- Enjoy a Stay in Ecuador’s Romantic Colonial City
- 4 Days / 3 Nights
- Visit El Cajas National Park & Nearby Craft Villages
Cuenca City Tour
There is a reason this romantic Spanish colonial city has become so popular with American expatriates. Its elevation along the equator makes for a very inviting climate. Cuenca is located at the confluence of four rivers for which it is named and is known for its flower market, and central plaza, Parque Calderón-- home to the blue-domed Catedral Nueva. The quaint city is surrounded by indigenous craft villages and is just a 35-minute drive from spectacular El Cajas National Park. Visitors enjoy the local indigenous market and Spanish colonial hotels with some exceptional dining at restaurants like Los Tiesto’s Cafe.
* Add below price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travels in Ecuador.
5 Stars: $1,208 USD per person*
4 Stars: $913 USD per person*
Guayaquil, Cuenca & Craft Villages, El Cajas National Park
Hiking in Cuenca & El Cajas, visits to artisan studios, markets & villages, churches & flower market
Easy to Moderate Hiking
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Day 1: International flight arrival to Guayaquil & transfer to hotelAM | PM: Arrive in Guayaquil (most flights arrive in the evening) and take a private transfer to your hotel.
Meals included: no meals this day
Overnight in Guayaquil City -
Day 2: Transfer to Cuenca through the AndesAM | PM: We depart after breakfast on a 3-hour scenic drive to Cuenca that takes us from coast to mountains. The route passes through El Cajas National Park with its sweeping vistas of mountains and lakes. After lunch and a stop at your hotel we’ll go on a 4-hour afternoon tour of Cuenca’s highlights.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight in Cuenca -
Day 3: Gualaceo & Chordeleg Craft Villages + El Cajas National ParkAM: Today you have the option of either visiting the surrounding craft villages of Gualaceo and Chordeleg, and meet indigenous artisans, or you may also return to El Cajas National Park for nature hikes among beautiful lakes and Andean scenery.
Meals included: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight in Cuenca -
Day 4: Cuenca at Leisure + Flight to QuitoAM: You have the morning today to explore Cuenca and its streets on your own. In the afternoon we'll transfer to the airport for a short flight to the city of Quito.
Meals included: Breakfast
IMPORTANT NOTES ON CUENCA ITINERARIES:
If you plan to take this tour AFTER your Galapagos cruise: You can fly home on Day 4 from Quito OR you can also fly home on Day 4 from Guayaquil, but you may have to depart Cuenca earlier in the day because there are currently no direct flights between Cuenca and Guayaquil and you will need to travel by vehicle at an additional cost.
If you plan take this tour BEFORE your Galapagos cruise: You will need to schedule another hotel night on Day 4 in either Quito or Guayaquil at additional cost before flying to Galapagos on Day 5. Please contact us to discuss your options.
VIEW DETAILED 5-STAR ITINERARY
VIEW DETAILED 4-STAR ITINERARY
There's a reason that the historic center of Quito was declared the first UNESCO World Heritage site, as it is one of the best preserved historic centers in the Americas. Condé Nast calls it, Latin America's Best Preserved Colonial City. It's also a lot of fun! We can arrange for you to stay in the heart of the old town in authentic Spanish colonial hotels and take you on an inviting walking tour of its cobblestones.
You can dine in Spanish Colonial plazas at outdoor cafes, or sample boutique chocolates while watching them being made. Marvel at the golden alter of La Compañia Church and wonder at pre-Columbian artifacts at Casa de Alabado Archeological Museum or enjoy of unique moments at Intiñan Museum located in the Middle of the World. You can do this as a day tour or spend multiple nights. You can use Colonial Quito as your base to other day tours in the region including Otavalo, Papallacta and Cotopaxi.


DURATION | 3 Days / 2 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Quito Colonial Quarters |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $723 USD per person 4 Stars: $358 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
According to Conde Nast Traveler, “Cloud-high in the Andes and hemmed in by the snow-capped peaks of two active volcanoes, few cities have as dramatic a setting as Quito. The Ecuadorian capital's 16th-century Centro Histórico (Old Town) is not only the largest and best-preserved colonial center in Latin America, it's also the world's very first UNESCO World Heritage city.”
explore this tourDURATION | 3 Days / 2 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Andean mountains & Colonial Quito |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $334 USD per person 4 Stars: $317 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
The Central Andes are a land of eternal spring with giant green and snowcapped volcanoes as backdrop. The Andean countryside is a perfect place to relax before heading to the Galapagos and it just so happens they built the Quito airport in the middle of this landscape so you'll only have a short transfer to your hotel when you get in. Stay in a new business class hotel or a luxury polo club!
explore this tourDURATION | 3 Days / 2 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Otavalo & Hacienda Highlands |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $722 USD per person 4 Stars: $581 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
If you only have one full day in the mainland and want to experience the Central Andes at their most authentic, this is the experience for you. The Otavalo region is a land of eternal spring, with a thriving indigenous culture and the oldest and largest indigenous craft market in the Andes. It is also home to craft villages and historic Spanish Colonial Haciendas where we you can enjoy lunch or stay the night.
explore this tourDURATION | 4 Days / 3 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Colonial Quito & the Hacienda Highlands |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $1,054 USD per person 4 Stars: $707 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
We can arrange for you to stay in the heart of the old town in authentic Spanish colonial hotels and take you on an inviting walking tour of its cobblestones. You can do this as a day tour or spend multiple nights. You can use Colonial Quito as your base to other day tours in the region including Otavalo, Papallacta and Cotopaxi.
explore this tourDURATION | 4 Days / 3 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Colonial Quito & the Highlands |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $1,103 USD per person 4 Stars: $756 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
There really is so much to see and do in Quito and the surrounding mountains and valleys of the Central Andes that for this offering we've added a full day onto our Colonial Quito package so that you can enjoy one of four excursions of your choice.
explore this tourDURATION | 4 Days / 3 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Andean mountains & Colonial Quito |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $1,173 USD per person 4 Stars: $863 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
The Otavalo highlands are an inviting land of eternal spring. The region is home to a thriving indigenous culture, which you will experience directly when visiting the famed Otavalo craft market and indigenous craftspeople in the surrounding craft villages. The haciendas that once formed the backbone of Spanish colonial agrarian society have opened their doors to modern day visitors where you can take a step back into the hospitality and comfort of an earlier time.
explore this tourEcuador has some of the most in-tact cloud forests anywhere in the world. This habitat is cornucopia of flora and fauna rich in diversity, including a myriad of hummingbirds and butterflies. While there are a few lodges where you can stay, the crown jewel of them is Mashpi, a 5-star hotel literally transported piece by piece into the cloud forest.
Mashpi staff joke that the wide screen tv in your room is the window onto the forest…they wouldn't be wrong. The accommodations, service and dinning are almost as amazing and the cloud forest. Guided activities include nature & waterfall hikes, bird watching from the observation tower & hummingbird feeders, a visit to the butterfly farm, and a “sky bike” through the canopy. For rest and relaxation, you can soak in the open-air Jacuzzi or choose from a menu of spa treatments.


DURATION | 5 Days / 4 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Mashpi Lodge |
STARTING PRICE | $2,087 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
Ecuador has some of the most in-tact cloud forests anywhere in the world. This habitat is cornucopia of flora and fauna rich in diversity, including a myriad of hummingbirds and butterflies. While there are a few lodges where you can stay, the crown jewel of them is Mashpi, a 5-star hotel literally transported piece by piece into the cloud forest.
explore this tourCombing an Amazon adventure with a Galapagos cruise is the ultimate wildlife safari in the western hemisphere. The Ecuadorian headwaters offer some of the best habitat, wildlife viewing and premier lodges in the Amazon basin. Extending your stay to the Amazon is perhaps the easiest and most cost effective way to experience the earth's largest tropical forest. A 45 minute flight from Quito brings you to Coca on the Napo River, followed by a 2 hour motorized launch up the river to you lodge where Pygmy Marmosets (the smallest species of the monkey in the world), blue morpho butterflies and a full array of birds from Toucans to Scarlet Macaws await you in one of the last wild places on earth.


DURATION | 6 Days / 5 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | The Ecuadorian Amazon & Yasuni National Park |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $2,106 USD per person 4 Stars: $1,863 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
The headwaters of the Amazon are just a 45-minute flight from Quito airport to the town of Coca on the Napo River. This is your staging area for a river trip to hospitable lodges set along jungle lagoons in and around Yasuni National Park. A myriad of spices and their sounds await you; from finger-sized pygmy marmoset monkeys to iridescent blue morpho butterflies and one of the highest counts of bird species on the planet.
explore this tourGuayaquil is Ecuador's largest city and an important seaport. For passengers who want to avoid going to elevation in Quito and the Andes, Guayaquil is an excellent option and it is a shorter distance to the Galapagos than Quito. Guayaquil's rich history includes pirate raids and Spanish galleons. This tour takes full advantage of the city's location on the Guayas river.


DURATION | 3 Days / 2 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Iguana Park, Santa Ana Hill and the River Walk. |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars: $591 USD per person 4 Stars: $328 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
Guayaquil is Ecuador's largest city and an important seaport. For passengers who want to avoid going to elevation in Quito and the Andes, Guayaquil is an excellent option and it is a shorter distance to the Galapagos than Quito. Guayaquil's rich history includes pirate raids and Spanish galleons. This tour takes full advantage of the city's location on the Guayas river.
explore this tourDURATION | 5 Days / 4 Nights |
DESTINATIONS | Hacienda La Danesa |
STARTING PRICE |
5 Stars $1,704 USD per person 4 Stars $1,441 USD per person *Add above price to your Galapagos rates for the full price of your travel in Ecuador |
If you plan to fly through Guayaquil and seek a totally unique and authentic luxury experience in the countryside, look no farther. Hacienda Danesa has been in the Olsen family for a century and a half as a dairy and cacao farm. The 3rd generation of this environmentally minded family decided to open their welcoming doors and way of life to explorers. Activities like hiking, biking, river tubing, exploring the cacao plantation and cow milking are included. 0
explore this tourThere is a reason this romantic Spanish colonial city has become so popular with American expatriates. Its elevation along the equator makes for a very inviting climate. Cuenca is located at the confluence of four rivers for which it is named and is known for its flower market, and central plaza, Parque Calderón-- home to the blue-domed Catedral Nueva. The quaint city is surrounded by indigenous craft villages and is just a 35-minute drive from spectacular El Cajas National Park. Visitors enjoy the local indigenous market and Spanish colonial hotels with some exceptional dining at restaurants like Los Tiesto's Cafe.

