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EC12 · Ecuador · Wildlife

Ecuador Wildlife Highlights

Quito · Mindo Cloud Forest · Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve · Yasuni National Park · Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
Duration
14 Days · 13 Nights
The route
Quito · Mindo Cloud Forest · Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve · Yasuni National Park · Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve
Style
Cloud forest and two Amazon reserves
Best season
June – September · best
The route

13 nights, 5 stops — cloud forest and two amazon reserves.

Quito → Mindo Cloud Forest → Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve → Yasuni National Park → Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve.

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What you're tracking

What you'll see

Andean gull
Over the city.
Sparkling violetear
In the gardens.
Hummingbirds
At the feeders.
Andean cock-of-the-rock
At the lek.
Day by day

The journey, one day at a time

01Arrive Quito

Arrive Quito

The journey begins.

Arrive in Quito, met and transferred to your accommodation. Quito pairs one of the Americas' great old towns with reach to cloud forest, Amazon and islands.

02Quito

Quito

A full day in the field.

A city day before the cloud forest or the islands. Historic Quito before the wild.

03Quito → Mindo Cloud Forest

To Mindo Cloud Forest

On to the next.

Transfer to Mindo Cloud Forest. Hummingbird feeders and the cock-of-the-rock lek. Cloud-forest birding for Chocó endemics.

04Mindo Cloud Forest

Mindo Cloud Forest

A full day in the field.

Cloud-forest birding for Chocó endemics. A full day of feeders, leks and forest trails. Mindo's feeders bring dozens of hummingbird species within camera range — the essence of Chocó birding.

05Mindo Cloud Forest

Mindo Cloud Forest

A full day in the field.

A full day of feeders, leks and forest trails. Tanagers and toucan-barbets in the cloud forest.

06Mindo Cloud Forest → Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve

To Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve

On to the next.

Transfer to Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve. Ridge birding for mountain tanagers and toucans. High cloud-forest trails and feeders.

07Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve

Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve

A full day in the field.

High cloud-forest trails and feeders. Bellavista's ridge forest adds the higher-elevation birds that complete a Chocó list.

08Bellavista Cloud Forest Reserve → Yasuni National Park

To Yasuni National Park

On to the next.

Transfer to Yasuni National Park. Parrot clay licks and a canopy tower. Oxbow-lake canoeing for giant otters and monkeys.

09Yasuni National Park

Yasuni National Park

A full day in the field.

Oxbow-lake canoeing for giant otters and monkeys. A full day of western-Amazon wildlife. Yasuni packs more species per hectare than almost anywhere on earth — the Amazon at its richest.

10Yasuni National Park

Yasuni National Park

A full day in the field.

A full day of western-Amazon wildlife. Rainforest trails and night canoe for caiman.

11Yasuni National Park → Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

To Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

On to the next.

Transfer to Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve. Canoe the blackwater lagoons for dolphins and monkeys. Flooded-forest wildlife and night caiman safaris.

12Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

A full day in the field.

Flooded-forest wildlife and night caiman safaris. A full day paddling the Cuyabeno lagoons. Cuyabeno's blackwater lagoons make for some of the most serene and rewarding canoe wildlife in the Amazon.

13Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

A full day in the field.

A full day paddling the Cuyabeno lagoons.

14Depart Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve

Departure

The journey ends.

A final morning in Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve — a last outing or a slow start as time allows — before the transfer onward and the journey home.

When to travel

The season changes what you see.

June – September

Peak season

Drier highland months — clear skies over the city.

Year-round

Good season

A year-round capital and hub.

Wildlife you may see
Birds Primates

Make it yours.

Add nights, swap a park, extend to the coast — this route is a starting point, not a fixed menu. Tell us how you travel and we'll route the rest.

Field notes, now and then.

Where to go · When to go · Wildlife in season

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