Local Tour Operator in Ecuador & Galapagos

  We had a great day trip from Quito to Cotopaxi with our guide Daniel. He picked us up from our hotel on time at 8am and drove expertly to Cotopaxi... read more taking a scenery road which allowed us to appreciate the geography of the inter-valley region. The drive took about 1.5 hours. His approach takes you around the volcanoes from all angles. Daniel was truly passionate about Ecuador and very knowledgeable about wildlife and vegetation of the region. He stopped plenty of times for awesome picture opportunities. We hiked from the parking lot (15K ft) to the refuge (16K ft) doing the zig-zag approach and experienced no issues with altitude sickness whatsoever (he stopped by a kiosko where we could buy coca candy and leaves if needed before entering the park). The weather was awful as we ascended, with small hail and dust from the strong winds, but he was patient and set the pace perfectly for us to successfully reach the refuge. We grabbed hot chocolate up in the refuge (2.5 per cup, bring change) and warmed up before going back down. On our way back to Quito, we stopped by an authentic local restaurant around 3pm where we had a soup, a pork dish, and an ice cream. Back to the hotel by 5pm promptly. This is a great experience for a Quito escapade which you should consider if you're looking to do something based off the city. …

  Alex and Dante were fantastic tour guides!! We learned the history of the city in a fun way! Alex was so knowledgeable and the tour was personalized making it an... read more amazing experience.

  Due to COVID lockdown in Quito the itinerary for the day had to be drastically changed on the spot, however Diego and Dante were able to use their years of... read more connections in the city to make the best day/experience possible for us. We truly had a great time, especially when we thought we were expecting to only see the city from the rooftop of our hotel during our short time in Quito! (Oh, and they even took us to a testing site so we could easily get our COVID test for our flight home the next day and picked up a friend stuck at another hotel to do the same!)

  I had the best experience with my guide Rodrigo! I got picked up at my hotel and safely dropped back at time. The guide was very professional and patient. 10/10... read more is my score!!

  We had a wonderful day touring Quito. Our guide Oscar was great and he was so wonderful to answer all of our questions and adjust the trip to our... read more needs. We loved everything that we did and we highly recommend this as a way to see the city. We highly recommend Oscar as a guide.

  Diego is amazing, He is very knowledgable and engaging. The trip was very informative and fun. Would recommend this again

  We had a fantastic experience. Oscar was our guide and he was so friendly and shared lots of great information throughout the day. The drive was beautiful- it’s a bit... read more far but we really enjoyed it. We stopped for coffee on the way and attended a local market. We hiked down into the lagoon and kayaked the lake which we highly recommend. We then took a mule ride up for $10. On the way back, we visited an indigenous family and also stopped for ice cream. It was a great day!

  The tour is great for seeing most of the must-sees in Quito. Our guide Oscar provided a lot of information on Quito. In Mitad del Mundo we had a local... read more guide in the museum which was awesome. She was really great and listening to her was so good. Very funny as well. Taking the Teleferico up the hill to see Quito was also a highlight, even if the clouds kept coming in. The mountain is cloudy most of the day, but they keep coming and going, so if you are lucky you will catch some really nice views of Quito. I can also recommend the Café on the top, have a coffee and enjoy the views.
Later the day we visited the historic part of Quito including then interiors of three churches. Stunning. If you want to get a good overview of the most important parts of the city and area, this is the tour to take.

  For my first day in Ecuador, I booked the day tour to Otavalo and Cuicocha Lagoon. As Ecuador was the first country in South America that I visited, I was... read more a little apprehensive as to what to expect. However, my guide Daniel did an amazing job and completely put me at ease. Despite the weather not being great and tiredness on my part from traveling the day before, Daniel managed to keep my interest and remained fully engaged for the entire day. He did an awesome job giving me an introduction to Ecuador, and specifically Otavalo and Cuicocha Lagoon. I spent over two weeks in Ecuador with various guides on different tours and Daniel was by far the best. He was passionate, extremely knowledgeable, and made the day very enjoyable. He is a credit to the company and when I return to Ecuador, he will be the guide that I will request.

  Edwardo was very accommodating to us. He wanted to make sure we did everything we wanted to do. The zip line, humming bird sanctuary, and gondola ride were wonderful. I... read more would recommend this day trip to anyone. We are in our late 60’s and helped us with everything we needed.

  Fabian did an excellent job taking us on the full day tour from Quito!

He is so knowledgeable on all aspects with all things Quito, including history, the countryside,... read more local people, the Andes...in fact you name it and Fabian has the knowledge!
The tour itself was extremely informative and interesting, and my husband and I both agree that if you have the time, this tour should not be missed!

  We enjoyed the whole experience. Oscar was a great guide and made learning about Cotopaxi fun. The hike up was difficult, but possible if you take it slow. It felt... read more great to make it to the top. Make sure you dress warm— almost the same as if you were going skiing— gloves, hat, and layers. Rain coat is advised.

  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.

  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! …

  This was an all around great tour. You get to see all of the major tourist attractions in the city in one day, and they are all worth seeing. My... read more tour guide was friendly and shared a lot of knowledge about every stop along the way.

  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.

  Punctual pickup. All places on the itinerary were covered. All questions answered in good English. Safe driver. As a solo traveller it was well worth the money

  Many enjoyable and interesting stops with very informative guide and expert safe driver. The walking tour of the old town provided great historic context and the cable car and centre... read more of the earth stops were great fun. If you only have a day to tour Quito, this is tour a great way to see a lot.

  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!

  Diego was our guide and Dante our driver for today's tour. WHAT A BARGAIN!! Dante conveyed us safely from place to place, while Diego gave the play-by-play. ... read more A fantastic day; Diego was so knowledgeable, friendly, and passionate about teaching us the history, culture, and everything Quito. He is a biologist, a geologist, a meteorologist, and a cultural and historical expert of the region. It seemed like he is a one man Ambassador for both Quito and Ecuador. A thoroughly delightful day here in the Metad del Mundo.

  We loved the trip. Diego was our guide and he provided a lot of insight on local culture and customs. There were four of us on the trip.... read more My wife and I are both 70 and our son and his wife are in their mid-30s. The four of us were the only group on the trip, which made us much more comfortable about COVID issues. We were in a 14 person van so there was plenty of room. Latin Adventures did a great job of picking hotels. In Quito we stayed at the Hotel Vista del Angel. Great hotel with views of the City. Great rooms, great food and a very accommodating staff.

Day 1 we traveled to Cotopaxi. The trip took us from 9,000 feet in Quito to 15,000 feet at Cotopaxi. I took altitude sickness medication, my wife did not. Neither of us had altitude sickness. Along the way we stopped inside the park and did short walks to see some lagoons and see how we did at altitude. Diego explained the terraced farming and how it was used by the Incas. The parking lot at Cotopaxi is at 15,500 feet. The trail up to the refuge has a vertical gain of 1,000 feet. It's a hard hike. I only made it about 1/3 of the way. Our son and his wife made it easily to the refuge. It's worth going to Cotopaxi even if all you do is hike the area around the parking area. The views are spectacular.

Day 2 we went to Quilotoa. There is a lot of time on the bus between locations. But Diego did a good job educating us about the areas we were traveling through. Quilotoa is a stunning place. The hike down to the Laguna is not difficult. If you're in your 70s take the mule back to the top. We stayed at a locally owned hotel which is also a farm. Great rooms, very nice people and good food. It was nice to experience locally owned hotels.

Day 3 we substituted a trip to the rainforest because Devil's Nose is closed. Latin Adventures arranged the day trip which was a long 11 day. But we saw a beautiful waterfall, learned a lot about the native plans and their medicinal value. The transition from the Andes to the rainforest was well worth the trip. We stayed in a nice hotel in Banos. The lodging and food were OK.

At all the locations we stayed the food was carefully prepared with purified water.
The lunches we ate at local restaurants also were very careful with the water. No one wanted diarrhea and Latin Adventures did a good job of ensuring there weren't any problems.

Day 4 we hiked to some amazing water falls, took cable cars across river canyons and did some hiking. Some of the hiking at the waterfalls was somewhat hard. But even at age 70 it was not too difficult.

If you have 4 or 5 days in Quito I'd highly recommend the trip. I've attached some of our pictures. After the trip we went back to Quito and then onto Guayaquil to go to the Galapagos. Latin Adventures arranged our PCR tests (which we needed to get on the Lindblad Expeditions boat) and they also arranged our airport transfers. Latin Adventures was good to work with.