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Birding Holiday, Ecuador: Cloud Forest (Cock of Rock) + Galapagos Cruise

Birding Holiday - Ecuador: Cloud Forest + Amazon + Galapagos
Birding Holiday Ecuador Cloud Forest Cock of Rock Galapagos Cruise
18 NIGHTS FROM:
$8,506
Per person sharing
Scheduled flights quoted separately
7ERA20Q
• Birding Holiday Ecuador
• Quito City Tour
• Yanacocha & Antpittas Reserves
• Cloud Forest
• Hummingbirds
• Macaws, Toucans & Parrots
• Cock of Rock displays
• Centre of World Monument
• Galapagos Cruise
• Guayaquil

This tailor made birding holiday in Ecuador combines the Amazon with the magnificent equatorial Cloud Forest, with its colourful neo-tropical birdlife and Cock of Rock displays. Enjoy birding along the Paseo del Quinde (Hummingbird Way), as well as in the Yanacocha & Antpittas reserves. End with a stunning Galapagos Cruise, with a choice of boats and durations. Galapagos flights, all birding & transfers included.

Day 1
You will be met at Quito Airport and transferred to your hotel conveniently situated near the airport.
 
Check in and relax in the Andean Highlands.
Day 2
Rise early for a day of birding with a local guide, exploring the Guallabamba Dry Forest located in the valley between the two Andean Cordilleras, in the rain shadow of the Andes.
 
Much of the rain falls in the cloud forests and elfin forests of the western and eastern Cordilleras, leaving this dry forest in the inter-Andean Valley, with its own special species.
Day 3
This morning transfer to Quito Airport for your light aiircraft flight across the Andes to Coca (Puerto Francisco de Orellana) - the gateway to the amazing Amazon jungle.
 
You will be met at Coca Airport and transferred to the Napo River for your 3-hour motorised canoe ride deep into the Amazon Basin, the world's largest body of fresh water, with lunch box provided. Along the way you should see many bird species including herons, egrets, kingfishers and vultures whilst enjoying a packed lunch. There there should also be opportunities to spot some large birds such as toucans, parrots and macaws, as well as monkeys.
 
Your journey continues with a short walk to Challwacocha Creek, where you will board canoes for a trip through the primary flooded forest, paddling peacefully along a narrow creek with trees overhead. Birds you can hope to see here include the Cocha antshrike, Dot- backed antbird, Silvered antbird, Plumbeous antbird, American pygmy kingfisher, Rufescent tiger-heron and Capped heron.
 
In the afternoon we reach our lodge, when your guide will explain the activities for the rest of the day. You can either walk along one of the nearby trails or take a canoe ride. During these activities, birds you can hope to see include the Wattled jacana, Least bittern, Agami heron, Green-and-rufous kingfisher, White-chinned jacamar, Hoatzin, Red-bellied macaw, Chestnut-fronted macaw, Blue-and-yellow macaw, Cobalt-winged parakeet, Mealy Amazon parrot, Capped heron, Neotropic cormorant, Anhinga, Ringed kingfisher, Orange-winged parrot, Pale-vented pigeon, Lesser kiskadee, Cream-coloured woodpecker, Spot-breasted woodpecker and Red-capped cardinal amongst others..
 
Note: There are no Amazon transfers on a Sunday.
Day 4
Rise early to explore the birds of the tree tops of the Amazon Basin - a 2.7-million square mile (6.7 million sq.km) conservation area that is the largest in the world, spreading across nine countries - Brazil, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Venezuela, Guyana, Suriname and French Guyana.
 
We start by climbing a 36-metre (118 ft) Observation Tower. To get there, your guide will paddle on the Challwacocha Lake for 30 minutes, followed by a 10-minute walk. The diversity of birds here is incredible, and includes many colourful birds such as macaws, toucans, honeycreepers, tanagers, flycatchers, hummingbirds and, with luck, the rare Harpy Eagle. Birds that are virtually impossible to see from the forest floor are suddenly right beside you, oblivious to your presence. Groups of birds you can hope to see include Turquoise, Flame-crested, Opal-rumped and Opal-crowned tanagers, Golden & Orange-bellied euphonias, Green & Purple honeycreepers, Lemon-throated barbets, Spangled & Plum-throated cotingas, Great potoos, Great jacamars and Crested eagles. You may also see spider monkeys searching for fruit.
 
Once the treetop activity is over, we head down to spend the rest of the day in the forest, concentrating on the understory, searching for antbirds and manakins. Targets include the Lunulated antbird, Fulvous antshrike, Long-tailed potoo, Wire-tailed manakin. The lodge bar and three-storey dock offers more birding opportunities, so have your binoculars handy to spot the Silver-beaked tanager, Long-billed woodcreeper, Masked crimson tanager, Hoatzin, Yellow-rumped cacique, White-throated toucan and Many-banded aracari.
 
In the afternoon we walk along the Chorongo Trail, with the possibility of sighting the Brownish twistwing, Chestnut-belted gnateater, Black-tailed leaftosser, Thrush-like antpitta, Wire-tailed manakin, Blue-crowned manakin, Screaming piha and Rusty-belted tapaculo.
 
Note: Your daily programme is subject to change, according to weather conditions. A headlamp is essential in the Amazon and assume there will be no mobile phone coverage and weak (or non-existent) WiFi.
Day 5
After breakfast we head to the Napo River to board our boat to the parrot clay lick in Yasuni National Park, for a wonderful view of hundreds of parrots searching for a gap to land and eat the earth.
 
Here,you will see Mealy amazon, Yellow-crowned, Orange-winged, and Blue-headed parrots, as well as Dusky-headed parakeets. A second clay-lick is in a cave where hundreds of Cobalt-winged parakeets ingest dissolved minerals in the water accumulated on the ground, accompanied by Scarlet macaws and Orange-cheeked parrots.
 
We can also hike on the south of the Napo River, inside Yasuni´ National Park, which is considered to be one of the most biodiverse area in the world. Some species that cannot be found in the north might be spotted here including the White-plumed antbird, Lunulated antbird, Blue-backed manakin, Ochre-striped antpitta, Chestnut-headed crake, Yellow-billed jacamar, Purplish jacamar, Ash-throated gnateater, Rio Suno antwren, Rufous-tailed antwren and Brown-backed antwren
 
We return to the lodge in the late afternoon for dinner.
Day 6
Today will be dedicated to the Amazon Islands, along with Gallery Forest and secondary growth forest.
 
Here we search for the following highlights: Orange-backed troupial, Olive-spotted hummingbird, Fuscous flycatcher, Black-and-white antbird, White-bellied & Dark-breasted spinetails, Orange-headed tanager, Blue-and-Yellow macaw, Russet-backed oropendola, Green oropendola, Many–banded aracari, Ivory-billed aracari, Black-fronted nunbird, Speckled chachalaca, Magpie tanager and Rusty-belted tapaculo.
 
Each evening you can update your bird list with your guide.
Day 7
Depart from the Amazon early this morning by dugout canoe, with a final opportunity to search for additional birds, giant otters and saki monkeys as you paddle through Chawllacocha Creek.
 
Connect with your 3-hour motorised canoe along the Napo River to Coca and onward light aircraft flight to Quito, where you will be transferred to your hotel situated near the airport.
 
Note: There are no Amazon transfers on a Sunday.
Days 8 To 9
This morning you will be collected from your hotel and transferred 1-hours to Antisana National Park for a day of birding in the foothills of the Antisana Volcano.
 
At an elevation of over 12,000 ft (3,650 m), Antisana is a good place to see high elevation raptors and is arguably the best place in the country to see the enormous Andean condors who nest in these cliffs - although sightings are never guaranteed (they are seen on about 50% of visits).
 
The habitat of this national park is primarily grassland mixed with scrub, which gives way to paramo at higher elevations. The scrub vegetation features Black-winged ground dove, Giant hummingbird, Andean tit-spinetail, Black-billed shrike-tyrant and Giant conebill. The Variable hawk is commonly seen and the Carunculated caracara is occasionally spotted. It's also the best place to see the rare and very locally distributed Black-faced ibis. There is also a lagoon where you can find higher elevation aquatic birds such as the Silvery grebe, Andean teal, Andean duck, Andean coot and Andean gull.
Day 10
Wake up early today and enjoy shared morning and afternoon walks with a birding guide in the misty hills of the Equadorian Cloud Forest, exploring its unique birdlife, flora and fauna.
 
Enjoy the colourful birdlife of this rich eco-system that offers some of the best birding in the world. You will also see many different varieties of butterflies, orchids, medicinal plants, mushrooms, fungi, lichens, mosses, giant ferns and vines coiling in the swirling mists. 22 different species of hummingbirds live in these forests and you should also see toucans, parrots, woodpeckers, barbets, tanagers, a variety of raptors and many other species.
 
Night walks will uncover many nocturnal creatures, ranging from owls to moths as large as your hand, to miniature glass and tree frogs, toads, spiders, rodents and fox fire (a luminous fungus).
Day 11
After an early breakfast at the lodge, we travel about 1-hour to visit the Antpittas Reserve with its fascinating variety of otherwise elusive antpittas. Afterwards we visit a second Hummingbird Garden to see more species.
 
Stopping for lunch along the way, in the afternoon we drive 1-hour to a lek of the fiery orange Andean Cock of the Rock, famous for their competitive courtship displays which occur in the early morning and late afternoon, although this can never be guaranteed. We walk 30-minutes to the lek to view these raucous and startlingly beautiful birds.
Day 12
Enjoy another early morning of birding in the Cloud Forest with your guide.
 
Afterwards transfer 2.5-hours to Quito, stopping along the way to visit the equatorial monument that marks the Centre of the World at latitude 0º. Here you can stand with a foot on each hemisphere and visit the Intiñan folk museum that showcases the different Native American groups living in Ecuador, their culture and traditions. There is also a colonial-style tourist village complete with main square, church, post office, bull ring and gift shops.
 
We then continue to Quito, where you will be dropped off at your hotel.
Day 13
This morning enjoy a half day private Quito City Tour, walking through the cobbled streets and main square of the historic Colonial Quarter - the largest and best preserved in South America. Take in its magnificent colonial architecture as you stroll along Independence Plaza - including the Cathedral, President's Palace, Archbishop's Palace and the Municipal Building.
 
You will see many mansions, monasteries and churches including the spectacular Church of the Society of Jesus ('La Compañía de Jesús) with its awesome gilded interior and the Monastery of San Francisco. This is one the of greatest religious buildings of the New World, with its impressive façade and atrium leading to a Moorish-influenced baroque interior and winged Virgin of Quito at its main altar. This lovely city also has many cosmopolitan galleries and boutiques filled with contemporary paintings, sculptures and exquisite traditional crafts.
 
Your tour ends with a ride on the TelefériQo (cable car) from where you can view at least four snow-capped volcanoes.
 
In the afternoon you can explore more of this lovely city independently. You can also visit the colourful indoor Iñaquito Market, where you can purchase a variety of food and handcrafts.
 
Note: Quito is situated at high altitude (9,350 ft / 2,850 m). As you will be visiting churches (except on Sundays, when this is not permitted), do not wear shorts or mini-skirts as these are not allowed.
Day 14
This morning take the free hotel shuttle to Quito Airport for your flight to the spectacular Galapagos Islands, with a touch down in Guayaquil.
 
You will be met at Baltra Airport and transferred by bus to the boarding jetty. Here you will embark on your Expedition Cruise through this magnificent archipelago, situated on the equator in the Pacific Ocean some 560 miles (900 km) west of the Ecuador mainland.
  
These volcanic islands are famous for their vast number of endemic species, studied by Charles Darwin during his historic voyage on the Beagle, which contributed to his Theory of Evolution by natural selection. Check in and relax in this astonishing marine reserve, where the unique wildlife does not seem perturbed by human visitors - allowing for extremely close-up encounters.
 
Note: You need to be relatively mobile to enjoy an expedition cruise in the Galapagos, as you will be embarking and disembarking by panga boat (zodiac). All sightseeing with a naturalist guide, marine fees, snorkelling and medical care aboard the boat are included, but not the cost of medicines. Wetsuits are available for hire. Children < 6 years are not allowed on an expedition cruise.
Days 15 To 17
Enjoy cruising through the marine-rich waters of the world-famous Galapagos Islands, with shore excursions each day with a naturalist.
 
Your exact routing will depend on your departure date and the vessel you have selected. This will be confirmed before you book.
Day 18
Disembark from your expedition cruise today and transfer to Baltra Airport for your flight, via Guayaquil, to Quito.
 
On arrival at Quito Airport take the free shuttle to your hotel situated near the airport.
Day 19
Take the free hotel shuttle to Quito Airport for your flight home.