Ecuador & Galapagos tailor made tour
As this is a tailor-made itinerary, we can change it to suit your own needs, wants, time and budget. Enquire now to start planning your own adventure with one of our Ecuador & Galapagos experts.
Description of Ecuador & Galapagos tailor made tour
See the Amazon, the Andes, and then the Galapagos Islands – this adventure through Ecuador takes three weeks and it’s a private guided tour, so you can get the very best bespoke experience.
It's hard to say where Ecuador’s biggest hitters are – on one hand, there’s Cotopaxi, the Andes, and the Amazon – massive wild areas on the mainland. Then there are the unique Galapagos islands with its weird and wonderful little miracles of nature. On this trip you see both.This holiday includes a drive from the Andes to the Amazon – a big and adventurous distance to cover on a holiday – and not something everyone can say they’ve done! Once you’re there, you’ll get plenty of time up in the Amazon, on boat cruises and visiting local communities.
You’ll visit the cities of Quito and Cuenca, so you can take in the architecture of the capital and third largest city, and meet and chat with craftspeople. You’ll spend time at a cloud forest lodge near the Mindo Cloud Forest, where you can experience the forest on a nature walk with a local guide, or in your swimsuit, whilst you bathe in the natural pool at the bottom of a waterfall.
Once you reach the Galapagos, stay in the heart of a giant tortoise reserve, then step on board your boat, where an on-board naturalist will help you explore archipelago islands. Kayaking trips, volcano hikes and snorkelling trips on Isabela Island help you get even closer to nature – look out for penguins and playful sea lions.
What makes it luxury? You’ll stay in boutique lodges, and can opt for a boutique cruise once you reach the Galapagos. The holiday can be tailored to your needs – need an extra day? Passionate about birdlife? Everything can be reworked for your interests. This trip contains internal flights to reach the Galapagos islands, but every effort has been made to design it with minimal unnecessary flights.
Price information
As this is a tailor-made itinerary, we can change it to suit your own needs, wants, time and budget. Enquire now to start planning your own adventure with one of our Ecuador & Galapagos experts.
Departure information
Travel guides
Reviews
4 Reviews of Ecuador & Galapagos tailor made tour
Reviewed on 07 Mar 2024 by Robert Scott
Outstanding....7 days on Endemic around the Galapagos. Read full reviewReviewed on 05 Jan 2024 by Dana LaFontsee
Spectacular!...It was fascinating to learn more about the different species on each island, and then actually get to see them. The snorkelling was the best we've ever done, and I will never ever forget the up-close encounters I had with a sea lion, green turtles, penguins and marine iguana! It was the experience of a lifetime! Read full reviewReviewed on 10 Oct 2023 by Polly Tyrer
Surprising and amazing. If you are interested in snorkelling & have a small wet suit take it. Can be $75 to hire. Although water not too cold you feel it if you are snorkelling for 30-40 mins. Read full reviewResponsible Travel
Planet
Using a slow travel approach, we encourage our guests to spend longer discovering their destination and avoiding flights where travel by land is possible. On this trip for example we travel by vehicle into the Amazon rather than flying in, and the only flights across the entire 23 days are between the Galapagos and the mainland, where there is no realistic alternative.We also handpick accommodation with a focus on environmental responsibility, such as the charming jungle lodge in Mindo built specifically to protect the flora and fauna of the local cloud forest habitat. Similar stories can be found in the Amazon, Cotopaxi, and Galapagos properties we prioritise when arranging the itinerary.
Simply by visiting the Galapagos, as well as other national parks on the mainland, you are also helping to support important conservation efforts. Indeed, the Galapagos provides a great example in how responsible tourism can thrive, providing both the opportunity for people to experience its wonders, but also limiting the human impact on the archipelago through strict national park regulations.
People
Community-based tourism is a key element of our trips to Ecuador, and in fact our ground partners are multi-award winners in this field. Throughout the trip we aim to involve local communities in our activities, from full day experiences like the Quichua Napo Runa cultural initiative in the Amazon, to optional visits to authentic artisan workshops, and close bonds with experts like Miguel Andrango the ‘master weaver’ near Otavalo. The aim throughout is to provide non-touristy, authentic cultural experiences, that benefit the people from those communities directly.We also avoid any international chain hotels or large cruise ships, prioritising independent local owner-run properties where possible. This keeps more money in the immediate area, and helps provides business and employment opportunities to local people, whilst providing us and our guests with a more genuine and enriching stay as part of our trips. All of our guides and drivers are also based out of partners local offices in Quito and the Galapagos.
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