Itinerary Expand all Quito to Guayaquil Day 1 Start Quito. Land Only clients should aim to arrive at the hotel this afternoon/evening. Free transfers are available for all clients. A local guide will welcome you to Quito and explain the schedule for the next few days. Accommodation: Hotel Vieja Cuba (or similar) Day 2 Discover Quito at your leisure. Today is free to relax, recover from the flight and explore the fascinating city of Quito. Quito is the second highest capital in the world, standing at 2,850m on the western cordillera of the Andes. It is one of the smaller and more attractive of the colonial capitals of South America. Because of the altitude visitors to Quito are advised to take it easy at first. Accommodation: Hotel Vieja Cuba (or similar) Meals included: Breakfast Day 3 Fly to Galapagos. Visit Santa Cruz highlands and Charles Darwin Centre. Embarkation. Transfer to Quito Airport and fly to Baltra in the Galapagos Islands. We take a short ferry crossing to Santa Cruz Island where we drive to the highlands to look for Galapagos giant tortoises. This afternoon visit the Charles Darwin Centre to learn about the ecology of the islands and visit the centre's tortoise hatchery. After this we board our boat at Puerto Ayora, the island's main town. As we may not be able to easily access our luggage from arrival at Baltra until this evening, please make sure that you bring your camera, sun cream and appropriate clothing: comfortable footwear for some short walks (possibly amongst grass), light clothes, a hat/cap and a light waterproof in case of a shower or mist. Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 4 Chinese Hat & Isla Rabida A short walk on the small island of Chinese Hat before snorkelling with Sea lions (and penguins if lucky!); on to the dark red beach of Isla Rabida to walk amongst spatter cones, pelicans, Blue-footed and Nazca boobies. Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 5 Isabela island We start three days exploring the largest island of Isabela and walk to the huge 5-mile wide caldera on Sierra Negra volcano. In the afternoon it's possible to visit the Galapagos giant tortoise breeding centre on Isabela island.Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 6 Isabela Island Cruising around Isabela's west side, we hope to see whales and dolphins. We land at Punta Moreno's swirling fresh lava flows and also explore the islets of Elizabeth Bay with the largest colony of penguins in the Galapagos.Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 7 Urbina Bay, Tagus Cove & Darwin Lake In 1954 Urbina Bay was uplifted 4 metres. Walk here amongst exposed coral heads, wandering Galapagos giant tortoises and huge land iguanas. In the afternoon we visit Tagus Cove and Darwin Lake, directly opposite recently active Fernandina Volcano.Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 8 Punta Espinosa on Fernandina & Punta Vicente Roca on Isabela Land at Punta Espinosa on Fernandina in the midst of a huge colony of Marine iguanas; the sea life is very rich here and supports a large Sea lion and Fur seal colony. Cross the straights and explore the cliffs of Punta Vicente Roca on Isabela. Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 9 Santiago Island & Bartolome Island Excellent birding on Santiago Island at Puerto Egas followed by an afternoon snorkel and a walk amongst incredible volcanic scenery up little Bartolome Island - cones, lava tubes and Pinnacle Rock. Accommodation: Cachalote Explorer Meals included: Breakfast Lunch Dinner Day 10 Fly to Guayaquil; end Guayaquil. An early morning walk on North Seymour amidst Palo Santo trees and Blue-footed booby colonies. After a late breakfast we disembark for the journey back to Baltra to transfer to the airport and fly back to the mainland. We fly to Guayaquil airport where it's possible to connect with international flights this evening from 6pm onwards. Alternatively, you can extend your stay for a few extra nights or join the Napo Wildlife Centre Extension (which starts in Quito). Land only clients may prefer to organise post-tour accommodation for the night in Guayaquil and organise their international flights for the following day. Meals included: Breakfast
Napo Wildlife Centre Extension (XAG) Code: XAG Spend three nights in a luxurious eco-lodge overlooking Anangucocha Lake, and experience one of the most biodiverse ecosystems on the planet - the Amazon Rainforest. The Napo Wildlife Centre is one of the best eco-lodges in the Ecuadorian Amazon basin. Located deep within Yasuni National Park, Napo Wildlife Centre is perched on a hillside in the heart of the forest. Its small number of rooms and large private reserve means that visitors have excellent chances of spotting some of the many mammals living in the forest. In this region over 500 species of bird have been recorded, as well as numerous monkey species, tamarins, tapirs, sloths, jaguars (rarely seen), caimans and lizards. View the detailed itinerary Please ask your sales consultant for more details. Price from: £1699 (compulsory supplement of £700 for single travellers)
Ecuador British passport holders do not need a visa for Ecuador. Very few other nationalities need a visa for Ecuador, but if you are in any doubt you should contact the nearest Ecuadorian Embassy.
Ecuador There are no mandatory vaccination requirements, however, if you have travelled to a country at risk of Yellow Fever prior to arriving in Ecuador you will be required to have a valid Yellow Fever Certificate with you. Recommended vaccinations are: Typhoid and Hepatitis A. If you will spend any time in the Amazon Rainforest we recommend a Yellow Fever vaccination. Please note that your certificate of vaccination may be inspected on arrival to this region. Malaria is also a risk in some areas of the country (including the Amazon Rainforest) so we suggest you consult a doctor for more advice. Dengue fever and/or Chikungunya are known risks in places visited on this trip. Both are tropical viral diseases spread by daytime biting mosquitoes. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available for either, and therefore the best form of prevention is to avoid being bitten. We recommend you take the usual precautions to avoid mosquito bites. Zika fever is a mosquito‐borne viral disease and a known risk in places visited on this trip. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available, we therefore strongly recommend you take the usual precautions to avoid mosquito bites. PLEASE NOTE: All visitors to Ecuador will be required to show valid medical insurance on arrival and cannot enter the country without it.
Hotels & Motor Yacht 7 nights on board a motor yacht the Cachalote Explorer, in en suite, air-conditioned cabins, and 2 nights comfortable hotel. Cachalote Explorer: A 16-passenger Motor-Yacht with 8 comfortable double/twin cabins, each with en suite facilities. All cabins are air conditioned and have the following: shower with hot water, toilet, amenities and towels, porthole windows. Max speed 8 knots, size 88ft. Renovated in 2018. Optional single supplement available in Quito hotel only.
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Reviewed May 2019 Shaun Robinson Trip: Galapagos Islands - Cachalote Explorer (Itinerary B) What a magical place.... The trip was all arranged by Exodus and I can’t fault the organisation, it was faultless throughout the whole Journey. The Cachalote Explorer was fine, it’s not a super luxury motor yacht (its correctly advertised as a first class motor yacht) being a converted fishing boat, but the accommodation was perfectly adequate and the crew were very friendly and super efficient. The rooms were cleaned daily with clean towels by Martin who was also the waiter and bar man, and very good at it to. The chef was very good and was delighted to help one of our vegan passengers with different dishes every meal (which she often shared with the rest of us! Lol) The ship is a little noisy when travelling at night with the engines running, but I had some noise suppressing head phones that dealt with this. No one else really complained and I guess you soon get used to it after a tiring day The food was very well presented in buffet style for breakfast lunch and evening meal and there was always plenty of food. In between meals there is a tray of bananas, fruits and various biscuits and snacks Would I book it again, certainly yes without hesitation What was the most inspirational moment of your trip? This is very difficult to answer as every day we encountered new wonders, wether it be animals or beautiful landscapes. People have asked me what was the highlight, and I can’t really say to be honest. I personally enjoyed the walks on virtually untouched islands, sea lions, marine iguanas the list is endless. Some of the sea life you can see from the boat it amazing. I spent many hours on the sun beds on the rear deck and some of the views of the islands from the boat, well it’s like some magical kingdom. What did you think of your group leader? Luiz was excellent, a very knowledgeable guide approved by the Galapagos National Parks and always around to answer any questions we needed however difficult Do you have any advice for potential travellers? Firstly take plenty of cash for any alcohol drinks/incidentals on the boat. The trip notes and also the book handed to us by the boat crew state you can pay by credit card, you can’t. I went to pay the bar bill which was around $300 (don’t ask! Lol) and they said they could only accept cash which put me in a very difficult position The organisers should make this clear, and I can definitely confirm this directly affected the crew tip as most of it had to be used to pay the bar bill instead if them, which was very unfortunate but I had no choice Take sturdy boots, and waterproof sandals are useful for any wet landings If you are a light sleeper, ear plugs at night or in my case noise suppressing headphones were perfect. Is there anything else you would like to add? Do it, it’s a trip of a lifetime and when you get back you will sit in your chair and think, wow, did I really just go there .......... When we landed at Baltra Airport in Galapagos, at the very moment we touched down I had a lump in my throat, and tears in my eyes. It’s the sort of trip only someone like David Attenborough gets to do right?
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