Meet at the group hotel in Quito. A timed airport transfer from Quito Airport is provided. The transfer takes around 1hr. Your holiday begins with the evening meal, which we will take at the hotel.

Situated at nearly 3,000m above sea level, amongst the verdant foothills of the Andes, Quito enjoys a pleasant climate year-round. We take our first day to enjoy the city and acclimatise to this high altitude country. Bustling with activity, Quito is one of the most beautiful cities in South America. Its many churches and colonial palaces testify to its rich past. We head to one of the many belvederes offering a magnificent view of the capital. Before completing a walking tour of the colonial center of Quito, classified as a World Heritage Site by Unesco.

We then drive one hour to Mitad del Mundo, literally the 'middle of the world'. Situated approximately 15 miles north of Quito, the Mitad del Mundo is a park dedicated to all things equatorial, which has as its centre-piece a 30-metre high monument topped with a globe. No visit to Ecuador is complete without visiting this monument, where you can stand with one foot on either side of the equator.

After breakfast, we drive around 2.5hrs to the village of Zuleta. From here we complete a beautiful walk through a patchwork quilt of cultivated fields and forests of eucalyptus with superb views towards the volcanoes Imbabura and the glacial summit of Cayambe, to reach the lake of San Pablo. There is plenty of opportunity today to see rural life in the various Andean villages we encounter en-route.

After breakfast, we drive around 40 minutes to the 3km wide Cuicocha crater lake (3486m), a dormant volcano with a water filled caldera. The lake, which is a stunning azure blue, has two islands in the centre, which are lava domes from its last major eruption. We will make a complete circuit of the lake, walking along the caldera rim. This is good acclimatisation at an average altitude of around 3500 metres and will take around 4 - 5 hours to complete at a steady pace. There are good views of the volcano, Cerro Cotacachi (4939m) directly to the north of the lake. Afterwards we return to Otavalo.

This morning we will have time to explore the famed local market. Otavalo is particularly well known for its colourful textiles and there are blankets, ponchos, jumpers, tapestries, hats, and hand bags in bewildering profusion and styles. This is also a very good place to buy locally made musical instruments such as charangos and zampona (pan pipes), or to buy ceramics and pottery. You will have time to visit the various local fabric and craft shops where haggling is part of Ecuadorian culture. After Lunch, we drive 3 hrs, back into to the Southern Hemisphere, to the town of Lasso.

Early in the morning, we drive for around 40 minutes to Saquisili to discover its famous Thursday market. High in colour and further off the beaten track than that of Otavalo, the Saquisili market is certainly one of the most interesting in the country. The aim will be to arrive early in the morning so we can see some of the local Ecuadorian's busy morning sales negotiations, visit the fruit and vegetable market and bargain hunt for souvenirs ourselves amongst the local crafts. Afterwards, we make the 2hrs drive to discover the magnificent Western Cordillera: we will see amazing and beautiful Andean landscapes, mountain slopes adorned with small plots of farm land and a semi-desert plain dotted with sheep and furrowed by large canyons. We start with a drive to Quilotoa Lagoon where we walk to the bottom of the crater (3900m), a water filled caldera, which is actually the most western volcano in the Ecuadorian Andes!

From Lasso, it is just a short drive to the roadhead at Virgen (4020m) where today's trek begins. From here we ascend to the Illiniza refuge at 4750m. This 4 hour walk rewards us with more splendid views of Ecuador's 'Avenue of the Volcanoes'. The refuge is situated on the former volcanic crater and is the base for both Iliniza summits, the South (5260m) with its impressive glaciers and the rocky North summit (5116m). We will also walk through Polylepis forest, also known as the 'tree of paper' for its feather like leaves and multi-layered papery bark. It is one of the trees that grow at the highest altitudes in the Andes. Returning to our vehicles, we then drive back to Lasso and on to the Cotopaxi National Park (1.5hrs) to our accommodation for the next two nights, a rugged mountain lodge heated by log-burning stoves, located in the park and boasting unbeatable views of Cotopaxi.

Full day to enjoy the unique Andean paramo (high altitude vegetation rich in unique flora), at the foot of Cotopaxi, which is the world's highest active volcano and the second highest peak in Ecuador. The perfect cone of Cotopaxi, which is permanently covered with snow, rising up alone from the paramo makes the perfect picture. We drive up to the car park beneath the Jose Rivas Refuge. This alpine hut is situated just below the level of the glaciated part of the mountain, this is the starting point for climbers wishing to scale its peak. We take a slow walk up to the hut, which at this altitude will take us around 45mins (it takes around 15mins to return!). There are breath-taking views over the surrounding countryside. Returning down we drive the short distance to our accommodation, taking time to visit the water springs and ruins located in the park.

Before leaving the Cotopaxi National Park we will enjoy a nice hike straight from our mountain lodge. Traversing the side of the rocky volcano, Ruminiahui (4300m) we make our way on to diverse Andean Paramo finally reaching Limpiopungo Lagoon (4000m), where we will see a varierty of wild flowers, birds and magnificent views of its namesake volcano. Returning to our vehicles we then continue on to Riobamba (3hrs).

At 6263 metres, Chimborazo is the highest mountain in Ecuador and, due to the equatorial bulge; its summit has the distinction of being the furthest point from the center of the Earth. Until the last century it was thought to be the tallest mountain on earth and Edward Whymper made the first recorded ascent under that mistaken belief. Today there is a mountaineers' refuge named after this great alpinist, located high on the mountain at close to 5000m. We drive for 1.5 hours on a switch-back dirt road up to a parking area below the hut from where we make the short hike of around 45 minutes to the Whymper Refuge. If the weather is good it is also possible to make a return hike of around 2 hours to reach the Condor Cocha Lagoon. Returning to our vehicle we descend the mountain and join the Panamerican Highway, travelling north-east for 2 - 3 hours to reach the charming spa town of Ban?os. We check into our comfortable hotel and enjoy the evening ambiance of this resort town with its mix of pavement cafes, restaurants, craft and book shops.

We have a full day to explore the secondary jungle of the Ecuadorian Amazon. We drive 2 hrs to the community of Puyopungo, where we will be given an insight into the way of life of the indigenous people of this area. After this we enjoy a walk to a jungle swimming hole by the impressive Hola Vida waterfall, before travelling down the river by canoe. In the afternoon, we attend a traditional chocolate making (and tasting!) workshop and spend time with our local guide learning about the flora and fauna of the rainforest. On our way back to Baños we visit the impressive "Devil's Flag" waterfall.

We have the morning to explore the amenities of this picturesque and laid-back town. Situated in the shadow of the live volcano, Tungurahua, the town is famous for its thermal pools and is also known as 'the Gateway to the Amazon' due to its position on the edge of the Andean plateau. Banos is a very relaxing place just to stroll around or you might want to head out to explore the surrounding area. With our guide we have options of short walks in the surrounding hills before discovering the city center, the cathedral and the balsa and tagua (vegetable ivory) workshops. After lunch, we drive around 3.5 hrs back to Quito.

After breakfast, we drive 1.5 hrs to the western flanks of the Pichincha volcano. This surprising trek in the Yanacocha reserve was initially created in 2001 with the aim of protecting an endangered hummingbird species (244 species in total), the Jocotoco foundation realised the importance of this particular ecosystem and currently has 1080 hectares of mountain Cloud Forest protected. Situated at an altitude of 3500m, this hike allows us to discover the flora and fauna of this little corner of paradise. The Choco Andino reserve was declared by the UN as the 7th Biosphere Reserve in the country in 2018.
After our hike we transfer back to our hotel for a final celebratory evening meal in Ecuador to mark the end of our holiday.

Depending on flight times, we have some free time for further independent sight-seeing or last-minute shopping this morning. Your holiday ends after breakfast at the hotel. A single timed transfer to the airport is provided. Should you wish to extend your stay additional hotel nights in Quito are available, or you may want to include a visit to the Amazon Rainforest. Please contact the KE office for further information.