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| ECUADOR and THE GALAPAGOS WITH THE AMAZON EXTENSION (WBGQ2009)
A 15-Day tour starting from $6,679
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| About This Tour | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Vacation Overview This exciting vacation lets you sample the natural wonders of Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands. Enjoy guided sightseeing in Quito, have your photo taken at the “center of the world,” and spend time at leisure in Guayaquil. Also, fly over the Pacific to Baltra Island, where you’ll embark on an exciting 8-day cruise among various Galápagos Islands.
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Hotels Quito Hilton Colon (SF), Galápagos Cruise La Pinta, Guayaquil Oro Verde (SF), Amazon Extension Sacha Lodge (BA) Meals American breakfast daily (B), 7 lunches (L), 8 dinners (D), including a welcome dinner in Quito and a farewell dinner on the La Pinta; Amazon extension: breakfast daily (B), 3 lunches (L), 3 dinners (D)
Day 1:
Fly to Quito, Ecuador. (Sat.) Board your flight to Quito. Your flight to South America arrives late this evening and will be met by your Local Host. Day 2: Quito–Coca. (Sun.) Fly from Quito to Coca and travel by canoe to your Amazon lodge. The Ecuadorian Amazon is the world’s largest remaining tropical rainforest, where more life hums, buzzes, chatters, and bubbles than anywhere else on the planet. One Amazonian tree can host more ant species than all of the British Isles put together, one hectare of forest boasts about as many frog species as all of North America, and the great expanse of jungle contains more than 20 percent of the earth’s vascular plant species. Here you can find a monkey small enough to sit on your fingertip, an 8-pound toad, a spider that eats birds, and the world’s largest snake, the 30-foot anaconda. (B,L,D) Day 3: Amazon. (Mon.) Begin on the lodge’s suspended CANOPY WALK with views of the rainforest canopy, where your naturalist will point out many different species of vibrantly colored birds. Continue through the jungle below and learn of the medicinal plants and immense biodiversity found here that have been used by the native cultures for hundreds of years. After a picnic lunch in the primary forest, return to the lodge by canoe. Perhaps visit the lodge’s BUTTERFLY HOUSE, one of Ecuador’s largest. This evening, accompany your Local Guide on a night WALK or canoe RIDE to discover creatures that can rarely be seen during the day; you many even spot a caiman or two! (B,L,D) Day 4: Amazon. (Tue.) This morning you may opt to visit a parrot clay lick, where parrots and parakeets by the thousands can usually be seen. Later, depart on a CRUISE of the Napo River through the flooded forest in search of the varied wildlife found in the Amazon Basin. You will have a good chance of seeing troops of squirrel, capuchin, and howler monkeys—and maybe even the incredibly well camouflaged 3-toed sloth. After time spent fishing for piranhas, arrive at the KAPOK TREE TOWER, perched 135-feet high. Get close-up views of birds as the sun sets on volcano Mount Sumaco and the Andes. (B,L,D) Day 5: Coca–Quito. (Wed.) Return to Coca where you will board your flight to Quito and join up with Day 1 of your Ecuador and Galápagos trip. (B) Day 6: Quito. (Thu.) An included sightseeing tour showcases Quito’s treasures: the historic stone murals of the LEGISLATIVE PALACE, Independence Plaza and the 16th-century SAN FRANCISCO MONASTERY, the Jesuit’s LA COMPANIA CHURCH with its stunning golden altars, and the impressive paintings at the WORKSHOP AND MUSEUM of Oswaldo Guayasamin. Have your photo taken in front of the EQUATORIAL MONUMENT, “the center of the world.” This evening, enjoy a welcome dinner at a local restaurant. (B,D) Day 7: Quito–Baltra–Galápagos Islands (Embarkation)–Cruising. (Fri.) Fly to Baltra, one of the remote Galápagos Islands. Upon arrival, board the La Pinta yacht for an exciting eight days of CRUISING among various Galápagos Islands. (B,L,D) Note: The ship’s itinerary will vary according to the Galápagos National Park policies and regulations, weather conditions, and seasonal changes to create the perfect cross-section of sites visited. Day 8: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 9: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 10: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 11: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 12: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 13: Galápagos Islands. (Sat. to Thu.) Travel ashore each day to the remote islands with your expert naturalist who introduces you to the unique fauna living free and fearless of man. Each cruise will visit the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION, established to help conserve the Islands’ natural habitat. On the last night of your cruise, your Tour Director hosts a farewell dinner, ending an unforgettable experience. (B,L,D daily) Day 14: Galápagos (Disembarkation)–Guayaquil. (Fri.) Depart the Galápagos today for Guayaquil. Enjoy time in Guayaquil or relax at your hotel this evening. (B) Day 15: (Sat.) Your homebound flight arrives the same day. (B)
City Highlights Cruise: 7-night cruise in the Galápagos in outside stateroomQuito: Sightseeing with a Local Guide, visit Legislative Palace, San Francisco Monastery, La Compania Church, Workshop and Museum of Oswaldo Guayasamin, and Equatorial Monument; welcome dinnerGalápagos Islands: Seven nights cruising the Galápagos National Park aboard the La Pinta; Charles Darwin Research Station; guided sightseeing each day with a local Naturalist; farewell dinnerAmazon: Guided Amazon cruises by Naturalists; visit a parrot clay lick, canopy walk, and butterfly house; dugout canoe excursion; nature walksNorth Seymour Island: Known for its nesting colony of frigate birds, blue-footed boobies, swallow-tailed gulls, sea lions, and marine iguanas.Hood Island: The most southeastern island featuring quite eroded lava terrain. See Galápagos sea lions, lava lizards, Nazca boobies, and the only island with a Waved Albatrosses colony (May-December). Also see the famous blowhole!Floreana Island: See flamingos that inhabit a brackish-water lagoon, and other birds like ducks, stilts, and sandpipers. Great snorkeling here for close-up views of marine life that includes sea lions, rays, sea turtles, and possibly the Galápagos penguin. This island is also the site of Post Office Bay, where you learn about early inhabitants and adventures of pirates and whalers.Santa Cruz Island: The second-largest island boasts the largest human population, giant tortoises in the wild, and the CHARLES DARWIN RESEARCH STATION. The highlands are great for bird watching, walking through a Scalesia forest, and seeing the twin pit craters, Los Gemelos.Tower Island: Due to its northern isolation and the effect of northern currents, this island’s ecosystems are quite different from others. Boasting the most seabird diversity, you will find frigate birds, red-footed and masked boobies, gulls, herons, finches, mockingbirds, and the short-eared owl. Good snorkeling is found here, too—along with hammerhead sharks!Isabela Island: Discover secluded Tagus Cove, a favorite anchor for pirates and whalers in past centuries. The vegetation includes the unusual Palo Santo trees, white-barked leafless trees that look dead most of the year. See Darwin Crater, filled with saltwater and one of Isabela’s six volcanoes. Galápagos penguins, flightless cormorants, sea turtles, marine iguanas, and giant tortoises are a few species that call this island home.Fernandina Island: The youngest of islands is home to continuous volcanic activity and recent black lava flows. Considered by many as one of the most pristine islands in the world due to the absence of introduced mammals, Fernandina has a unique environment with the highest density of marine iguanas, sharing their space with sea lions, Sally Lightfoot crabs, hawks, penguins, and the flightless cormorant.Bartolomé Island: The most photographed view of islands in the Galápagos is seen here with Pinnacle Rock. A great place for swimming and snorkeling with its schools of tropical and subtropical fish, sea lions, sharks, rays, sea turtles, and Galápagos penguins.All Intra-Tour FlightsNotes:
Ship La Pinta Price Details US Land-only price includes intra-tour flights, and must be purchased with this vacation.Single Room Supplement: $2460Triples not available.2010 prices and itineraries subject to change.Extra nights per person in Quito:in single room $125; in twin room $80.Extra nights per person in Guayaquil:in single room $150; in twin room $90. Related Tours WBG|Discover the Galápagos & Peru CURRENT SPECIALS: Standard Offers and Specials provided by Globus
Share the pleasure of a Globus vacation with your children and grandchildren and take advantage of a 10-percent discount on the land-only price. For eligibility, children must be under 18 years of age on the departure date and must be accompanied by an adult. On escorted vacations we don’t accept children under eight years old because we have found that they are too young to enjoy these vacations.
Pay less for your second vacation We charge you vacation price for your first vacation in 2008, but for every additional Globus vacation you take in the same year, you pay US$35 under list. Our vacations are designed and scheduled so you can combine them almost any way you want. It’s fun to play the add-a-vacation game yourself or talk to your travel agent.
Triple room reduction On most Globus vacations you receive a reduction when three people travel together and share the same accommodations. Triple room reductions, when available, are listed on the itinerary pages. A word of caution: Triple rooms usually are no larger than twin rooms and the third bed, if there is one, is often a rollaway put in a twin-bedded room.
Avoid the single room supplement We do not take reservations on a “share” basis because we have found that strangers rarely enjoy sharing a room for the duration of their vacation. Avoid the single room supplement by traveling with a friend. It’s less expensive and much more fun!
Globus River Cruise Special Offers
And now, a Globus river cruise is an even better value. Book a 2009 European river cruise before February 28, 2009, and you will save $400 per stateroom on the air-inclusive price or save $200 per stateroom on the land/cruise price.*
*Book a 2009 Globus River Cruise Europe air-inclusive vacation to receive the $200 off per person offer. Cruise-only bookings are eligible for the $100 off per person offer. Booking must be made, under deposit, and discount applied between December 16, 2008 and February 28, 2009 for travel through December 31, 2009. Offers not valid with one-another or any other offer except Journeys Club and applies to new 2009 bookings only. Offer reliant on space availability. Full cancellation penalties will apply. Additional restrictions may apply. Book a group of 10 or more and one travels FREE! *Book a group of 10 or more members on any 2009 Globus, Cosmos, Monograms or Avalon group benefit eligible vacation to receive the one free (land only) offer. To qualify, group must be booked and under deposit between October 17 and February 28, 2009, for travel commencing by December 31, 2009. Applies to new 2009 bookings only. Offer excludes tour vacations with cruises of three or more nights. Not combinable with other group incentives. Additional restrictions may apply. |
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| Note: All prices are per person, double occupancy, subject to availability. These pages are not endorsed or supported by the tour operator in any way. All information presented is based on promotional material provided by the tour operator. All prices, itineraries, accommodations and dates are subject to change without notice and at any time by the tour operators. Availability is limited and must be reconfirmed at time of booking. The prices on this website are not guaranteed. We are not responsible for errors, omissions, or changes in pricing. Please call us toll free at 1-800-942-3301 to confirm availability and pricing. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
