Join us for an authentic Ecuador rainforest experience with the native people whose ancestors have lived on this land for more than 400 years, miles from "civilization" and modern conveniences, yet still having comfortable accommodations. Starting off with a day tour of Quito and a visit to the Equator, you'll travel on to the cloud forests of Mindo, famous for countless butterflies and hummingbirds. You'll also visit the highland town of Otavalo and experience the largest artesian market in all of South America before traveling on to the northern highland cloud forest area of the Intag Valley. At Intag, you will experience the cloud forest by horseback, visit thermal hot springs, the Junin Cloud Forest Reserve, and local organic coffee farms before returning to Quito to prepare for your departure home. Intag is also the new home of the Touch The Jungle wildlife rescue and rehab center, starting facility construction in early 2010.

The costs of these tours provide sustainable income for Ecuadorian Rainforest villages, who in turn preserve their allotted jungle areas in pristine condition. Not only do these Touch The Jungle eco-tours provide a means of preserving virgin equatorial rainforest, they also provide a life-changing "adventure of a lifetime" for those who take advantage of these very cost-effective vacations. Touch The Jungle only works with local community projects, where all of your tour fee goes towards helping support the community's effort to protect their forests. Touch the Jungle is a nonprofit proejct and we do not receive any payment for the tours nor do any outside travel agencies. 100% of your tour fee goes directly to actual travel expenses and to the local community projects. Our guides are volunteers for the project.

Basic Tour Itinerary for Touch The Jungle Group Tours

Most everything is included in your $950 tour fee such as your lodging, private transport, most meals, bi-lingual translator, jungle guides, etc. There are a few extra activities and meals are not included in the tour fee, that you can opt to do or not at your own discretion. If you choose to do all the extras it will cost under $150 for all of them--any extra activities or meals not included in tour fee is marked below with the cost in parentheses such as ($5). Airfare to Quito, Ecuador is not included.

Day 1 - Fly into Quito, You will be picked up at the airport by our driver. Meet your fellow trip members back at the hotel.
Day 2- After breakfast, we'll tour the Old City of Quito, with magnificent churches and parks. We'll have lunch near the Equator, go to the actual Equator Park where you can balance an egg on the head of a nail, walk the equator line, stand in two hemisphere's at once! By late afternoon we will travel on to Mindo - Check into our hostal Mindo Real and go for a swim in the pool.
Day 3- Zip Lining ($15) in cloud forest, Lunch at the Butterfly Restaurant ($6) tour Butterfly farm ($3), River tubing in the Mindo River, dinner at a local Mindo restaurant.
Day 4- We will take an amazing hike to beautiful waterfalls, and ride a cable car across gorge ($5). We'll lunch at a local delicious pizzeria run by an authetic Italian chef.
Day 5-depart early AM to head into the Intag region to the Junin Cloud Forest Reserve. We'll visit the small organic farmign community this afternoon, and take a short hike down to the swimming area of a pristine cloud forest creek.
Day 6- Today we can take an all day hike to agorgeous waterfalls in primary forest and have a picnic lunch in the forest.
Day 7-depart early AM for the nagulvi area. Get settled in the hostal de Cafeteil where we will have our lunch and dinner today, and visit a local fruit and coffee farm and also the future grounds of our wildlife rescue & rehab center. We will end the day with a refreshing hot mineral soak at the thermal hot springs. ($1)
Day 8- Intag, horseback riding in mountains ($10), visit hot springs ($1)and tour organic coffee farm to learn more about this environmentally conscious farm community, fishing or exploring around the river and farm.
Day 9- Visit Apuela market, hike "The Face" of Intag, tour local organic farms, hot springs ($1)
Day 10- depart early AM, back to Otavalo, stopping at the Cuicocha Lake on the top of Cotacachi Volcano, we will do a boat tour ($3) around the the lake, and have a late lunch over looking the lake ($7) Light supper of pizza for $1.
Day 11- Otavalo, visit the native craft markets, Option of going to Leathertown or a local farm to explore the area which includes a cave and sulfur springs.
Day 12- We'll visit the local farmers animal market at 7 am, have breakfast at the hostal at 8 am , and then on to visit the big crafts market for the rest of the day. At 4 pm we will travel back to Quito. (lunch and dinner not included today)
Day 13- Quito, time to hit anything missed, souvenir shopping, pack adn prepare for departure home, farewell dinner for the group.
Day 14 - Fly home-Our driver will pick you up to transport you to the airport for your flight home.

The cost for this 2 week adventure is just $950 US excluding airfare. (Fly to Quito, Ecuador) Everything you need to get you where you will be going is included such as boat transportation to Playa de Oro, round trip private van transportation, and a local bilingual guide to answer all your questions and take care of all your needs during your trip.

Because space is limited on each tour to 8 participants, please sign up as soon as possible to reserve your space. You must make a deposit of $400 to confirm your reservation on a tour, with the balance due 45 days prior to departure. Your deposit is NONREFUNDABLE if you cancel for any reason. If the Reserve or Touch The Jungle has to cancel your tour date for any reason, your entire deposit will be refunded. Tour Fees should be make payable to the nonprofit organization Earthways Foundation, but please contact our Tour Group Organizer, Tracy Wilson, for available space on your preferred tour date and further information before mailing tour payments.

FURTHER INFO

The nonprofit project Touch the Jungle works in partnership with local community projects to provide these organized ecotours to these destinations in order to help preserve this important habitat for South America's smaller wildcat species (the ocelot, margay, oncilla, and jaguarundi), and help the communities fight against environmental damaging activities like mining and logging. This is your chance to find out what is so very special about this amazing but quickly disappearing tropical rainforest, as well as to pass through remarkably different landscapes and cultures in route to and from Ecuador's beautiful capital city, Quito, through the northern highlands, cloud forests, and into the rainforest. We have organized these tours to make this incredible experience as easy as possible on you to do and also to help cut down on individual traveling expenses by sharing it with a group. All you have to do is just enjoy yourself and soak up all the fun and adventure, we'll handle all the traveling details for you. You also have the satisfaction of knowing your visit has helped preserve this habitat and native wildlife species and the communities that protect them. ALL of your tour fee goes towards helping support the community's effort to protect their forests. Touch the Jungle is a nonprofit proejct and we do not receive any payment for the tours nor do any outside travel agencies. 100% of your tour fee goes directly to actual travel expenses and to the local community projects. Our guides are volunteers for the project.

We will also be happy to organize a private group tour for your own group, whether it be a group of family members, friends, church group, school group, social club, etc. Prices, services, and itinerary are the same for a private group or can be altered to fit your groups needs. Prices will be determined according to your group size and length of stay. Please contact Tracy Wilson for availability of organizing a private tour for your own group.