Ecuador: Andes to Amazon — Self-Launched

Fly into Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO) and take an authorised airport taxi or the Aeroservicios minibus into the city (~£6-8, 45-60 min; don't use unlicensed cabs). Check into a guesthouse in La Mariscal or the Old Town. Explore!'s trip starts out at Puembo near the airport, but staying in the city is cheaper and puts you within walking distance of everything tomorrow. Keep today gentle — Quito sits at 2,850m. Buy a local SIM (Claro/Movistar, ~£8 for data) and a TCI transit card. Evening: light dinner and early night.

🚌Airport shuttle or taxi ~£7

🛏Hostel/guesthouse double or dorm, La Mariscal or Centro Historico (~£14-20/night)

• →Airport transfer to Quito
• →Orientation wander in La Mariscal
• →Buy SIM card and transit card

Morning walking tour of the UNESCO Old Town — free English-language walks run daily from Plaza Grande (tip-based, ~£8) or explore solo with a map: Plaza Grande, La Compania (gilded interior, £3 entry), Church of San Francisco, and the climb up Cerro Panecillo for city views. Afternoon: bus to Otavalo from Terminal Carceleta/Carcelén (~2.5 hrs, £2.50). If you want the equator stop, the Mitad del Mundo / Quitsato solar monument is reached by bus from Carcelén (~£1 each way) — Quitsato's stone solar clock is the more interesting of the two and cheaper. Overnight Otavalo (2,550m, colder than Quito).

🚌Local buses to equator site ~£2; Quito–Otavalo bus ~£2.50

🛏Family-run hostal in Otavalo centre (~£14-18/night)

• →Self-guided or tip-based Old Town walking tour
• →La Compania church entry ~£3
• →Cerro Panecillo viewpoint
• →Quitsato Equator Monument ~£3

Get to Otavalo's Saturday market early if your dates align (it's the biggest in South America); midweek the Plaza de Ponchos still trades daily. Then take a shared taxi or local bus to Laguna Cuicocha (~£2-3, 20 min) and walk the rim trail — the full circuit is 4-5 hours and steep, or do the shorter 90-minute out-and-back for the classic crater-lake views. Afternoon: bus or taxi to Peguche village to see the waterfall and the weaving workshops (free or small donation). For the home-cooked community lunch Explore! includes, book a community tourism lunch directly in Peguche or San Clemente — ask at your hostal; expect £6-9.

🚌Shared taxi/bus to Cuicocha and Peguche ~£5 total

🛏Family-run hostal in Otavalo (~£14-18/night)

• →Laguna Cuicocha rim walk
• →Peguche village weaving and waterfall
• →Community tourism lunch ~£8

Bus south to Machachi or El Chasqui (~2.5-3 hrs via Quito, £3-4), the gateway to Cotopaxi National Park. From there, either join a hostel-arranged park shuttle/tour (£20-25 including park entry and a guide — this is the easiest independent route) or negotiate a shared 4x4 for the day. Walk the Limpiopungo Lagoon circuit (1.5 hrs, flat, ~3,800m) with views of Cotopaxi and Ruminahui, and stop at the park's interpretive centre. Dress for cold, wind and sudden cloud. Overnight in Machachi or a Cotopaxi-area farmstay.

🚌Otavalo–Quito–Machachi buses ~£4; park shuttle ~£12

🛏Hostal or farmstay near Machachi (~£15-20/night)

• →Cotopaxi National Park entry ~£5
• →Limpiopungo Lagoon walk
• →Avenue of the Volcanoes drive
• →Guided park shuttle ~£22

Bus back through Quito to Papallacta (~2.5 hrs, £3) — the road crosses a 4,000m pass, so it's cold and spectacular. Spend the afternoon at the Termas Papallacta thermal pools (public pools ~£8-10, or the cheaper village-run pools nearer the road) and take a short self-guided cloud-forest trail along the river. The hummingbird garden by the roadside costs ~£4. Late afternoon bus down to Tena (~3 hrs, £4) as the road drops into the Amazon basin — expect a 20°C temperature jump overnight.

🚌Buses Machachi–Quito–Papallacta–Tena ~£8

🛏Simple hostal or jungle lodge in/near Tena (~£15-22/night)

• →Termas Papallacta pools ~£9
• →Cloud forest trail
• →Hummingbird garden ~£4

Book a day trip directly with a local Kichwa-run operator in Tena or Misahualli (ask at your hostal, or contact lodges such as Jardin Aleman direct — day rates run £25-40 including boat, guide and lunch). Typical day: motorised canoe down the Misahualli and Napo rivers to a community reserve, a guided rainforest walk identifying medicinal plants, a visit to a Kichwa family to see chicha-making and traditional crafts, and a swim. Misahualli's town beach has free-roaming capuchin monkeys — watch your sunglasses. Evening: night walk for insects, frogs and owls (~£10).

🚌Local bus Tena–Misahualli ~£1; boats included in day trip

🛏Jungle lodge near Tena/Misahualli (~£20-25/night)

• →Kichwa-guided canoe and rainforest day ~£35
• →Medicinal plant walk
• →Chicha-making demonstration
• →Optional night walk ~£10

Second Amazon day, self-organised: hire a local guide in Tena for the limestone cave and high-rock formations route (~£20-25 for a half day, plus £1-2 entry to community caves), or take a taxi to the Misahualli riverbank at dawn for birdwatching — toucans, oropendolas and hoatzins are all possible with patience and binoculars. Afternoon: tubing or a lazy float on the Rio Tena (~£8) or a visit to the Amazoonico-style wildlife rescue projects reachable by local bus. Ask about the Laguna Paikawe lagoon canoe ride (tuktuk + canoe, ~£8) — a highlight for reviewers of the original trip.

🚌Local taxis and buses ~£4

🛏Jungle lodge near Tena/Misahualli (~£20-25/night)

• →Guided cave and high-rock hike ~£22
• →Dawn birdwatching walk
• →Laguna canoe/tubing ~£8

Bus Tena to Banos (~3 hrs, £3.50) — a stunning descent past Tungurahua volcano. Once in Banos, hire a bike for the 'Ruta de las Cascadas' (~£6-8/day) and ride 18km downhill along the Pastaza gorge to the Pailon del Diablo waterfall; entry to the falls is ~£2, plus a couple of pounds for the cable cars (tarabita) that cross the gorge. End at Rio Verde and take a bus back with the bike, or return it in town. Evening: the Banos thermal pools (~£3-4) under the volcano.

🚌Tena–Banos bus ~£3.50; bike hire ~£7

🛏Hostal in Banos (~£12-16/night)

• →Avenue of the Waterfalls bike ride ~£7
• →Pailon del Diablo entry ~£2
• →Tarabita cable car ~£2
• →Banos thermal pools ~£3

Early bus to Riobamba (~2.5 hrs, £3), then arrange transport up Chimborazo — the cheapest route is a shared tour from Riobamba hostels (£25-35 including reserve entry and a guide to the Hermanos Carrel refuge at 4,800m), or a colectivo to the reserve gate plus hitching/negotiated 4x4. Walk the short trail from the refuge toward the 5,000m mark — go slowly, it's high, and turn back if you feel dizzy. Bring gloves, hat, suncream and water. Overnight Riobamba (3,275m), where the Saturday market is worth catching.

🚌Banos–Riobamba bus ~£3; reserve transport ~£15

🛏Hostal or guesthouse in Riobamba (~£13-18/night)

• →Chimborazo Fauna Reserve entry ~£4
• →Hermanos Carrel Refuge walk to ~5,000m
• →Shared tour/guide ~£28

Bus south on the Panamericana through the highlands to El Tambo or Canar (~3.5 hrs, £4). From there take a local bus or shared taxi to Ingapirca (~£2), Ecuador's largest Inca site — entry ~£4, with a small museum and the Temple of the Sun built atop Canari foundations. A local guide at the gate costs ~£10-15. On the way, if it's a Thursday or Sunday, stop at the indigenous market in Guamote or Cañar. Late bus on to Cuenca (~2.5 hrs, £3.50).

🚌Buses Riobamba–El Tambo–Ingapirca–Cuenca ~£9

🛏Guesthouse in Cuenca Centro (~£14-20/night)

• →Ingapirca entry ~£4
• →Local site guide ~£12
• →Guamote/Cañar indigenous market stop

Free walking tour of Cuenca's UNESCO centre (tip-based, ~£8) or self-guide: the blue-domed Catedral de la Inmaculada, Plaza de las Flores, and the Museo Pumapungo for Canari and Inca history (~£3). Mid-morning, wander the Diez de Agosto food market for hornado, llapingachos and fresh juices (£4-6). Afternoon: visit a Panama-hat workshop (the genuine toquilla straw hats are made here — Homero Ortega's factory tour is free or a token fee) and take a taxi up to the El Turi viewpoint over the city (£3).

🚌Taxis ~£5

🛏Guesthouse in Cuenca Centro (~£14-20/night)

• →Old Town walking tour ~£8
• →Museo Pumapungo ~£3
• →Panama hat factory visit
• →El Turi viewpoint taxi ~£3

Explore!'s itinerary builds in a free day in Cuenca; use yours for Cajas National Park, which reviewers name as a highlight. Public bus from Cuenca's Terminal Terrestre to the park entrance (~£1.50, 45 min) drops you at Tres Cruces on the 4,100m paramo; walk a section of the Ruta 1 or the Laguna Toreadora loop with a map from the visitor centre (free entry). For the full lake circuit, a hostel-arranged tour (~£18-22) is easier and includes a guide. Back in Cuenca by evening for a final wander and a rooftop drink.

🚌Bus to Cajas ~£3 return (or tour transfer)

🛏Guesthouse in Cuenca Centro (~£14-20/night)

• →Cajas National Park hiking (free entry)
• →Optional guided park tour ~£20

Slow day: climb the cathedral spires for rooftop views (~£1-2), browse the Museo de las Culturas Aborigenes and the Museo del Sombrero, and pick up souvenirs at the Plaza Rotary or Mercado 10 de Agosto. Cuenca has Ecuador's best cafe and restaurant scene outside Quito — budget for a long lunch. In the evening, buy your onward bus ticket for tomorrow and confirm your Guayaquil airport transfer if you're flying out same-day (a tight but doable connection via the direct bus).

🚌City buses and taxis ~£4

🛏Guesthouse in Cuenca Centro (~£14-20/night)

• →Cathedral spires ~£2
• →Two small museums ~£5
• →Market shopping

Direct bus Cuenca–Guayaquil (~4 hrs, £6-7) from Terminal Terrestre; comfortable, air-conditioned, run frequently with Cooperativa Sucre/Expresso. From Guayaquil's terminal, take a taxi or the Aerovia bus to Jose Joaquin de Olmedo airport (~£5, 20 min) — allow three hours total buffer before an international departure. If you have a late flight, drop bags at the terminal and detour to the Malecon 2000 and Las Penas for two hours. Alternatively fly Cuenca–Guayaquil (~£50-70) if time is short.

🚌Cuenca–Guayaquil bus ~£6.50; airport taxi ~£5

🛏N/A (departure day)

• →Bus transfer to Guayaquil
• →Optional Malecon 2000 and Las Penas stopover