Local Tour Operator in Ecuador & Galapagos

  The drive is very long but the sight of the lagoon is definitely worth it! The water is very blue and the whole landscape surrounding this lagoon and also on... read more the drive to the lagoon is so beautiful. Jennifer was our Guide and Carlos our driver. Both took really good care of us on the way down to the lagoon. Going down is not so easy because it is very steep and the ground is not always very firm but we made it. For the way up you have two options, you walk all the way up which will take you about one hour and is of course very hard because of the steep climb or you take a horse or mule that will take you up which costs $10. Either way the whole experience is lovely and definitely worth it. We had a great time in our group and got a lot of information about the area from Jennifer and Carlos. Even with some clouds that we had the views were spectacular! Thank you for the great day to Jennifer and Carlos!

  Diego was a marvelous guide. Due to COVID, not many tourists are about and you'll often find you're the only ones booked on a tour on most days. ... read more In my case I was solo but wanted to visit Quilotoa, but unfortunately the tour will only run with a minimum of two people. Thankfully Diego's company worked with me and we reached a compromise where the tour would still go with just me and I wouldn't have to pay the full price for two.

Diego picked me up at my hotel early in the morning and off we went. First stop was with an indigenous family who seemed quite happy to show me around their traditional houses. Fascinating to see how they live with their animals, literally inside the same room in some cases. Very friendly encounter.

Then it was off to the main highlight of the day, a visit to the spectacular Quilotoa Lake deep inside a volcano center. It's possible to hike down to the lake itself and kayak for a bit but given the extremely high altitude and thin oxygen, it would be quite difficult physically to hike back out unless you're used to the altitude (I saw even native Ecuadorians experiencing severe nausea and dizziness, so this is not something to be taken lightly). Mules can be rented for $10 for the ride back up, which probably would be a more wise choice if you do want to hike down.

As a great alternative, instead of using up your time going down to the crater floor and back up, Diego can take you on a short hike around the crater rim to the left, which offers more spectacular views and gets you completely away from the crowds of people near the major viewing overlook point next to the parking lot. In just a few minutes you've got this incredible view all to yourself, and as an added bonus Diego is an excellent photographer and will happily shoot all the pictures you could ever dream of, with much better results than trying to do the same thing awkwardly with a selfie stick.

Lunch is at one of the restaurants near the crater, then it's time for the long drive back to Quito.

Loved this tour for the amazing mountain scenery, glimpses of indigenous life, and Diego's excellent customer service.

And just when I thought things couldn't get better, I asked Diego if it would be OK to make an impromptu stop on the way back to my hotel that wasn't on the tour. He didn't hesitate to grant my request and did quite a bit of driving down confusing narrow one way streets to make it happen.

Thank you again for a very excellent day!

  Our guide, Daniel, from Latin America Adventures, was wonderful! He took us to the most important sites in Quito. He was very knowledgeable and patient as we... read more asked many questions! Overall, a perfect first day to get to know Quito. Highly recommend!

  I hired Daniel Maldonand for this tour and he provided an excellent experience. He was friendly, nice and tailored the day to my interests. (Bonus for me... read more is he speaks excellent English). His knowledge of his country is outstanding and he patiently explained everything to me. It was a great day and I left feeling like I had a new friend. Furthermore, after I moved on to Banos, he consistently helped me with recommendations for restaurants, clubs and even another tours while i was there. His amazing service greatly increased the quality of my overall trip to Ecuador. Please don't hesitate to book anything with him. I've traveled quite a bit and have never received this level of outstanding service. Thank you so much! AMAZING!

  Diego was great! He was very knowledgeable and flexible. He gave us lots of options about how the day would flow. Great way to spend a first full day in... read more Quito! Highly recommend. 10 out of 10!

  We didn’t do any extravagant hiking but was beautiful. The hummingbirds were beyond compare-unlike anything we’ve ever seen.

  Great way to see Quito and the middle of the earth in one day. Oscar was a wonderful guide. So much so that we booked him for another tour... read more the next day. We were able to see everything on the itinerary plus he made a few extra stops to show more of the beauty surrounding Quito.

  We take this tour to experience the view of the lake, as well with the road trip from Quito. doing couple of stops on an artesian store, where you see... read more craft from local artesian.
Our guide was great his name DIEGO , highly recommend!!! If you want to do this trip get ready to sweat a lot taking the walk down to the lake. also the return it's even more difficult then your descent.But it's worth it !!!!
Thanks for the great day

  We took an overnight trip to Banos with visits to Quilotoa, many waterfalls, and other interesting stops. Everything was perfect! The guides were amazing, and the sites were fabulous. We... read more highly recommend using Latin Adventures!

  Rodrigo was an amazing tour guide for our group. We were able to do everything we wanted to do and he was very trustworthy and knowledgeable. He even gave us... read more great recommendations for the nightlife to explore later. Rodrigo was able to convey the history and culture of Quito perfectly to us.

  We had a private vehicle with an awesome knowledgeable guide, Oscar. We enjoyed all the sites that were included in this tour. We highly recommend this trip for... read more anyone anyone. Request Oscar fir a memorable trip.

  We loved our guide for our full day Quito tour! Renan was great! Very personable and great at describing the history and the culture of every place that we visited.... read more We had a mixed tour including both English and Portuguese tourist, and he did a fabulous job of alternating the two languages and including everyone- a skill that some our prior tour guides have not managed to perfect!
We particularly liked the Mitad del Mundo; the exhibit demonstrating the Coriolis effect was amazing and so much fun! The exhibits were interactive and engaging as well as presenting information about the different regions of Ecuador.
This is billed as a Full Day Tour and indeed it was! We were picked up at our hotel early and delivered back there in time for a late dinner; a very full but enjoyable day!

  This was an excellent day tour! I learned so much about Ecuador’s history and was fortunate enough to explore most of Quito! The museum was one of the most interesting... read more and fun tours I’ve experienced!

  We spent an awesome day with Alex as our guide. We were the only ones on our tour (3 adults, a 20 something and 18 year old) and were blessed... read more to have wonderful weather to see Quito and the surrounding sites. Alex was knowledgeable, friendly, and was easy to communicate with. He went out of his way to add some extra touches including getting permission for us to take a few pics in a cathedral, taking us the top of a beautiful hotel for more great pics, adding a stop for frozen treats, and a chocolate tasting. He was also willing and helpful in taking pictures of us throughout the day to commemorate the stops. Our driver was also friendly and made us feel safe throughout the day with his good driving. I highly recommend this tour!

  We spent an awesome day with Alex as our guide. We were the only ones on our tour (3 adults, a 20 something and 18 year old) and were blessed... read more to have wonderful weather to see Quito and the surrounding sites. Alex was knowledgeable, friendly, and was easy to communicate with. He went out of his way to add some extra touches including getting permission for us to take a few pics in a cathedral, taking us the top of a beautiful hotel for more great pics, adding a stop for frozen treats, and a chocolate tasting. He was also willing and helpful in taking pictures of us throughout the day to commemorate the stops. Our driver was also friendly and made us feel safe throughout the day with his good driving. I highly recommend this tour! …

  A beautiful view of Ecuador and the Glaciers and red earth on the top is surreal. The guide is very knowledgeable, chill and friendly as well.
You really appreciate... read more the impact of the volcano

  Diego was an amazing tour guide. Very knowledgeable and friendly. He was very flexible and showed us a good time. The tour is easy physically but very diverse and the... read more COVID restrictions were taken seriously. Recommend it whole-heartedly.

  Fantastic!! We signed up at midnight and they had a shuttle car ready to go the next day on Easter morning! Very good English and educated tourist. We had Carlos... read more and he was amazing! It was our timeframe and choice of what to do.. we asked if we try some chocolate and not only did they take us, they setup a quick presentation for chocolate sampling.. keep in mind, this was a special request and they made it happen. If you do not know Ecuador or you are only here for a very short time.. this tour is the most efficient and cost saving way to see a lot!! Highly recommend!

  Our family of six included kids aged 9-19. Alex and Dante managed to find a full day of activities to appealed to everyone. Much of Quito remains closed, but we... read more did not notice as we had plenty to do. The guides were very knowledgeable, friendly and spoke English well. Highly recommend this trip for seeing the Quito highlights. …

  I hired Daniel Maldonand for this tour and he provided an excellent experience. He was friendly, nice and tailored the day to my interests. (Bonus for me... read more is he speaks excellent English). His knowledge of his country is outstanding and he patiently explained everything to me. It was a great day and I left feeling like I had a new friend. Furthermore, after I moved on to Banos, he consistently helped me with recommendations for restaurants, clubs and even another tours while i was there. His amazing service greatly increased the quality of my overall trip to Ecuador. Please don't hesitate to book anything with him. I've traveled quite a bit and have never received this level of outstanding service. Thank you so much! AMAZING! …

  I had an incredible time on this visit! My guide Diego was incredibly helpful and accommodating. I visited during COVID and all health protocols were followed, I felt very safe.... read more I highly recommend this day trip, the drive is beautiful and the lagoon is a must see.