Welcome to Quito! The largest, best-preserved colonial city in America – was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978. The city is considered the Cultural Capital of South America and is located on the equator in a valley at the foothills of the Pichincha volcano. Depending on your arrival time, you can spend your day exploring the old town of Quito and the surrounding area. ADVENTURE JOURNEYS can help you to organize a day trip (please request in advance). In the evening, one of our trip leaders will meet you at the hotel’s lobby for a welcome briefing at 18:00 pm hours. At this time we will discuss the details and questions you may have regarding the adventure. Our first day is an acclimation and information day.

We begin this adventure traveling south on the Pana American highway for 2 hours through The Avenue of Volcanoes, which was named by the famous German explorer Alexander Von Humboldt. On the way, enjoy views of volcanoes such as Cayambe, Antisana, Pichincha, Illinizas, Pasochoa, and Corazon. Once we enter the park we will drive on the high alpine line where we will learn from our guide about the flora and fauna of the Paramo ecosystem, along the road we will cross a pine forest and with some luck, you could spot a whitetail deer.

Begin your journey in The Avenue of Volcanoes and start biking at an elevation of 13000 feet. Travel along a dirt road where wild horses and bulls roam, surrounded by the remains of the last eruption of Cotopaxi, which took place about 140 years ago. From here we will ride on an exciting single track all the way to the Pucara Inca Ruins, here our guides will prepare a delicious lunch for you. In the afternoon, we will continue on our way for about 1 hour to the Hacienda Santa Ana.

On this day, after breakfast, we will drive to the western part of the Ecuadorian Andes, our first stop is at the Hummingbird Reserve, here enjoy the ability to view about 20 species of these marvelous birds, all while enjoying a cup of coffee or some amazon tea. Later, we continue to the Papallacta resort to check in at your cabin with location right in front of the pools of volcanic water. Today, have lunch on your own as there are plenty of choices for restaurants that offer traditional food, in the afternoon we will go for a hike in the nearby cloud forest in search of orchids, bromeliads and several other different species of flora; with some luck you could observe some birds such us tanagers, trogons, warbler, flycatchers and even a condor.

The rest of the day and night is yours to enjoy the volcanic hot springs and the Spa treatments high in the midst of the cool Andes.

Travel upon a precious, exclusive road with no traffic in this high region. This is a special experience because this ecological reserve is very remote and pristine with little influence from people. While descending from 13000 ft (3962 m) to 9000 ft (2743 m), enjoy the views of the Andean fields and witness the surroundings of grassland and colorful flowers, with occasional deer and rabbits crossing. This park is home of the Spectacled Bear, the only species in South America. Enjoying views of the Andean fields, the local people from the region depend much upon the agriculture of products like potato, corn, fava beans, lupine, etc.

We arrive at the Hacienda to check-in during the early afternoon, later we will do an optional bike ride of 20 minutes each way to the Equator monument to learn a bit more of the Latitude 0.

In the morning we will do a hiking exploration in the nearby Cayambe Coca Ecological Reserve in the cloud forest. Here there are beautiful flora that include colorful orchids, and if walking slowly and quietly, you may see some beautiful birds too. Later we will travel across the Andes to stop by the equatorial line to witness this great attraction and to stand on both hemispheres at the same time. Your guide will suggest a place to eat before going to the Otavalo Indigueous Market and spend some time shopping and learning about this ancient culture that is still lively here today. In the late afternoon we will be transferred to the hacienda and enjoy a welcome cocktail and a delicious dinner.

NOTE – This morning if you do not want to go hiking, you can book a spa treatment and pay directly to the Hotel, make sure you organize this the night before just by calling from your own room to the Spa.

Hands on cultural experience – AJ Sustainable Sacha WarmiKuna women project.

For lunch, we will head to Pijal, a small village located in the heart of the Andes to visit one of the AJ sustainable projects called Sacha WarmiKuna (women from the mountain). This is one fantastic effort developed by AJ and the local women with the main purpose to support their families and encourage the position of the women in the local society, providing them an alternative side work beside housekeeping, as a new option for an in-come. Once at the project you will experience an unforgettable cultural encounter, immersing yourself in the true spirit of the South-American woman and their skills for textiles and a deep culinary knowledge coming from the past generations. You will be part of the preparation of “Aji”, a local spicy salsa which is part of their identity, you will also share precious time with them and a tasty traditional lunch in which local women have used the fresh products harvested the same day from the surrounding organic fields. Later we will learn more about the weaving process of their textiles. Don’t miss the amazing opportunity to have the chance to give back, by buying handmade scarfs here. Later we will arrive at the beautiful, historical hacienda of Pinsaqui where we will stay overnight. Enjoy a typical Andean cocktail as welcome, and learn about the history of this place.

Today we drive for two hours heading south on the Pan-American highway, the first stop will be in Tabacundo town to see the rose shops. Most of the people in this town depend on the rose farms, they are considered among the top 5 largest businesses in Ecuador. After, we continue to the dry valley of Guayllabamba and stop for tasting the local fruit such as chirimoya.

Our bike ride will start at the small village of Yunguilla and will enter the Pululahua Crater on a dirt road into the beautiful Cloud forest. There is actually a geo-botanical reserve that is taking place inside the collapsed caldera of this old volcano. According to the experts, an immense eruption occurred here thousands of years ago and left these great formations, specifically the lava domes in the center of the volcano. While descending on our bikes, every curve will offer a chance to enjoy the amazing scenery, and the two-wheel adventure will finish in the center of the caldera. We will have lunch prepared by our driver and guide, and in the afternoon it is optional to hike out of the volcano, otherwise, we continue back to Quito.