Ecuador & Galápagos Explorer — Self-Launched

Land at Mariscal Sucre Airport (UIO) and make your own way into town — the Aeroservicios shuttle to the old airport costs about $8, then a $5 taxi to your hostel in La Mariscal or the Centro Histórico. Skip the $30 group transfer. Ease into the 2,850m altitude with a slow wander and an early night; budget for coca tea and water rather than a big night out. Hostels in Quito run £10–15 per dorm bed.

🚌Aeroservicios shuttle + taxi from UIO (~£10)

🛏Hostel dorm or private room, Quito Centro/La Mariscal (~£12)

• →Arrival and airport transfer by Aeroservicios shuttle
• →Evening stroll in La Mariscal

Take a bus from Quito's Terminal Carcelén to Otavalo (about 2.5 hours, ~£2.50). For the highland-community experience, book a half-day San Clemente or nearby Andes community tour via GetYourGuide or a Quito hostel (typically £25–35 including lunch) — you'll meet local weavers and eat a home-cooked lunch, mirroring the tour's included community visit. Arrive in Otavalo in the afternoon and browse the Plaza de Ponchos market (free), the largest Indigenous handicraft market in South America. Otavalo hostels are £9–14.

🚌Public bus Quito–Otavalo (~£2.50)

🛏Hostel in Otavalo (~£11)

• →San Clemente community visit with local lunch (booked locally/GetYourGuide)
• →Otavalo handicraft market (Plaza de Ponchos)

Early Saturday market at Otavalo if you're there on the right day, then bus back to Quito and onward to Papallacta (combine a Terminal Carcelén bus to Papallacta, ~£2). Entry to the public Termas de Papallacta hot springs is about £6–8 for a few hours; private pools and spa treatments cost extra. Locally run guesthouses and a couple of mid-range lodges line the road; a simple cabaña or hostel bed is £15–25. Hike the short river trail in the afternoon.

🚌Public buses Otavalo–Quito–Papallacta (~£5)

🛏Guesthouse/cabaña in Papallacta (~£20)

• →Termas de Papallacta hot springs (public pools)
• →Riverside trail hike

Bus back through Quito and south to Baños de Agua Santa (roughly 4–5 hours total, ~£7). The route skirts the Avenue of Volcanoes — sit on the left for Cotopaxi views on clear mornings. Baños is Ecuador's adventure capital: in the afternoon rent a mountain bike (~£5) for the Ruta de las Cascadas, or just walk the town and soak at the free/heap public thermal pools. Hostels are plentiful at £8–14.

🚌Public buses Papallacta–Quito–Baños (~£7)

🛏Hostel in Baños (~£10)

• →Avenue of Volcanoes bus route
• →Mountain bike rental on the Ruta de las Cascadas
• →Baños hot springs

Full free day. Book canyoning or rafting through any of the town's agencies (£20–30), ride the famous 'swing at the end of the world' at Casa del Árbol (~£1), or hike to the Pailón del Diablo waterfall by local bus (~£1 each way, £1.50 entry). Horseback riding is about £20. Note that Tungurahua volcano is active — check local advice and your insurance before heading onto trails. Dinner at the Mercado Central is £3–4.

🚌Local buses to waterfalls (~£2)

🛏Hostel in Baños (~£10)

• →Canyoning or rafting day trip
• →Pailón del Diablo waterfall
• →Casa del Árbol swing

Early bus to Quito or Ambato, then an overnight or early-morning bus to Coca (Francisco de Orellana) — the total run is long (8–10 hours, ~£12–15). The efficient alternative is a domestic flight Quito–Coca (~£55–70 one way, book direct with LATAM or Avianca). From Coca, motorised canoe transfers up the Napo to the Lake Garzacocha lodges take about 2 hours and are included in lodge packages. Budget lodge packages (La Selva's budget sister options or Jamu Lodge) run roughly £90–120 per night full board — book direct or via Booking.com.

🚌Bus/flight to Coca + lodge canoe transfer (~£60)

🛏Amazon ecolodge, full board (~£105)

• →Napo River canoe transfer
• →Amazon lodge arrival and night walk

Full day with the lodge's naturalist guides: a canopy observation tower for birds and monkeys, a forest trail walk to look for sloths, poison-dart frogs and leafcutter ants, kayaking on Lake Garzacocha, and an evening caiman-spotting canoe. All guided excursions are included in the lodge rate. Bring rubber boots (usually loaned), a headlamp and dry bags for camera gear.

🚌Included lodge excursions (no extra cost)

🛏Amazon ecolodge, full board (~£105)

• →Canopy observation tower
• →Guided rainforest hike
• →Kayaking on Lake Garzacocha
• →Night caiman-spotting canoe

Morning canoe back to Coca, then fly (or bus) back to Quito — the flight saves a full day (~£55–70). Check back into a hostel in Quito's Centro Histórico or La Mariscal (£12–16). Evening free; the Ronda street in the old town is good for a cheap set lunch or dinner (£4–6).

🚌Canoe + flight Coca–Quito (~£65)

🛏Hostel in Quito (~£14)

• →Return canoe and flight to Quito

Self-guided day: walk the UNESCO Centro Histórico (Basílica del Voto Nacional tower ~£2, Compañía de Jesús ~£4, Plaza Grande), then take a local bus or the Metrobús Q to the Mitad del Mundo equator monument (~£4 entry, ~£1 transport). Alternatively ride the Teleférico up Pichincha (£6.50) for views. A combined Quito city + equator day tour on GetYourGuide runs £25–35 if you'd rather have a guide.

🚌Local bus/Metrobús (~£3)

🛏Hostel in Quito (~£14)

• →Quito Centro Histórico walking tour
• →Mitad del Mundo equator monument
• →Teleférico de Quito

Early flight Quito–San Cristóbal (via Guayaquil, ~£180–220 return if booked 2–3 months ahead). At Quito airport buy the $10 Transit Control Card (cash); on arrival pay the $100 National Park entry fee (cash, £80). Note: the park fee rose to $200 for most nationalities in 2024 — check current rates. Afternoon: local bus or taxi to Laguna El Junco in the highlands (~£10 with a shared taxi), the island's only freshwater lake, and the free Interpretation Centre at Cerro Tijeretas with its frigatebird and sea-lion lookouts. Guesthouses on San Cristóbal are £18–28.

🚌Flight Quito–San Cristóbal (~£100 each way amortised)

🛏Guesthouse in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno (~£22)

• →Laguna El Junco
• →Interpretation Centre and Cerro Tijeretas trail

Morning visit to the Galapaguera de Cerro Colorado to see giant tortoises in the wild (shared taxi ~£12 return, free entry). In the afternoon board your boat — book a 3-night/4-day tourist-class or first-class Galápagos cruise directly with operators like Golondrina, Angelito or similar via a local agency in Puerto Ayora or through GetYourGuide (roughly £650–850 per person, all meals and guided landings included). Small last-minute discounts are often available in Puerto Ayora.

🚌Shared taxi + panga transfers

🛏Onboard cruise, twin cabin (cruise cost amortised)

• →Galapaguera de Cerro Colorado giant tortoises
• →Board Galápagos cruise

Classic central-islands cruise day: a morning wet landing on South Plaza for land iguanas and the cactus forest, then an afternoon at North Seymour walking among nesting frigatebirds and vast sea-lion colonies. Your National Park-certified guide leads all landings; snorkelling gear is provided on board. Meals are included aboard.

🚌Panga landings (included in cruise)

🛏Onboard cruise, twin cabin

• →South Plaza landing and land iguana walk
• →North Seymour sea lion and frigatebird colonies
• →Snorkelling

A full day of the cruise itinerary (island choice depends on your boat's permits — typically Bartolomé, Santa Fe, or Floreana). Snorkel with sea turtles and reef sharks, walk lava landscapes, and watch for penguins and flightless cormorants depending on route. Everything is included in the cruise price; only drinks and tips are extra (crew tips ~£8–10/day).

🚌Panga landings (included in cruise)

🛏Onboard cruise, twin cabin

• →Guided island landing
• →Snorkelling excursion

Disembark after breakfast and take the public speedboat between islands (Santa Cruz ↔ San Cristóbal, ~£28) or use your cruise's transfer. Visit the free Charles Darwin Research Station and Fausto Llerena Breeding Center to see giant tortoises and learn about conservation. Explore Puerto Ayora's fish market and the free Las Grietas snorkelling spot. Guesthouses in Puerto Ayora are £20–30.

🚌Inter-island speedboat (~£28)

🛏Guesthouse in Puerto Ayora (~£24)

• →Charles Darwin Research Station
• →Fausto Llerena Breeding Center
• →Las Grietas snorkelling

Airport bus from Puerto Ayora to Baltra's Seymour Airport (~£3 plus ferry ~£1), then the included return leg of your Quito–Galápagos ticket. If your international flight is same-day, allow a comfortable buffer — Galápagos flights often route via Guayaquil. Otherwise spend a final night in Quito (£14 hostel) and fly home the next morning.

🚌Bus + ferry + return flight (~£15 local + flight already counted)

🛏None (or final night in Quito)

• →Transfer to Baltra airport
• →Return flight to Quito