Tours in Quito

Day 1

 

Upon arrival in Quito, transfer from airport to the hotel selected.

 

Day 2

City Tour begins with drive along upscale residential section.  View the impressive Parliament Building, whose stone mural records Ecuador’s rich history.  Then stroll downtown to visit historic temples and monasteries designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO.  Visit St. Augustine Convent, its beautiful cloisters and vast collection of paintings depicting the life of St. Augustine.  Continue to Independence Plaza, flanked by the Cathedral, Presidential Palace, Municipal Building, and  Archbishop’s Palace.  Then to magnificent Church of San Francisco, one of the great religious Baroque style buildings in the New World.   Drive 16 miles north to the Equatorial Monument marking the exact “Middle of the Earth”, and stand with one foot in each hemisphere.  Visit the Ethnographic Museum and then tour nearby colonial-style town before returning to your hotel.

Day 3

Full day tour to Otavalo and its colorful Indian market. Otavalo is an Indian town located in a beautiful mountain region, north of Quito on the Pan-American Highway. The Indians of this region are famous for the weaving of textiles, which has a history of 4000 years and the town boasts of a great market, where you can buy or admire their work.

Continuing the tour in Cotacachi, there you can visit Laguna Cuicocha, which is a crater lake on an altitude of 3000 meters above sea-level with an diameter of about 3 kms. Two islands emerge from the center, both of volcanic origin, covered with vegetation and rimmed with totora, a type of reed. The small town Cotacachi itself is Ecuador’s center of leatherworks. Here you can stroll through the small streets choosing one of the various shops as your favorite. Return to Quito.

Day 4

Transfer from the hotel to the airport for flight to Cuenca. Transfer to hotel. Afternoon tour of Colonial Cuenca. Cuenca, is a beautiful colonial city declared a UNESCO cultural heritage site in 1999, enjoy colonial architecture and art in its churches, plazas and museums.

Day 5

This day, our first destination are the Inca ruins of Ingapirca, the most important monument of pre-Spanish culture in Ecuador. The ruins are located on a grass-covered hill in an altitude of about 3.100 m. Even before the construction of the sun-temple (1450-1480) this place had an important spiritual significance for the Incas. In 1470, Yupanqui, the king of the Inca subjugated the local Cañari tribe and presumably built the town of Ingapirca.

On a walk through the former place where the Incas lived and hold their ceremonies, you will learn about their beliefs and rituals as well as about the way they constructed this ordination place, which is formed like a puma. The ruins rest on a moonlit high plateau that falls in its three sides to a deep, clear and wide valley.

Day 6

Morning time to visit the sights of Cuenca, the third largest city of Ecuador. In Cuenca, founded in 1557 on an Inca settlement valley, you still breathe the colonial air of Ecuadorian history. For most Ecuadorian inhabitants – and also for travelers – this center of art, ceramic, panama hats as well as products of silver and gold is the most beautiful city in Ecuador. During the city sightseeing we will show you the historical buildings, located along the Tomebamba River, the “Todos los Santos” ruins, the flowers market and the main square with the old and new Cathedral. There is still enough time to visit some typical towns around Cuenca as well as a Panama hat factory. The afternoon will be at leisure. You may walk around the narrow cobble stoned streets with the whitewashed houses and noble facades to explore the beauty of this town on your own. Afternoon, transfer to the airport for return flight to Quito. Transfer to selected hotel.

Day 7

Transfer to the airport.

 

Includes

 

* Bilingual Guide

* Accommodation

* All meals

* All transfers in Quito & Cuenca.

* 4 nights in Quito

* 2 nights in Cuenca

* Tours in Quito, Cuenca and Otavalo

* Round Trip air Quito/Cuenca

* Round Trip Transportation

 

Not Included

* Gratuities (Optional)