This holiday visits the places ticked below. You can design your own itinerary by adding destinations. Select the destinations you would like and click the red button to see full details of the holiday you have chosen.
The Grand Tour of Ecuador holiday allows you to take the following optional excursions:
Colonial Quito | Otavalo | Bellavista Cloud Forest | Bellavista Cloud Forest (2 days) | Papallacta Springs & Spa (2 days) | Special Offer: Add Colonial Quito & Otavalo to any two-day excursion | Colonial Quito, Otavalo & Bellavista (1 day)
This half-day guided excursion takes you to the colonial heart of Quito, starting in the main square. Visit the church of La Compañia, with its spectacular gold leaf interior, and Plaza San Francisco. A tour to the Quito School of Colonial Art shows how children are being taught to restore the city’s colonial heritage, then visit the hill of Panecillo, from where there are wonderful views of Quito and the surrounding volcanoes.
More information about Quito
Llama Travel Customer Ratings
This full day excursion departs from Quito in the morning, travelling through beautiful Ecuadorian countryside and past the Cayambe volcano. You stop at a rose farm and see the many varieties of roses which are grown in this near-perfect climate. After lunch, continue to the small market town of Otavalo, where you will have time to explore and shop in the famous crafts market. The market is an array of colour with many of the vendors wearing traditional Andean dress, and there are a wide range of goods on sale. You return to Quito in the late afternoon.
More information about Otavalo
You leave Quito early and are driven through spectacular scenery. After two hours, you arrive at the Bellavista Lodge, high in the cloud forest at 2,200 metres, from where there are amazing views. After breakfast, take a guided walk to explore the forest. You then have the rest of the day free to explore at your own pace. Enjoy the area around the lodge, where the feeders attract up to 16 varieties of hummingbirds, which can be seen at close range. Or follow the self-guided trails, offering the chance to get to know the ecology and birds of the cloud forest. You leave the Bellavista in the afternoon, getting back to Quito in the late afternoon. This excursion includes breakfast and lunch at the lodge. Note: heavy rain is not unusual and the paths around the lodge can be slippery. The last part of the drive to Bellavista is on a bumpy unmade road.
More information about Bellavista Cloud Forest
If you would like to explore the cloud forest further, our two day excursion includes a night at the Bellavista Lodge. You leave Quito after breakfast, getting to Bellavista mid morning. As you have almost two full days at the lodge, you have more time to explore some of the longer, more adventurous trails, perhaps visiting one of the four beautiful waterfalls at Bellavista. One guided walk is included, and you can then follow the self-guided trails from the lodge or take another guided walk for a small additional cost. You are in the cloud forest at dusk and dawn, the best times for bird watching. Horse riding in the area is also available for an extra cost.
You return to Quito in the evening of your second day at Bellavista. All meals from lunch on the first day to lunch on the second day are included at the lodge. You will check out of your hotel in Quito for this night.
This 2 day excursion begins with a 90 minute drive from Quito over the paramo, the last part on an unmade road. You arrive at the hot volcanic springs of Papallacta at 3,300m, at the foot of the Antisana volcano.
After leaving your bags at the hotel, you can choose to take a beautiful three-hour walk with our guide, following the streams through a high altitude forest. A packed lunch is included. If you prefer not to take the walk, you can relax in the valley. After returning from the walk, enjoy a calming soak in the springs before dinner (included). You will check out of your hotel in Quito for this night.
The next day, you have a free morning. Entry to the spa is included on this day; the hydrotherapy area consists of five hot thermal pools and one cold pool. There are hydromassages using water jets and air bubbles. You can also book a spa treatment, which include medicinal Andean mud, pressure massages, aromatherapy, therapeutic massages, face and body treatments.
After lunch, your driver picks you up for the return trip to Quito, arriving in the late afternoon.
A one-day excursion is also available. Please ask us for details if you are interested in this option.
More information about Papallacta
If you would like to take one of our two-day excursions to the Bellavista cloud forest or the Papallacta volcanic springs, then you can add the Otavalo and Colonial Quito excursions for a special price.
Book our three optional excursions to the Bellavista Cloud Forest, Otavalo and Colonial Quito for a special price.