Staff will meet you at Quito’s new airport (UIO) to help you transfer to a boutique hotel in the heart of Quito’s old town. Flight arrivals are typically quite late, and there are no activities, so you’ll be able to get to bed. The hotel front desk will have a welcome letter with specifics of the next day’s plan. No meal due to late arrival.

Overnight: Casona de la Ronda Hotel

Meals: None

After breakfast, we set out on a walking tour of Quito’s colonial old town. Exploring Quito’s colonial old town is like stepping back in time, with its charming streets, historic architecture, and a rich blend of cultures. We’ll visit the Baroque masterpiece Compañía de Jesús Church, famous for its lavish interior covered in gold leaf, ornate carvings, intricate artwork, and other attractions of this best-preserved colonial city in Latin America and a UNESCO cultural heritage site. Before dinner, we will meet with our naturalist/kayak guide and have a brief orientation about the upcoming trip and the next morning’s transfer to the airport for our flight into the Amazon basin.

Overnight: Casona de la Ronda Hotel

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

In the morning, we will meet the naturalist/kayak guide in the hotel lobby and head to the airport for the flight over the Andes to the Amazon Basin. Landing in the town of Coca, we’ll be met by our native guide. A few minutes from the airport is the Napo River (Rio Napo), the largest tributary of the Amazon in Ecuador. Here, we will board a motorized canoe for the ride to Sacha Lodge. The trip takes approximately 2 hours, including a 30-minute hike through the rainforest to Lake Pilchicocha, where the lodge is located. We will board our sea kayaks in the afternoon for a short familiarization paddle through the lake and creeks around the lodge. After dinner, we have the option of a night walk through the rainforest to look for the many different species of nocturnal animals or take a canoe ride on the lake and creeks to look for spectacled and black caimans by spotlight.

Overnight: Sacha Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

After breakfast, we’ll walk through the rainforest back to the Rio Napo and board a motorized canoe that will take us to our put-in point for the descent on the tranquil Indillana River. Running slowly from the Andes to the Rio Napo, the Indillana is one of the rivers that define the limit of Yasuni National Park. Wide and bounded by magnificent forest on both sides, the Indillana is an excellent example of how the fresh (white) water from the Andes meets the igapo-black water of the jungle. This paddle will allow us to enjoy the beauty and mystery of the Amazon jungle and its abundant wildlife. Once we reach the Rio Napo, we will reboard our motorized canoe for the 30-minute ride back to the trail to the lodge.

Overnight: Sacha Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Dedicated to optimal wildlife observation, the day at Sacha Lodge starts early. Setting off not long after dawn, we will take our kayaks and paddle through one of the most interesting creeks in the area around the lodge. On the way, we’ll have the opportunity to see squirrel monkeys, white-bellied spider monkeys, and several different species of birds. After roughly an hour of paddling, we will start walking toward Sacha’s magnificent 100-foot high and 900-foot long canopy walkway. Arriving during prime morning birding hours, we’ll have spectacular—literally, treetop—views of the rainforest and many different species of vibrant, tropical-colored birds. Equipped with a spotting scope, the naturalist and native guides will point out the many canopy residents and offer interpretation. We will be back at the lodge in time for lunch. In the afternoon, we will kayak a small blackwater creek that many people consider the best route at Sacha. Along the way, there is a good chance of seeing large troops of squirrel, capuchin, and howler monkeys. Keep your eyes peeled for the shy, elusive river otter and incredibly well-camouflaged three-toed sloth. After this amazing ride through the flooded forest, we’ll leave the kayaks for a short walk to a 135-foot wooden tower built around an ancient Kapok tree. The observation platform structured around the massive limbs of this tallest of all canopy tree species makes for a breathtaking vantage point for late afternoon bird watching. We will paddle back to the lodge for dinner.

Overnight: Sacha Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

We will check out from Sacha Lodge early in the morning to take a boat ride for about 1.5 hours to the Amazon Dolphin Ecolodge. A more basic lodge than Sacha, the Amazon Dolphin is very comfortable and located in one of the most pristine parts of the Amazon basin. After checking in, we will venture by kayak to explore Pañacocha Lake in search of wildlife. There will be chances to find and float with the pink freshwater dolphins, to observe colorful hoatzin birds and various other avian residents of the lake, as well as monkeys and numerous other small creatures.

Overnight: Amazon Dolphin Ecolodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Departing early, we’ll set off by boat to the headwaters of the Pañayacu River, where our kayaks will be waiting. We then paddle into a pristine igapo-blackwater lagoon and riverine system located in the narrow gap between Ecuador’s two largest Amazon protected areas: the 982,000-hectare Yasuni National Park and the 600,000-hectare Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve. Traversing several distinct forest zones illustrates how the Amazon’s complex ecosystem is a constant, multifaceted cycle of competition and renewal. Descending the slow current, we will have the opportunity to see several species of birds, troops of howler monkeys, Charapa turtles (Podocnemis expansa), and common otters, and if we are lucky, we’ll kayak with the pink freshwater dolphins in Piguali Lake.

Overnight: Amazon Dolphin Ecolodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

We will continue our descent of the Pañayacu River until we reach the broad Napo River, where we will board a motorized canoe to ride downstream and then paddle by kayak to Garzacoha Lake and La Selva Lodge, our luxurious home for the next two nights. Upon arrival, we will check in and enjoy a late lunch on the lakeside terrace and maybe a refreshing swim. In the afternoon, we will enter the rainforest and explore the “Chaguamango” trail that begins behind the lodge and finishes at the edge of the lake. During the walk, we will talk about the various uses of neo-tropical plants used by the indigenous groups of the Amazonia as medicine, food, and ornamentation. At the end of the walk, we will head back to the lodge by canoe. If lucky, you might see large troops of squirrel monkeys approaching the water in the late afternoon.

Overnight: La Selva Lodge

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch & Dinner

Today, we visit what is thought to be the most biologically diverse place on Earth: Yasuni National Park. A 20-minute canoe ride plus a 15-minute walk takes us back to the Rio Napo, where we board a motorized canoe for a short ride to a trailhead that leads to one of the most remarkable wildlife displays in the world. Hundreds of parrots and parakeets perch in the treetops and then descend to a clay bank to ingest the mineral-rich clay. This clay allows the birds to digest forest seeds, some of which have toxic components that elements of the clay help neutralize. The naturalist guide will help you identify the various subspecies present and explain their behaviors in detail. Returning to the motorized canoe, we cruise along the riverbanks of the Napo, bird-watching along the way (the currents in the Napo render this unsafe for the kayaks but an experience not to be missed). Next, we’ll pay a visit to an Amazonian Kichwa family. A tour of their garden, “chacra” (small farm), followed by a visit to the house, will let us experience the Kichwa tradition of hospitality and open a window into the everyday lives of the people that make their homes in Amazonia. Returning to the lodge, there will be time to relax before dinner. After our celebratory final Amazon dinner, we’ll take a night paddle by canoe around the lagoon, looking for caimans, boas, bats, owls, night mammals, and other nocturnal wildlife. If it’s clear, we’ll have a chance to view the blaze of stars in the equatorial night sky accompanied by an unforgettable Amazon night chorus of frogs—a place like no other on Earth.

Overnight: La Selva Lodge

Meals: Breakfat, Lunch & Dinner

This day starts with an early wake-up call, breakfast, and departure from the lodge. The lodge staff will assist with luggage as we begin our journey back to Quito. A motorized canoe takes us back upstream to Coca, where our representative will take us to the airport to help with checked luggage and boarding passes. Once at Quito airport, our guide will assist with luggage and orientation for international departures. Transportation to Quito and extra accommodations are available, and there is a hotel at the airport where rooms are available to relax before your homeward-bound flight.

Overnight: N/A

Meals: Breakfast

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