​Day 1: Arrival in Quito
After arrival in Quito, you will be transferred to a hotel in Ecuador’s capital for the night.

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Day 2: Quito to Northern Ecuador
Leaving the capital early, we will head north through the dry inter-Andean valley. On our way we may make some stops to enjoy the high-altitude lakes, usually teeming with waterfowl like Andean Duck, Yellow-billed Pintail and occasionally Andean Teal. We arrive at a remote town by the afternoon, where we’ll be spending the night. Our journey here will be for one of Ecuador’s most iconic and epic mammals, the Spectacled Bear. While we certainly can’t guarantee seeing this cryptic beast, we can guarantee that this is our best chance of seeing one as they frequent the stunning paramo valleys and slopes here.
 
Day 3: Western Andean Slopes
Depending on how successful the previous afternoon was, we will either retry for the Spectacled Bear in the morning or begin heading down the western slopes. This incredible area has some of the country’s most interesting mammals, herps and birds. Along the way we will make a stop for one of the world’s strangest birds, the Oilbird. This bizarre animal is an evolutionary enigma. This nocturnal bird uses echolocation to navigate in their cave homes, and their incredible sense of smell to locate fruit, their primary food. Finding them at night is always a challenge but we will be visiting a local gully where several of them spend the day roosting. Afterwards, we will complete the day’s journey by arriving at our next accommodation. Once settled, we will venture out at night for mammal-watching and herping, where we may come across species like the semi-transparent Emerald Glass Frog, the range restricted Mashpi Torrenteer Frog, the adorable Isthmian Mouse Opossum, or the large Southern Opossum.

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Day 4: To the Tandayapa Valley
Today will be our first morning on the wetter slopes of the western Andes and the Choco bioregion. There is so much on offer here that it is difficult to know where to start, but the feeders on the reserve have the potential of bringing in two of the region’s most iconic mammals. Tayra and Mountain Coati can be hard to predict, but luckily they both visit the feeders here, somewhat regularly. As we await these beasts, we can expect one of the most incredible exposures to the local and often times range-restricted birds of the Choco. Stunners like Glistening-green Tanager, Black Solitaire, Moss-backed Tanager, and Rose-faced Parrot should keep us more than entertained as we wait for our mammalian targets. After a thrilling morning, we will head out to our accommodation for the next two nights, Tandayapa Bird Lodge. Tonight we will either hit the trails or stake out a local feeder for Olinguito (a mammal only described to science in 2013) and Andean White-eared Opossum. Our time at this elevation may produce one of Ecuador’s weirdest frogs, the Pinocchio Rain Frog, whose strange facial appendage is as adorable as it is unique.  

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Day 5: Tandayapa Valley and Mindo
After an epic and likely extended night vigil, the morning will be slightly more relaxed before we spend the day exploring different reserves in the Tandayapa and/or Mindo area. This will depend on what species we are still searching for at the time. However, the mammal diversity here is incredible and we will have chances to retry for Mountain Coati and Tayra if we previously failed. While we would be lucky to see any of these animals, we will be in range to try for more lowland mammals like Western Lowland Olingo, Kinkajou, Derby’s Woolly Opossum, West Andean Long-nosed Armadillo and Dark Four-eyed Opossum. If time allows, we may try to see the local Ecuadorian White-fronted Capuchins, although they are never easy to find. The reptile and amphibian diversity is very excellent, with species like Executioner Clown Frog, Palmar Tree Frog, Fer-de-lance, and Western Basilisk all on the target list.

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Day 6: Papallacta and Guango
Our final morning in the Tandayapa Valley and Mindo area gives us one last opportunity to try and track down any major mammal or herp targets before leaving for the highlands once again. We will pass through Quito before climbing the eastern fringe of the central valley, checking reliable spots for Spectacled Bear if we failed to find one earlier in the trip! While there are no guarantees, we will be putting in a serious effort. We will arrive in the town of Papallacta by late afternoon where we will check into our local hotel for one night. Our hotel of choice comes with some epic perks, the most important being access to its surrounding habitat. While all our mammal targets are tricky to find, we will be in the best place to try for epic beasts like Stump-tailed Porcupine, Mountain Tapir, Andean Fox, Striped Hog-nosed Skunk and, if the mammal gods have taken a liking to us, the Silky Shrew Opossum. The high altitude is not inviting for many herps but a few high-altitude amphibians can be found with luck; the Andean Marsupial Tree Frog being the most iconic and sought after here.  
 
Day 7: Papallacta to San Isidro
This morning’s activity will be dictated by our success the previous night, but rest assured if we still have some diurnal mammals to find then we will be spend the morning doing just that. Early morning mammals may include Andean Fox, Mountain Tapir or Spectacled Bear. The local Andean White-tailed Deer and Andean Tapeti (or Andean Cottontail) are generally more common in the high elevation grasslands. With an extra helping of luck we may find Ecuador’s national bird, the Andean Condor, as they soar over the mountainous terrain. When our exploration is complete, we continue our descent of the East Andean slopes, spending two nights at another wonderful cloud forest lodge, San Isidro. This night we will be seeking two special animals, the Colombian (Lemurine) Night Monkey, and a mysterious subspecies of Black-banded Owl that both frequent the lodge grounds at night. A local salt lick presents us with the best opportunity of seeing Mountain Tapir, which would be a mega-enigma to add to the list. 

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Day 8: San Isidro 
We will have a full day to enjoy the eastern Andean cloud-forest slopes before completing our journey to the Amazon tomorrow. With our time here we will explore the local trails and other reserves to maximize our mammal list. Different feeders in the vicinity may present us with the adorable Black-mantled Tamarin, the sneaky Black Agouti, or the beautifully striped Great Fruit-eating Bat. The nearby forests can also produce a variety of reptiles and amphibians like Klebba’s Snail-Eater, Rio Coca Cochran Frog, and Posada Glass Frog. The moth sheets can also produce a legendary cast of stunning moths including Phaio acquiguttata, Cerodirphia nadiana, Mesothen nomia, and Pityeja histrionaria. These moths will be great entertainment as we try our luck for a second night with the Mountain Tapir.

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Day 9: San Isidro to The Amazon
After two nights in one of Ecuador’s best wildlife watching regions, we will have an early breakfast and drive 4 hours to our gateway to the Amazon, the low-lying town of Coca. By mid-morning, we will be on our way to Napo Wildlife Center. Lunch will be taken on the 2-hour motor boat ride down the immense Napo River, before we are paddled via canoe an additional two hours to Napo Wildlife Center, our home for the next three nights. This evening, we will venture out on canoes to watch the sunset as dozens of Greater Bulldog Bats and Proboscis Bats emerge to indulge on a bounty of tasty insects. As we paddle back we may see Giant Arapaima, the world’s largest freshwater fish, come up for air as the nutrient poor blackwater forces this behemoth to gulp for oxygen above the water’s surface. We will venture out on another night walk in search of the countless potential mammal, reptile, amphibian and invertebrate species. Mammals like Lowland Paca, Long-tailed Spiny Tree Rat and Brown-eared Woolly Opossum have all been reported in the past. Herps like Giant Broad-headed Tree Frog, Canelos Tree Frog, Southern Turniptail Gecko and Western Rainbow Boa are also potentially on the menu. 

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Days 10-11: The Amazon Part I (Napo Wildlife Center)
After the previous days of combing the highland grasses and elfin and cloud forests of the Andes, this will be very different, as we walk forest trails, search for animals by canoe, view from canopy towers, and spotlight at night in the lowland tropical rainforest of the Amazon. Mammals are best represented here than anywhere else in Ecuador, with a jaw-dropping selection of primates possible; White-bellied Spider Monkey, Marañon White-fronted Capuchin, Ecuadorian Squirrel Monkey, Golden-mantled Tamarin, White-tailed Titi Monkey, Napo Saki, Spix’s Night Monkey, and Colombian Red Howler Monkey all possible! Giant Otters are also a real possibility in this area too. Canopy towers may provide us with a chance of seeing either of the area’s two sloth species: Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth and Linnaeus’s Two-toed Sloth. Some of the more interesting birds in the area include Hoatzins and Black-capped Donacobius that lurk by the lakesides, Zigzag Herons along the forested waterways, and 5 of the 6 New World kingfishers inhabit the area. The dazzling red, blue, yellow and black Ecuador Poison Frog is active by day while White-lined Leaf Frog calls at night. Our night hikes will attempt to track down as many mammals and herps as possible in the area, as we stop along the way to enjoy any nocturnal birds. A local night roost may present us with a view of the large Greater Spear-nosed Bat, and by day we may see bats like Seba’s Short-tailed, Common Fringe-lipped, and/or Silky Short-tailed Bats on another secret roost.

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Day 12: The Amazon Part II (Napo Wildlife Center to Sani Lodge)
On this day we will swap one Amazon lodge for another, this one located closer to the main Napo River, a major tributary of the mighty Amazon itself. We will attempt to find any primates we have not seen yet before meeting up with the transfer for our next lodge. Three nights will be spent at Sani Lodge. 

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Days 13-14: The Amazon Part II (Sani Lodge area)
On one/both of these days we will make a special visit to a secluded blackwater lake, where Pink River Dolphins can be found swimming within the murky waters. We will take a boxed lunch with us allowing us to be flexible with the afternoon plan; we can peruse for mammals like Black-mantled Tamarins from forest-lined creeks or seek out Western Pygmy Marmosets around the lodge! Both nights will be spent in the Amazon, at Sani Lodge.

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Day 15: The Amazon to Quito
In the morning, we shall regrettably leave the Amazon behind, returning to Quito by air, following a boat trip back to the city of Coca. Our final night will be spent in Quito reminiscing about the great wildlife experience we just lived.  

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Day 16: Departure from Quito
Departures can be taken out anytime during this day or late night the evening before, as that is when many flights depart.
 

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Trip Considerations

PACE: Moderate. Early starts will be needed to be out in the field early. Breakfast is typically served between 05:00-05:30am. The driving on this tour is generally on good roads, with only short periods of driving on dirt roads. The drives are not especially long on this tour, the longest being around 3 hours on . There will be some optional night walks and drives offered to try and find the nocturnal animals throughout. On some days there will be some downtime offered during the day, mainly during the Amazon section of the trip. A few packed lunches may be taken in the field. There are regular boat rides in the Amazon, with one of around 5 hours on day 8 (the latter part of this often being good for wildlife), to go in, and another of around 3 hours coming out of there on day 13. There are also shorter boat rides while based there.

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PHYSICAL DIFFICULTY: Moderate. You will need to be able to walk at least 3 miles (5 km) per day on average, some of that on mountain trails. Some short sections of trails might be muddy and slippery (e.g. Guango Lodge). We will walk slowly, especially at altitude. Some parts of this tour are spent at altitude. Quito is located at 9,350 ft (2850m). Around Tandayapa on days 2-4), the altitudes covered will be between 5580-7545ft (1700-2300m). The highest days of the tour will be the last part of day 4 through the morning of day 7, which will be between 8530-13780ft (2600-4200m). However, on these days the walking is limited and almost entirely from roads, with some short forest trails walks optional there.

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CLIMATE: Highly variable. In the high Andes, it can be near freezing and windy. At Tandayapa and San Isidro it is quite pleasant (usually 53°-78°F, 12°-26°C). In the Amazon it is hot and humid (usually 72°-90°F, 22°-32°C). Some rain can be expected, especially in the afternoons and evenings.

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ACCOMMODATION: Very good to excellent, all have private, en-suite bathrooms, and full-time hot water. Electricity is available everywhere 24 hours a day, except at Sani Lodge, where the generator is turned off from about 10pm-4am. Both Napo Wildlife Center and Sani Lodge have ceiling fans, though they only operate when the generator is running. The nights in the Ecuadorian Amazon are surprisingly cool.

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Other Information

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS: A valid passport is required; the passport must be valid for at least six months past your intended stay. Tourist visas are currently not required for citizens of the US, Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and all European countries. Visas are currently only required of a few nationalities, mostly in Asia, Africa, and the middle East. Travel requirements are subject to change; if you are unsure, please check with the nearest embassy or consulate, or ask our office staff for help. Proof of medical insurance is required to visit Ecuador. While this is rarely checked, it is important that you have a policy that covers you in Ecuador, and to bring proof of coverage to present to immigration officials.

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WHAT’S INCLUDED?: Tips to drivers, local guides, and lodge staff; one-way air ticket from Coca to Quito on day 15; accommodation from the night of day 1 to the night of day 15; meals from dinner on day 1 (unless you arrive too late for dinner service) to breakfast on day 16 (if you have a very early departing flight, you may miss the included breakfast on the last day); safe drinking water and/or juice during meals; safe drinking water throughout; Tropical Birding tour leader with scope and audio gear from the morning of day 2 to the night of day 15; local guide at Napo Wildlife Center and Sani Lodge; one arrival and one departure airport transfer per person (transfers may be shared with other participants of the same tour if they are on the same flight); ground transport for the group to all sites in the itinerary from day 2 to day 9 in a suitable vehicle with a local driver; boat transport between Coca and Napo Wildlife Center on day 9 (may be shared with other lodge guests); private boat transport in both hand-paddled and motorized canoes for the group while at Napo Wildlife Center and Sani Lodge; boat transport between Sani Lodge and Coca on day 15 (may be shared with other lodge guests); entrance fees to birding sites mentioned in the itinerary; a printed and bound checklist to keep track of your sightings (given to you at the start of the tour – only electronic copies can be provided in advance).

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WHAT’S NOT INCLUDED?: Optional tips to the tour leader; tips for luggage porters in the city hotels (if you require their services); international flights; snacks; additional drinks apart from those included; alcoholic beverages; travel insurance; excursions not included in the tour itinerary; extras in hotels such as laundry service, minibar, room service, telephone calls, and personal items; medical fees; other items or services not specifically mentioned as being included.