You can arrive at any time on day 1 as there are no activities planned until the important welcome meeting at 6:00pm. If your flight arrives too late we recommend that you consider booking a night's accommodation prior to the trip so you can ensure you are able to attend this meeting. We will be collecting your insurance details and next of kin information at this meeting so please ensure you have all details on hand to provide to your leader. Your group leader will leave a note at reception telling you where this meeting will take place. Please ask a member of reception for this information. If you are going to be late please inform the hotel reception. Your leader will leave details for your arrival on where and when to meet. 

At the end of the afternoon meeting, your leader will recommend a traditional Ecuadorian restaurant to go for an optional dinner.

Check-in time at our joining point hotel is after 1:00pm. Early check-in is not guaranteed, however if you arrive early, luggage storage is available. Speak to the hotel reception on arrival.

If you arrive in Quito earlier, there are enough optional activities to keep you busy. You will find a list of some of the optional activities at the front desk of your hotel.

Sitting at an altitude of 2,850 m (9,350ft) under the gaze of Volcan Pichincha, Quito is one of the most attractive cities in South America. Long and incredibly thin, the city winds its way down a valley, that eventually drops down to the Amazon Basin. It's worth paying a visit to El Panecillo (the Little Bread Loaf) for views over the Old Town and an enormous statue of the Virgin of Quito.

Although compact, Quito's Old Town is full of historic buildings. One of the most interesting is La Compania de Jesus, considered by many the most beautiful in the Americas; it is certainly one of the most ornate. It is claimed that seven tonnes of gold leaf cover the interior whilst the exterior is decorated with statues, busts, sculptures and a jungle of carved leaves. These are great places for meeting locals and enjoying some local cuisine.

Your hotel in Quito is 3-star standard. Rooms are comfortable with TV, private bath, and hot water. The hotel features friendly staff, restaurant and cafeteria, and passengers can use the internet free. There are plenty of cafes, internet places, galleries, shops and restaurants nearby and it is located in a vibrant part of town.

Note: When you arrive in Quito, you may feel the effects of the high altitude. Symptoms include shortness of breath, headaches, general lethargy and a reduced appetite. This is no cause for alarm - simply take it easy and reduce alcohol and cigarette consumption to minimize the effects. Drink plenty of water and don't attempt too much in a day. This is a great excuse to sit down at one of Quito's lovely cafes and watch Ecuadorian life go by.

Early in the morning your local representative will meet you at your hotel to collect local payment, transfer you to Quito airport and assist you with the check in.

Your flight will stop once in Guayaquil to pick up more passengers before continuing to Baltra Island (Approx 3.5hrs). Upon arrival in Baltra you will need to go through immigration and pay the Galapagos National Park entrance fee in cash (small bills please).

We arrive in the early hours of the afternoon and meet the boat crew and naturalist that will escort us during our time in the Galapagos. Our boat, the Spondylus, is a tourist superior class motorised yacht which sleeps 16 passengers. There are 8 twin berth cabins (upper and lower bed) and each cabin has private facilities. A dining room and resting area are also provided.

The Galapagos Islands emerged about 5 million years ago as a result of violent volcanic action. In geological terms, this should be considered a recent event. As the young islands were cooling (2 million years later), some species gradually arrived. They were live organisms riding on 'rafts of vegetation' from the shores of Central and South America. Unusual climatic events such as flooding can eventually lead vegetation rafts to the ocean. Therefore it is pure chance that a raft would reach the Galapagos. These early immigrants had to adapt to a peculiar new environment and slowly evolved in a different direction from their continental ancestors.

The Galapagos Islands are located on the Equator, about 1,000 km (620 miles) off the Pacific Coast. There are six main islands - San Cristobal, Santa Cruz, Isabela, Floreana, Santiago and Fernandina (the last two uninhabited); 12 smaller islands, and over 40 islets.

Long before Charles Darwin, the islands had already developed a reputation among mariners as lands of strange and wonderful wildlife. When Darwin came through on the HMS Beagle, the unique animal life inspired his Theory of Evolution. Today is our first chance to watch the Galapagos wildlife in action on Bachas Beach.

Early on day 3 your breakfast will be ready and then you will leave the boat by zodiac to visit Genovesa Island. It is easy to get used to cruising around the hauntingly beautiful Galapagos Islands, and it is fun being on constant lookout for amazing wildlife.

Genovesa is the only island where we will find a colony of red-footed and masked boobies, plus lava gulls and frigate birds. On shore we will have an opportunity to spot Galapagos fur seals and marine iguanas. After two and a half hours walking around the island we return to the boat for lunch. After lunch and some time to relax on the sundeck, we take to the water for some snorkelling in the rich underwater world.

Before dinner your guide will give you a detailed briefing about the next day's activities. The boat will set sail at night after dinner. It will take approximately 5 hours to reach Bartolome.

Wake to the sound of waves lapping on the boat hull and get ready for a day of awesome views. Disembark at Bartolome, an extinct volcano that has coloured volcanic formations. Here you have approximately 3 hours and the chance to enjoy a magnificent view. To get to the panoramic point though you must climb up 350 stairs!

After lunch back on board you have the chance, if you are lucky, to admire the famous penguins. Then you can explore the solidified lava sheets of Sullivan Bay, seeing lava bubbles and the molds of tree trunks etched into its surface. A short hike to the summit gives us a bird's eye view of the island and all the way out to San Salvador Island. After the hike you will have the opportunity to go snorkelling.

Following this visit the boat will depart for Puerto Ayora (Approx 5 hrs), arriving at night. If it is not too late you can leave the boat to go to Puerto Ayora and enjoy the nightlife in a bar or restaurant.

After an early breakfast we arrive on Santa Cruz. This is home to the Charles Darwin Research Station and the headquarters of the Galapagos National Park Service. Just a 10 minute walk from the town centre, the Station displays photos of recent volcanic eruptions and charts mapping the geological formations of the region. It also has drawings of the evolutionary development of endemic species. The Station also houses young Galapagos tortoises in a nursery to care for them until their shells have grown hard enough to resist attack. Here you can see and learn about the famous tortoise 'Lonesome George'.

After this final visit, we get back on the board and transfer to Baltra before taking a bus to the airport to catch our flight back to Quito on day 5. From Quito airport we will take you to the hotel by taxi. A quick change at the hotel and it is out to enjoy the nightlife.

Your tour ends in Quito.