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July, 2024

8 Days - 7 Nights

This tour is all inclusive! From the moment you embark with us to the moment we say our goodbyes - we've got you covered. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the ecological and cultural adventure of a lifetime! 

What's Included

  • All meals

  • Drinkable water

  • Hotels & Lodging

  • Domestic ground transportation

  • Domestic flights + 1 Checked Bag

  • Local guides 

  • Entrance fees

  • Activity fees 

  • On site doctor for any medical issues

  • Tips for appropriate staff & guides

  • Credit card and processing fees

What's NOT included

  • Alcoholic beverages

  • Souvenirs 

  • Laundry service

  • Extra baggage fees

  • International airfare

  • Traveler's insurance ("Cancel for Any    Reason" plans are recommended)

$2,450 per person Early Bird Special January 24, 2024

$2,825 per person after January 31, 2024

Only those on our newsletter will have access to Early Bird Pricing!

The Itinerary

Day 0 

July 16

Arrival in Quito

Individual pickup from the airport.

Need something to do this day?

Check out the add-on Historic District Tour! A world UNESCO site; we'll visit iconic churches, learn about historic architecture, and fall into the world of Ecuador's impressionist painter Guayasamín. 

As long as you get to Quito  before 5:00am July 18th you're good to go for the main tour. 

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Most flights direct from the states come in late at night. 

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Day 1 

July 17

Majestic Mountains & Indigenous History

  • 8:00 AM - Breakfast

  • 8:30 AM - Pickup from Kitu Hotel

  • 9:00 PM - Cable Car to Pichincha Volcano​

  • 12:00 PM - Lunch on the mountain

  • 1:00 PM - Return from the Teleferico

  • 1:30 PM - Rumipamba Archeological Park

  • 4:00 PM - Indigenous People of Ecuador talk

  • 5:00 PM - Free Time

  • 7:00 PM - Dinner

We'll explore the volcanic paramo while overlooking the city of Quito! Enjoy a leisurely stroll while learning about the adaptations plants have to surivive at this high altitude! 

In the afternoon we'll visit the Rumipamba Archeological and Ecological park where we'll look into Ecuador's past, visit archeological dig sites, and learn about the plants people past and present use. 

Day 2 

July 18

Travel to the Amazon

  • 6:30 AM - Travel to Airport. (Boxed Breakfast)

  • 7:30 AM - Arrival to the Airport

  • 9:30 AM - Flight to Coca​

  • 11:00 AM - Coca Food Market (Palm Weevils!)

  • 12:00 PM - Travel to Canoe Pickup (Boxed Lunch)

  • 2:00 PM - Canoe Ride to Waita Lodge

  • 5:00 PM - Arrival to Waita Lodge & Lodge Intro

  • 6:30 PM - Natural History Talk

  • 7:00 PM - Dinner

Leaving Quito, we'll fly to the small town of Coca where we'll try some palm weevil larvae as a snack!  Then it's a boxed lunch and we make our way up the Aguarico and Cuyabeno rivers to our home away from home deep in the heart of the Amazon. 

Day 3 - Day 6 

July 19-21

The Amazon

Activities will be conducted and lectures will be given depending on the current day's weather. 

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As it tends to rain in the Amazon at least once a day we will schedule the outdoor activities around the rain and around the times the animals tend to be most active. Classes will be held in the interim. 

Scheduled Activities

  • Visiting clay licks to look for parrots

  • Canoe Rides

    • San Francisco River​

    • Cuyabeno River

    • Floating Lagoons

  • Paddle Boarding​

  • Night walks and Light Trapping

  • Rainforest Hikes

  • Learning about Medicinal Pants

  • Turning cacao into chocolate

  • Visiting the observation tower 

  • Fishing

The Cuyabeno Reserve is bursting with flora and bustling with fauna. Dolphins dance around the canoe, monkeys howl from their perches, parrots lick clay from the river, frogs call the rains, caimans watch the lagoons, and insects rule the night. 

Topics Theme

Novel adaptations and

modifcations to them

Scheduled Lectures

  • Sacrifices for Flight           (Nancy)

  • Feathers to Flight              (Jon)

  • Insect Flight                       (Nancy)

  • Insect Reproduction         (Nancy)

  • Egg Laying to Stingers     (Jon)

  • Amazonian people 
    through time                                     (Diego)

Our home away from home

We'll be staying at WAITA LODGE - a community project deep in the heart of the Cuyabeno Reserve in Northern Ecuador. SciBugs has worked closely with the owners of Waita Lodge since 2019 to make memorable and customizable jungle tours. They work intimately with the neighboring Kichwa community without exploiting them. Waita shows off the community's knowledge and traditions in an authentic way that helps connect cultures through time and space. 

Day 7 

July 22

Leaving the Amazon

  • 6:00 AM - Bird Watching activity

  • 8:00 AM - Breakfast

  • 9:00 AM - Waita activities​

  • 11:30 PM - Lunch 

  • 12:00 PM - Canoe ride to pickup point

  • 3:00 PM - Transport to Coca

  • 6:00 PM - Dinner at Auca Hotel

Our last day in the Amazon before we have to say goodbye! We'll start off with one final morning activity before making our way to Coca where we'll spend the night at Auca hotel. Auca has a beautiful garden and frequently rescues wildlife. Look out for the tortoises and agutis hanging out on the grounds. 

Day 8

July 23

Return to Quito & Cloud Forest

  • 7:00 AM - Breakfast

  • 8:00 AM - Travel to Coca Airport​

  • 10:30 PM - Flight to Quito

  • 12:00 PM - Travel to Guango Lodge

  • 1:00 PM - Lunch at Guango

  • 2:00 PM - Nature walk

  • 4:00 PM - Free Time

  • 6:00 PM - Dinner

  • 7:00 PM - Travel to Quito International Airport

Once we get into Quito, since many flights depart late at night, we'll spend our time in the cloud forest getting a different perspective of a tropical forest. High in the Andean mountains, cloud forests bespeckle the land and are the best place to see a variety of hummingbirds! 

Not ready to go home just yet!?

I don't blame you! Ecuador is amazing with so many things to do. If after your jungle experience you just want to relax in some thermal springs this Add On Tour is perfect for you! High in the Andean mountains and only 10 minutes from the cloud forest, we'll bask in the heated waters from the Antisana Volcano and explore some unique high altitude paramo. 

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Dan B

"It was an incredible trip and I'm happy that my first experience of the Amazon Rainforest was on one of your tours. Apart from the mind-blowing wildlife, the tour itself was very well organized, with great attention to detail."

Brian L

" Thank you for coordinating this amazing trip. I had the time of my life at every location we visited. Ecuador is a beautiful country with such a rich history and ecology. The group we had helped me make this an unforgettable experience. "

Bruce

"This was such a great experience; fantastic group, wonderful places, spectacular wildlife, and tasty food. I'll remember everything vividly forever. More!"

See what's been said about the trip!

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