Galapagos - Sail The Enchanted Isles (12 days)

Day 1:Arrive Quito (2,800m) - A private welcome into the Ecuadorian capital before transferring to your hotel.
Day 2:Design Your Day Quito - Plan your day. Choose one of the two following half day activities. Explore the UNESCO World Heritage Old Town as well as sights around Panecillo Hill. Or visit a local cooking school with a hands-on demonstration. Lunch and a 'behind the scene's' visit to the studio and private collection of acclaimed artist Osvaldo Viteri is included
Day 3:Quito-Galapagos Islands - Transfer to the airport where VIP lounge access has been arranged. Fly to Baltra Island in the Galapagos archipelago. Here you board the M/V Eclipse, your home for the next week
Day 4 - Day 9:Galapagos Islands - The next six days are spent exploring the tiny islands whose amazing variety of wildlife prompted Darwin to write his groundbreaking 'Origin of Species'. Most expeditions with your naturalist guide are by pangas - inflatable, rubber vessel with outboard motor. These manoeuvre smoothly into bays offering unequalled opportunities for photography and up-close observation. Snorkels are also available onboard to explore the fascinating underwater world around you.  There are 13 islands and countless smaller islets. Landmark sights include Pinnacle Rock on Bartolome Island, Punta Espinosa on Fernandina Island, Gardner Bay on Espanola and the Charles Darwin Research Station on Santa Cruz.  Wildlife found in the Galapagos includes the Galapagos Tortoise, land and marine iguanas, turtles, the brightly-coloured Sally-Lightfoot Crab, fur seals, sea lions, seven types of dolphin, 16 species of whales and profuse birdlife including three species of booby, penguins, finches, cormorants and waved albatross to name a few
Day 10:Galapagos-Otavalo - Disembark at Baltra for the return flight to Quito where you are driven north to Otavalo and your colonial hacienda
Day 11:Otavalo - This area is renowned for its colourful market towns which showcase the region's traditional handicrafts. Visit a selection of these today including San Antonio de Ibarra, a woodcarving centre; Cotacachi, whose narrow streets are full of leather shops; Peguche, home to weavers and musical instrument makers and finally Otavalo, the largest and most well known which is regarded as one of the most attractive Indian markets on the continent selling colourful weavings, woodcarvings, leather goods and bread dough figurines. While you are in the area visit a local indigenous school or walk with a native guide around some village gardens where many species native to the Andes are grown - a chance to learn about their properties, folklore and usage
Day 12:Otavalo-Quito - A morning spent in the delightful rural surrounds of your hacienda before the return drive to Quito and the airport for your departure (B).still largely undiscovered despite its amazing variety of landscapes, sights and cultures. On this diverse two-week trip we experience the contrasts between the lively and cosmpolitan capital, Bogota, the atmospheric cobbled streets and well-preserved colonial buildings of Cartagena, and the laid-back and welcoming countryside. We walk at high altitude amongst the snowy peaks of Los Nevados National Park, explore the rolling hills of the central Coffee Zone, as well as taking time out to relax in hammocks on the superb Caribbean beaches of Tayrona National Park.

Operated by Abercrombie & Kent

Departures: All year round

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