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.
Including stay at Sacha Lodge, Rio Napo
We offer two jungle itineraries, one staying in a lodge and one cruising the river. Both itineraries include 3 nights in the jungle and offer the opportunity to follow jungle trails, visit lakes, see the wildlife and get an insight into the jungle way of life.
Jungle Cruise: Manatee Amazon ExplorerA comfortable 30 passenger river boat sailing on the Napo River. Cabins have lower berths and air conditioning.
Jungle Lodge: Sacha Lodge A superior lodge on an oxbow lake with hot water showers and electricity. There is a 275-metre canopy walkway.
Day 1 (Wednesday) Quito Fly from UK to Quito. You are met at the airport and escorted to your hotel (3 nights).
Day 2 (Thursday) Quito Take the optional Colonial Quito excursion and discover the charms of the old city.
Day 3 (Friday) Quito Join the optional Otavalo excursion, travelling through the volcanoes, then explore the famous indigenous market of Otavalo.
Day 4 (Saturday) Galapagos, Santa Cruz morning flight from Quito to the Galapagos. Transfer to the Explorer II, your home for the next 7 nights. In the afternoon, visit Cerro Dragon where often there are flamingos near the two lagoons.
Day 5 (Sunday) Bartolome, Santiago This morning, visit Bartolome, where you can climb to the summit of this volcanic island. From here, there are wonderful views. You can also snorkel in the surrounding sea, where there are sometimes penguins. In the afternoon, visit Santiago. The black lava shoreline has marine iguanas and red Sally Lightfoot crabs. You can snorkel here with fur seals.
Day 6 (Monday) Fernandina, Isabela This morning, visit Fernandina, the westernmost island. Flightless cormorants, sea lions and Galapagos penguins are common here. After lunch, visit the cliffs off Isabela, the largest of the islands, excellent for snorkelling.
Day 7 (Tuesday) North Seymour, Santa Cruz After breakfast, visit Seymour, home to many marine birds, and see marine iguanas resting in the sun. In the afternoon, visit the highlands of Santa Cruz, where you can see giant tortoises, and explore the lava tunnels.
Day 8 (Wednesday) San Cristobal In the morning, visit the tortoise breeding centre, then have free time in the to relax in a seafront cafe or buy souvenirs in the town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno. After lunch, visit the tuff cone of Cerro Brujo and swim with sea lions from the beach.
Days 9 (Thursday) Española Sail to Española, the most southerly island, and visit Punta Suarez, walking among the blue-footed boobies. Waved albatrosses nest here from April to November. After lunch, visit Gardner Bay, a beautiful beach with sea lions which is excellent for swimming and snorkelling.
Day 10 (Friday) Santa Cruz, Rabida In the morning, visit the Charles Darwin Research Station, where you can see the work done in the conservation of the flora and fauna of the islands. In the afternoon, visit Rabida Island, a small island with a central volcano, with red lava rocks. The clear waters are very good for snorkelling.
Day 11 (Saturday) Galapagos, Quito Your fnal excursion to Bachas beach, a beautiful sandy beach ideal for swimming, where you may see nests of sea turtles from November to February. Flamingos live in the nearby lagoons. Then transfer to the airport for your flight to Quito (2 nights).
Day 12 (Sunday) Quito A free day in Quito. Take an optional excursion to the Bellavista Cloud Forest.
Day 13 (Monday) Jungle A morning flight to Coca, then a two-hour motorized canoe ride down the Napo River to the lodge on Pilchicocha lake, arriving in time for a swim. Visit the butterfly house and the mini-tower to observe birds and watch the sun set. After dinner, take a walk to explore the forest after dark (4 nights).
Day 14 (Tuesday) Jungle A morning visit to the canopy walkway to observe the jungle canopy and the vibrant colourful birdlife. Walk through an igapo forest, where native guides explain the medicinal use of many plants. After lunch, continue through the forest, perhaps seeing the dusky titi monkey.
Day 15 (Wednesday) Jungle Take a canoe ride on Lagartococha lake, home to anacondas, caimans and capybaras. After lunch, fish for piranhas, then take a silent canoe ride through the fooded forest, looking for sloths. Climb the wooden tower built around an ancient kapok tree to get splendid sunset views. Return to the lodge by canoe, taking an amazing ride through the night-time fooded forest, accompanied by the chorus of frogs, bats and nocturnal birds.
Day 16 (Thursday) Jungle An excursion to the banks of the river, where different species of parrot gather at a clay lick. After lunch, follow a trail through the forest, looking for monkeys and birdlife, with guides explaining the jungle around you.
Day 17 (Friday) Quito A canoe ride back to Coca before flying back to Quito (1 night).
Day 18 (Saturday) Overnight flight to UK.
Day 19 (Sunday) Arrival in the UK.
Please note, jungle excursions may vary due to weather conditions.
Galapagos Explorer II: Full board
Jungle Lodge: Full board
Quito: Bed and Breakfast
Manatee Amazon Explorer, Rio Napo
Day 13 (Monday) Jungle A morning flight from Quito to Coca, from where you take a motorized canoe ride down the Napo River to the Manatee. The boat then navigates downriver as the guides explain the Amazon’s ecosystem (4 nights).
Day 14 (Tuesday) Jungle Morning walk through the forest to a lagoon where you can fish. Have a picnic lunch, before returning to the Napo River rowing along a small blackwater creek in a native canoe.
Day 15 (Wednesday) Jungle An early excursion to the banks of the river, where different species of parrot gather at a clay lick. Then walk through the jungle to Limoncocha Lake, where over 470 species of birds have been recorded. You can also try piranha fishing here. At night, it is possible to spot black caimans on the lake, before returning to the Manatee.
Day 16 (Thursday) Jungle You can row a canoe on a tranquil tributary of the Rio Napo to a native settlement. Take a walk under the jungle canopy, where the Kapok tree can grow to over 40 metres tall. There is also a fascinating Amazon museum, showing how people used to live in the rainforest.
Day 17 (Friday) Quito The Manatee sails upriver to Coca from where you fly back to Quito (1 night).
Jungle Cruise: Full board