Otavalo, Cuicocha Lake and Cayambe Small Group Full Day Tour

Overview

Available languages

English

Spanish

12 hours

Mobile ticket

Enjoy a full-day cultural tour with English-speaking guide. Combine the famous indigenous market in Ecuador along with seeing some of the interesting locations outside of Otavalo. Visit Quitsato Solar Museum, a bizcohos factory and Cuicocha on this small-group tour.

Additional Info

Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries

Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health

Suitable for all physical fitness levels

It is important that you will have current travel insurance including personal medical insurance. Please inform us of any known medical conditions you have

Important things to bring: comfortable and light clothing, (a rain jacket, just in case) water, sun block, sunglasses and passport.

It is important that you will have current travel insurance including personal medical insurance. Please inform us of any known medical conditions you have.

The operator reserves the right to change the itinerary without previous notice due to weather, National Park regulations or notifications and unpredictable circumstances.

In order to process your reservation please help us with all this information:

Meeting point:

in La Mariscal (new town) area: the bus leaves at 7:00am from the corner of Juan Leon Mera and Mariscal Foch (in front of the Magic Bean restaurant). Please be there at 6:50am.

in the Historical centre (old town) area: the bus leaves at 7:20am from Cafe Jumandi (Caldas street E1-83 and Rios street, diagonal of the San Blas church). Please be there at 7:10am.

Arrival and departure information of international flights

Whatsapp phone number (in case you use Whatsapp and would like us to contact you that during your stay via Whatsapp)

For all guests:

Passport numbers

Date of birth

Nationality

Food restrictions

Medical restrictions

Inform yourself about food safety when traveling to tropical countries. Take the necessary precaution to avoid food poisoning (always wash your hands before eating, don’t eat ‘street food’, only eat peeled fruits, etc.).

The operator cannot take any responsibility for any illnesses or missed meals & tours due to an illness. It is mandatory to have valid travel and medical insurance. Please inform us of any known medical conditions you have.

Cancellation Policy

All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.

What‘s Included

Meals as described in the itinerary.

Transportation from and to Quito’s meeting point.

24/7 assistance in Dutch, English and Spanish

All activities as described in the itinerary.

Additional food or beverages.

Optional tips for the guide.

Personal expenses.

What To Expect

Quitsato Sundial

After approximately 1 and a half hour drive, you will visit the Quitsato Solar Museum (entrance $ 2).

1 hour • Admission Not Included

Around 9:30 AM, you will visit a local factory in Cayambe, where bizcochos, a delicious local snack, are prepared (own expenses).

30 minutes • Admission Not Applicable

Options

Otavalo, Cuicocha Lake and Cayambe Small Group Full Day Tour

Reviews

4.70

10 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

Great day
Vanessa T,
Feb 26, 2020
- Review from Viator
5.00
I really enjoyed this tour. The guide gave us a lot of good information about Ecuador's history. The 1h30 spent in otavalo was enough. Wish we would of spent more time at cuicocha lake (although it was super cloudy that day so we didn't see much ). Lunch was also delicious.
Great time in Otavalo
allisonlanglois,
Feb 12, 2020
- Review from Viator
5.00
Wonderful day. We had a bit of a time trying to find the meeting point, but after we got past that our day was great. The guide was wonderful. He was very knowledgeable and gave us a lot of information about each site. We had plenty of time to enjoy each site and do some shopping and enjoy the cultural sites. The food was wonderful. We had a really great time. We saw many sites this day including Cayambe, Equator site, Cuicocha Lake, Cotocachi, Otavalo, and a few bathroom and food breaks were we got to see an alpaca and llama.
A great day at 10,000 Feet
Mark V,
Jan 16, 2020
- Review from Viator
4.00
It was a great day getting out of Quito to see some more of Ecuador. You would think the 9,000 feet of Quito was high enough but on this day we went higher. A nice small group of Brazilians, a Chilean and a couple from Austria, with guide Patrice and driver Luis. The small village of Cayambe gave us a chance for some morning coffee , sample some of legendary Cacao and get ready for the day to come. A quick stop at the equator followed, gotta get the feet on both sides picture then on to Otavalo and the local market for some serious haggling with the local market vendors. They were tough on the price but fun. We then moved on to Cuicocha Lake one of the many mountain volcanic lakes of Ecuador. The climb of about 15 minutes was doable for all ages. Our day ended with a nice lunch in the city of Cotopaxi. Pork, chicken and fish were the options. In the background of each location were mountain peaks and volcanoes. It was a warm day and the scenery as green as can be. It was then back to Quito just in time for evening traffic. It seems that day trips no matter the place in the world end up like this. Lots of time in the van, often time uncomfortable and little or as in this case no air conditioning. But traveling with a small group I feel is the way to go and if you sign up for a 10 hour trip you kind of know what you are buying into. All and thanks to Patrice and Luis for a great day in the spectacular volcanic highlands of Ecuador.
Otavalo Tour
angelesgotay28,
Nov 17, 2019
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
Very good, everything became very organized and safe. The guide explained everything very well and made the trip enjoyable. We enjoyed everything.
What a great find!
LostAndyFound,
Mar 26, 2019
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
The most insane signup process for a day trip I've ever suffered through, but an incredible day going from Quito to Otavalo and seeing everything in-between. All in all, totally worth the cost for a fun, small group and a great guide. I can't wait to travel back to Ecuador and do another one of their longer tours.
The promised 15 person trip turned...
Nancy E,
Mar 25, 2018
- Review from Viator
3.00
The promised 15 person trip turned out to be 19 people . 2 needed to sit on the jump seats . Several agencies were represented . Some paid 50.00 . Viator charged 70.00pp. So those paying more felt
Ripped off. Guide was funny and informative.
3 pm was a little late for lunch.
Our guide Pedro was great. Loved the...
Lei C,
Nov 26, 2017
- Review from Viator
5.00
Our guide Pedro was great. Loved the visits to the little towns. I got some great souvenirs.
Excellent tour
zimof1,
Nov 12, 2017
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00
This tour is intresting. You make a stop at a birds of prey rescue centre with an bird show. They also have 2 condors and you can see how hugo these birds are. The markt itself is intresting to walk around and do sme shopping. We had a great driver and the lunch w1as good as well. Excellent organized!
Great tour, very interactive. Tour...
Miguel S,
Sep 19, 2017
- Review from Viator
5.00
Great tour, very interactive. Tour guide was very knowledgeable and kept the tour group engaged.
This tour was wonderful! The views...
greg g,
May 25, 2017
- Review from Viator
5.00
This tour was wonderful! The views were outstanding, and each stop was informative and interesting. From the biscuit factory to the waterfall, the shopping, the lake... we enjoyed every moment. The tour took a full day 12 hours and we never felt rushed or bored. Juan Carlos was an excellent guide and taught us much about the ecology of the area. Juan has a great personality and took time to know and engage each person on the tour. THANK YOU for a spectacular day!