Day 1 - Quito

I landed in Quito and started the journey with Mitad Del Mundo, which, apart from being a monument near the equator line, has some nice short scientific demonstrations. Expect to spend about 2-3 hours there.

A yellow equator line painted on the ground, accompanied by scientific demonstration setups, indicating the Earth's equator location.

Then I headed to Telefrico (“aerial lift”). The ride is nice and shows a beautiful view of the city of Quito. Highly recommended.

An aerial lift provides a scenic view of Quito city

Lastly, I headed to Quito Old Town. Overhyped. There is nothing special about it. In fact, I would recommend the readers to start early in the morning and go to Mindo Cloud Forest first. I had an overnight bus journey from Quito to Lago Agrio afterward.

Day 2 - Amazon

I wanted to make a single-day visit to the Amazon. Therefore, Yasuni, being too deep inside the forest, was out of the question. Cuyabeno was a good choice. Since it is deep enough and simultaneously accessible enough for a one-day trip. I reached Lago Agrio early morning, where the manager of Cuyabeno River Lodge (not Cuyabeno Lodge) picked me up. This lodge is deep inside the Amazon and is not close to Laguna Grande. Therefore, the lodge management can adjust for your pickup-dropoff time. Other lodges which are close to Laguna Grande would charge a lot extra for that. I would highly recommend this if you want a custom itinerary.

Person sitting at a table outdoors, surrounded by a lush green landscape, engaged in writing or drawing in a notebook.

I reached the lodge at about 6 AM, and after having a nice vegetarian breakfast, I joined a few other travelers and went for a boat tour of the Laguna Grande (“The Grand Lagoon”) starting at 8 AM.

A boat navigates the Laguna Grande with travelers onboard, surrounded by native wildlife such as snakes, turtles, and birds in their natural habitat.

We saw a lot of native animals like Serpiente (“snake”), Tortuga (turtles), and pajaros(birds) during the journey. After Laguna Grande, we headed to a native Amazon community, where we learned the process of making Yuca bread by extracting Yuca roots, followed by peeling, grating, drying, and baking them.

Amazon River
Grains for Yuca bread
A multicolored abstract digital artwork featuring various dynamic shapes, lines, and patterns, creating a visually complex and vibrant composition.
A black and white intricate line drawing depicts an abstract and densely detailed pattern with geometric shapes, swirls, and interconnected forms.
A baby caiman (alligator) is seen on a sandy path, captured during a return journey, illustrating wildlife in its natural habitat.

While returning, we encountered a baby caiman (“alligator”).

A baby caiman rests on a dirt path, surrounded by vegetation

At night, we headed out for a night hike. If you are planning to do this, then I would recommend carrying an insect repellent. Amazon rainforest is full of small crawling creatures.

Day 3 - Piranha fishing in Amazon

The third day started with a Pirana fishing session. The goal was to just catch, take pics, and return them to the water. They are really fast at eating the food before the hook is pulled in. While I failed to fully get hold of any, another guy on the boat succeeded.

A person on a boat is seen pulling in a fishing hook. The text narrates a fishing experience and mentions a bus journey from Lago Agrio to Baños De Agua Santa.

From there, I headed for another long bus journey from Lago Agrio to Baños De Agua Santa with a transfer via Coca. I later came to know that there is a direct overnight bus from Lago Agrio to Baños. In hindsight, I would say that leaving at night would have been a better option than wasting the third day traveling.

Day 4 - Baños De Agua Santa

The day started with a visit to thermal hot springs Therma de La Virgen (“The Virgin hot springs”). They are good, but don’t spend too much time here since there is a lot to do later.

The virgin hot springs

Then I headed for a Bungee jumping session. $20 for the jump and $5 for the photos. Contrast this with the $150 jump offered in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Bungee jumping
A scenic view of paragliding over a mountainous landscape, capturing the thrill of flying and vibrant surroundings.

Post-lunch, I headed for a paragliding session. At $55, it’s a no-brainer.

I had to skip Le Casa Del Arbol due to the lack of time. Baños is amazing backpacker heaven. While I only spent a day there, I would strongly recommend at least two days to fully enjoy it.

Here is the overall map of my trip.

Note:

  1. Public transport is pretty good for both short and long-distance travel. So one can skip taxis.
  2. The US Dollar is the accepted currency. Carry cash; credit/debit cards might not be accepted everywhere.
  3. Cuenca is a nice French town, but I could not check that out due to the shortage of time.
  4. Always carry “papel de higienico” (toilet paper). A lot of places simply don’t have it. And they don’t have water either 🤷‍♂️.