Self-Launched Ecuador Natural Highlights: Quito, Otavalo, Amazon & Cotopaxi

Land at Mariscal Sucre (UIO) and make your own way into the city — the official airport taxi to the Centro Histórico or La Mariscal is a fixed ~£20-25, or take the Aeropuerto bus to Rio Coca and a city bus/taxi from there for around £3-4. Check into a hostel in the Centro Histórico or La Mariscal (Mariscal is better for solo travellers and evening food). Take it easy on day one: Quito sits at 2,850m, so drink water, skip alcohol and walk slowly. Evening stroll around Plaza Foch for a cheap set lunch-style dinner (almuerzo ~£2.50-3.50).

🚌Airport taxi or airport bus + local taxi (~£4-25 depending on choice)

🛏Hostel dorm or private room in La Mariscal / Centro Histórico (~£15)

• →Airport arrival and check-in
• →Gentle acclimatisation walk in La Mariscal

Do the city tour yourself: start at Plaza Grande, then the Compañía de Jesús church (£3), San Francisco convent (£3) and the Basílica del Voto Nacional tower climb (£2). Free walking tours leave Plaza Grande most mornings (tip ~£5). In the afternoon, take a local bus or taxi to the Mitad del Mundo monument (£4 entry) — or the more interesting Intiñan Solar Museum next door (£4) where they do the equator experiments. Buses from Ofelia run there for under £1. Beware pickpockets in the Old Town; leave your passport in the hostel safe.

🚌Local buses/taxis around the city and to Mitad del Mundo (~£5)

🛏Hostel dorm or private room in Quito (~£15)

• →Self-guided Quito Old Town walk (Plaza Grande, Compañía de Jesús, San Francisco, Basílica)
• →Mitad del Mundo / Intiñan equator museums

Take a bus from Quito's Terminal Carcelén to Otavalo (~2.5 hrs, £2-3). Drop bags at a guesthouse, then take a local bus or taxi to the indigenous community of Peguche (10 mins, ~£1) to see the weaving workshops and waterfall — local weavers will show you the looms and sell directly. Have lunch at a community comedor (typical lunch £2-3). Late afternoon head to Plaza de Ponchos in Otavalo for the largest handicraft market in South America; prices are best on weekday mornings but the atmosphere is liveliest on Saturday. Hostel dorms here start around £10-12.

🚌Public bus Quito–Otavalo (~£3) + local buses/taxis to Peguche (~£2)

🛏Otavalo guesthouse dorm or private room (~£12)

• →Peguche weaving community and waterfall
• →Otavalo Plaza de Ponchos handicraft market

This is the fiddly day by public transport: bus Otavalo back to Quito Carcelén (~£3), then a bus from Quilumbus/El Playón toward Baeza/Tena and get off at Papallacta (~2 hrs, £3-4). Termas de Papallacta's public pools cost roughly £7-8 for a few hours — far cheaper than the resort hotel, and you can stay in a basic hostal in the village or a nearby cabaña for £15-20. Spend the afternoon soaking with mountain views, then do the free riverside trail walk. Book ahead in high season; the village has limited beds.

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

🛏Papallacta village hostal/cabaña (~£18)

• →Termas de Papallacta public hot springs pools
• →Riverside trail walk

Catch a morning bus from Papallacta down to Tena (~3 hrs, £4) — the road drops through cloud forest and is a highlight in itself. From Tena's bus terminal take a taxi to the Misahuallí river port (~£6, or a local bus for £1) and arrange a motorised canoe upriver to a jungle lodge; lodges like Itamandi, Arajuno or Sani-style community lodges sell 2-night packages directly for roughly £90-130 per person including meals, canoe transfers and a guide — book by email/WhatsApp before you travel. Afternoon check-in, then join the lodge's night walk to spot insects, frogs and nocturnal wildlife.

🚌Bus Papallacta–Tena (~£4) + taxi and motorised canoe to lodge (~£8)

🛏Amazon jungle lodge, 2 nights package (~£55/night incl. meals, shared basis)

• →Cloud forest bus descent to Tena
• →Canoe transfer upriver
• →Guided night walk

Early start (around 5:30-6am) by canoe upriver to a parrot clay lick, where hundreds of parrots and parakeets descend to eat mineral-rich clay — a genuinely spectacular free-of-charge wildlife moment included in most lodge packages. Back for breakfast, then a short canoe ride to AmaZOOnico animal rescue centre (£5 entry, reached from Misahuallí) to see rehabilitated monkeys, toucans and ocelots and hear about their anti-trafficking work. Afternoon optional: tubing on the Arajuno river or a community visit. Bring zip-lock bags for camera gear — humidity is extreme.

🚌Lodge canoe and walking (~£5)

🛏Amazon jungle lodge, 2nd night (~£55 incl. meals)

• →Sunrise parrot clay lick excursion
• →AmaZOOnico animal rescue centre
• →Optional river tubing

Canoe back to Misahuallí, then a bus from Tena to Baños — either direct (about 4-5 hrs when running, £5-6) or via Puyo with a change (~5 hrs, £5). Baños sits at 1,800m beneath the very active Tungurahua volcano; it's an outdoor-adventure town with cheap hostels (£10-14 dorms). Check the volcano's current activity with locals and follow evacuation signage. Evening: soak at one of the town's public thermal baths (Balneario de la Virgen, £2-3) and eat at the Mercado Central for £2-3.

🚌Canoe + bus Tena–Baños (~£9)

🛏Baños hostel dorm (~£12)

• →Scenic bus through the Oriente foothills
• →Public thermal baths in Baños

Pick your thrill: canyoning (£25-30 with local operators on Calle 16 de Diciembre), whitewater rafting on the Pastaza (£25-30), the famous Casa del Árbol zipline 'swing at the end of the world' (£3-5 plus transport), or rent a mountain bike and ride the Ruta de las Cascadas past waterfalls to Puyo (£8-10 bike hire, mostly downhill). Alternatively hike to Bellavista viewpoint or the Pailón del Diablo waterfall (£2 entry, bus £1). Afternoon: bike to the town's free hot springs or grab a £1.50 fruit-and-ice-cream at a heladería.

🚌Local buses, taxis and bike hire (~£8)

🛏Baños hostel dorm (~£12)

• →Canyoning or whitewater rafting (£25-30)
• →Casa del Árbol zipline swing
• →Ruta de las Cascadas bike ride / Pailón del Diablo

This is the hardest leg to replicate without a private van. Simplest option: book a shared day tour from Quito, but since you're coming from Baños, either (a) take the morning bus Baños–Latacunga (~2 hrs, £2.50), then a Latacunga-based shared Cotopaxi tour or a taxi/collectivo to the park entrance (park entry £8, plus a 4x4 transfer to the 4,500m parking area ~£10), hike to the glacier-base refuge at 4,800m, then bus Latacunga–Quito (£2.50); or (b) take a direct Baños–Quito bus and do a GetYourGuide Cotopaxi day trip the next morning. Option (a) keeps you on the Avenue of Volcanoes as per the original itinerary — book the Latacunga tour the evening before. Check the volcano's alert level and expect cold, windy weather at altitude.

🚌Buses Baños–Latacunga–Quito plus park transfers (~£18)

🛏Hostel dorm or private room in Quito (~£15)

• →Cotopaxi National Park hike to the José Rivas refuge (4,800m)
• →Avenue of the Volcanoes scenic drive

Last morning for coffee and a market breakfast at Mercado Iñaquito or San Francisco square, and any souvenir shopping in La Ronda. Take the airport bus or a taxi to UIO in good time — note Quito's airport runs periodic runway-maintenance closures (2am-2pm on selected 2025 dates), so double-check your flight schedule. If your flight is late, store bags at the hostel and visit the Museo Nacional or the Casa del Alabado (£5) beforehand.

🚌Airport bus or taxi (~£4-20)

🛏None (departure day)

• →Final market breakfast
• →Optional museum visit before flight