activities: Snorkeling, dinghy ride, kayaking, and short hike of (0.6 mi / 1km)
• Type of Landing: Wet Landing
• Difficulty: Easy

Sante Fe Island - In the morning, after breakfast, Santa Fe island will be visited, which is one of the most entertaining destinations for shore excursions in the Galapagos Islands. It has two trail choices for visitors, one of which takes you to the tallest Opuntia cactus in the Galapagos. While the other trail takes you into the highlands where land iguanas can be seen. After a long walk, the opportunity to swim in calm waters or snorkel with playful sea lions will be pretty tempting.

• Activities: Hiking, snorkeling
• Type of landing: Dry landing
• Difficulty: Moderate

In the afternoon, visit the Fausto Llerena Breeding Center, which is also known as Charles Darwin Research Station. Here you will find an information center, a museum, a library and a tortoise breeding station. In the tortoise breeding station, you can encounter tortoises of different subspecies, which are prepared for reintroduction to their natural habitats. The most popular inhabitant of this Station is probably the Lonesome George turtle, who died in 2012.

• Activities: Walk
• Type of landing: Dry landing
• Difficulty: Easy

South Plazas Island

Morning visit to  South Plazas island with its unique Sesuvium plants and Opuntia cactuses scattered across the landscape which provide some of the most interesting wildlife observations available in Galapagos. 

• Activities: Hike

• Type of landing: No landing

• Difficulty: Easy

Land iguanas are easily seen from the trail, frequently under the shade of cactuses, waiting for a prickly pear to fall.

• Private transfer from the harbor to Baltra airport 
• Scheduled flight from Baltra - Quito Airport (Costs not included)