GALAPOGOS ISLANDS
AND
ECUADOR TROPICAL FOREST
AND SPA ADVENTURE WEEK
                                       
     SEPTEMBER 3-11, 2009

Join us for an adventure unlike any other. 

Enjoy 4 days in the amazing Galapagos islands, 3 nights at a tropical resort and spa in the Ecuador rainforest and 2 nights in enchanting Quito.

On our Galapagos cruise, we will see up close, the amazing wildlife and natural wonders that are unique to this region.

We will see colonies of sea lions frolicking on pristine beaches and even have a chance to snorkel alongside these gentle giants if you wish.

Colonies of colorful pink flamingos will also grace our visit, as well as an amazing colony of iguanas.  Other wildlife we will see includes eagles, sea turtles, golden rays, albatross and the giant tortoises.

You want activity and exploration? We will enjoy guided walking and hiking opportunities to view scenic vistas and traverse extinct volcanic lava fields in the Galapagos islands

Our tour will also include 3 nights at an amazing spa resort in the Ecuador rainforest, offering a guided moonlight hike under tiki torches, as well as the opportunity to experience the amazement of walking through an unforgettable primary tropical forest by day to tropical waterfalls or, if you prefer, just relax at our resort in natural hot springs surrounded by lush natural scenery.

We will also enjoy a most unique tour of a chocolate workshop with delicious tasting opportunities to satisfy your sweet tooth.

Other optional activities here include horseback riding, exotic bird watching, Oriental mediation, complete spa services including massage and the enjoyment of relaxing on the Negrito River beach or swimming in its pristine waters

DAILY ITINERARY

THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 3RD – DEPART THIS EVENING ON DELTA AIRLINES NONSTOP FLIGHT FROM ATLANTA TO QUITO ECUADOR.

UPON ARRIVAL IN QUITO TONIGHT, WE WILL BE TRANSFERRED TO OUR HOTEL, THE 4 STAR DAN CARLTON.

The Dan Carlton Quito Hotel is located in the center of the business, shopping and banking area of the city, just 15 minutes away from the Mariscal Sucre international airport.

Decorated in a classy English style, it offers 212 comfortable rooms, fully equipped with everything you need for a pleasant stay.

Enjoy a wide variety of Creole and international dishes at Park 20 Restaurant and live music and Sushi at Piccadilly’s Bar.  The hotel offers a casino, business center with internet access and a fitness center.

FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 4TH – QUITO – ARASHA TROPICAL FOREST SPA RESORT

This morning, after an included breakfast at our hotel, we will enjoy a City Tour of Quito. Our tour will include a morning drive along the northern residential section and see the impressive Parliament Building. Then stroll downtown to visit the colonial temple and monasteries designated by UNESCO a World Heritage Site. Visit San Augustine Convent with its colonial cloisters, coffered ceilings and vast collection of paintings. Continue to the Independence Plaza flanked by the Cathedral, Presidential Palace, Municipal Building and Archbishop's Palace. Next, visit the great church and Monastery of San Francisco with the Virgin of Quito at its main altar. Your scenic tour ends at a lookout point with a great view of Quito. (B)

We will return to our hotel with a chance to freshen up and then we will be picked up by our representative from Arasha Spa Resort for our group transfer.

Upon arrival at Arasha, we will check into and begin to experience the magic of its lush surroundings.

Click the following link to view more details about this fabulous resort   www.arasharesort.com

ARASHÁ is much more than Ecuador's Tropical Forest Resort & Spa. 

Choose, if you wish, a guided horseback ride through scenic grounds, a guided hike through the primary forest, a secondary forest walk along the Caoni River, or a waterfalls and lagoons tour.

    It is the smile you will have upon discovering one of our enchanted waterfalls and lagoons.

If you prefer, just enjoy relaxing on our Negrito River beach or swimming in its pristine waters.

After a day of activity, enjoy a chance to relax in the resort’s natural spring fed pool, its mystic cave Jacuzzi, or let yourself be pampered in the resort’s spa with a massage or other spa service.

    Partial View of our large swimming pool and waterfall

Sunday September 6th  - Today is another free day to choose from a variety of activities available at Arasha.  If you wish, enjoy an exotic bird watching tour in the morning.

Click the following link to view some of the excursions available at Arasha.
http://www.arasharesort.com/activities.htm

  Drink service in our tropical resort

Tonight, we will enjoy a group Jacuzzi party to bid a fond farewell to Arasha on our last evening in our tropical paradise.

SEP. 07  MONDAY- QUITO-GALAPAGOS

This morning we will be transferred from Arasha back to Quito for our flight to Baltra island where we will board our cruise for our 4 day/ 3 night tour of the incomparable Galapagos islands.

UNESCO declared the Galapagos Islands a World Natural Heritage and this archipelago of islands is unique and a true wonder in this world.

The Galapagos islands are home to an amazing array of marine wildlife, along pristine beaches, rocky cliffs, blue skies and crystal waters.  Here you can feel and breathe the true essence of nature.

The landscapes in Galapagos are incredibly beautiful. But perhaps it is the wildlife that will probably leave the most lasting impression.  You will be amazed at how close you are able to get to the animals of these enchanted islands.

Every visitor has been fascinated by the diversity, uniqueness and tameness of the Galapagos wildlife, allowing you, the visitor, the most unique opportunity to see these animals in their natural habitat, closer, than in any other place in the world.

 We will be picked up at the airport by our guides and taken to the pier to board the M/Galapagos Legend.

The MV Galapagos Legend offers accommodation for only 100 passengers
With only one hundred people on board you will enjoy personalized attention.

 Enjoy the landscapes and view on any of the outer decks

Our philosophy is based on an environment without any formalisms or strict etiquette as in other luxury vessels but maintaining some important aspects like excellence in quality services.  Panoramic windows not only allow you to observe your destination but also to be part of it.

Enjoy
In its ample social areas you will be able to do countless activities in the evenings.  After days filled with exploration, enjoy the various activities on board. Have fun singing with our karaoke and dancing in our Neptune party.

Learn
All of our ship’s highly-qualified multilingual nature guides are certified by the Galapagos National Park. On visits to the islands, they will accompany us every step of the way, taking time to explain the highlights as you wonder through this new and magical land.

Every evening, for those wishing enrichment to what they have explore that day and will explore the following day, these same guides will provide expert talks illustrated with multimedia presentations, imparting and sharing with you their knowledge of geology, history, evolution, flora and fauna of the islands.

Relax
Of course, there are always relaxing pursuits on board, whether a game of chess, a relaxing spa session, enjoying the fresh air in the Jacuzzi, on the sun deck or simply chilling out, reading a book or taking a nap on our extensive exterior deck areas, with a pool, observatory sun terrace, chill-outs and comfy hammocks. You’ll always find somewhere to escape with your thoughts, or share them with new found friends.

Eat
The exceptional flavors of our cuisine are comparable to the best and most luxurious restaurants and of course need a special mention. Starting with the impressive and full breakfast buffet with home fresh baked bread to the extraordinary menus made by professional chefs. Special kids menus, delicious vegetarian dishes or special diets. Once a week enjoy a barbecue while navigating and observing the islands landscape

Sleep
Our ship’s cabins are all carpeted and air-conditioned (54 outside and 4 inside), with ample hot and cold water supply in private bathrooms, desks, comfy beds, room to relax and extra goodies.

After an orientation on board, we will enjoy an included lunch and then free time, before arriving at our first island of our 4 days of Galapagos discovery.

On North Seymour island, guests will encounter swallow-tailed gulls, blue footed boobies, and sea lions. This site is a major nesting colony of blue footed boobies, and has the largest colony of the magnificent frigate bird. Travelers will also spot both the marine iguanas and the land iguanas. Visitors can also observe the endemic specie of holy stick (palo santo). Sometimes guests can even see the very peculiar courtship dance of the male frigate birds with their inflatable red pouches.

Tonight we will enjoy an included dinner on board our ship.  All meals during our cruise are included, as well as all sightseeing excursions with professional local guides.

After dinner, we will enjoy a briefing on the next day’s sightseeing and free time to relax over a drink, or dance in the ship dance club.

 
SEP. 08 TUESDAY - GALAPAGOS
Santa Cruz (Dragon Hill or Venice). . Today we will enjoy a guided walk towards a salt-water lagoon behind the beach, where occasionally pink flamingos can be observed. This trail leads up to Dragon Hill, which offers a lovely view of the bay. This is a nesting site for reintroduced land iguanas, and there is also a scalesia tree forest. Passengers may opt to take a dinghy to Venice islet and observe the vegetation and marine animals like spotted eagle rays, golden rays, mullets, sharks and sea turtles. Land iguanas have often been observed as well.

     
This afternoon we will visit Floreana island (Cormorant Point).  We will land on a greenish colored sand beach.

Here we will enjoy a guided hike from the black mangrove beds to a large, brackish lagoon, which holds one of the biggest flamingo populations in the Galapagos. The island is best known for its endemic plants like the Galapagos millwork, passion flower and button mangrove.

Snorkelers can enjoy a unique opportunity just off the main beach with playful sea lions.

SEP.09  Wednesday - GALAPAGOS
This morning we will enjoy a visit to Española (Suarez Point).

This island lies in the south of the archipelago and ranks among the largest and most spell-binding places to visit. The stunning landscapes include white-sand beaches, rocky outcrops - including the 'blow-hole', Gardner Bay, and Suarez Point with its colonies of waved albatross. The island is home to the colony of the largest blue-footed boobies found in the Galapagos.

Here we will learn more about the lava terrain and we will enjoy a fascinating guided hike across the inactive lava fields. Besides the sea lion colonies, this is a very important site for bird watching. Many species, such as the hooded mocking bird and red billed tropic bird can be spotted and observed closely.

 You will also see a large colony of marine iguanas, lava lizards, and rally light foot crabs. After a short trek visitors encounter colonies of masked and blue-footed boobies. The nesting grounds sometimes overlap the trail. Visitors will also find Galapagos doves, hawks and swallow-tailed gulls and then reach the world’s largest colony of waved albatross. A major highlight is their mating season, from May through December. You’ll visit the famous blowhole, where water shoots into the air 23 m (75 ft) up.

This afternoon, we will visit San Cristóbal (Interpretation Center or La Galapaguera). We will land at Puerto Baquerizo Moreno. Passengers will visit San Cristóbal breeding center and learn about the National Park’s breeding program with the giant tortoises. Passengers will observe some animals in their natural environment

SEP.10  Thursday-GALAPAGOS-QUITO
This morning we will visit Santa Cruz (Carrión Point).  During this visit you can snorkel and see a variety of fish, rays and perhaps the harmless white tipped reef sharks. From Punta Carrion the short navigation is through the beautiful Itabaca Channel with its turquoise waters.

        
Here you find the Charles Darwin Research Centre, the highlands, with their endemic vegetation amid mountain mists and large colonies of giant Galapagos tortoises which can be visited in the wild.

The island is also known for its inviting beaches, such as Tortuga Bay and Bachas, as well as sightseeing points like Black Turtle Cove and Dragon Hill.

 This afternoon we will return to the M/V Galapagos Legend, check-out and transfer to the airport for our flight to Quito with transfer to hotel Dan Carlton.

Click this link to read more about our cruise.
http://www.gogalapagos.com/exploretheislands.html

SEP.11 FRIDAY QUITO-MIAMI:  
This morning after our included breakfast at the hotel, we will be transferred to the airport for our nonstop Delta airlines flight to Atlanta and homeward bound.

Our Galapagos Islands and Ecuador Rainforest and spa week of discovery includes:

• Round trip air nonstop from Atlanta to Quito Ecuador on Delta Airlines
• Guided city tour of Quito highlights
• 2 nights 1st class accommodations at the Dan Carlton hotel in Quito
• 3 nights 1st class accommodations at Arasha Rainforest & Spa Resort
• Round trip air between Quito Ecuador and Baltra Ecuador, at start and finish of cruise.
• 4 day cruise of the Galapagos islands aboard the 1st class mv Legend
• All meals and all shore excursions during our cruise
• Evening wildlife talks with expert naturalists onboard our cruise
• Guided night walk by Tiki Torches in tropical rainforest at Arasha
• Guided tour of wild orchids along River Caoni at Arasha
• Visit to chocolate workshop at Arasha
• Evening activities such as karaoke, dancing and Jacuzzi socials
• Free roommate matching

TRIP PRICING: $3399 per person including all of the above

plus air/cruise taxes of $298 (taxes subject to change) and Ecuador/Galapagos islands taxes of $148

Optional upgrade to superior accommodations package including ocean view room on cruise and tropical suite at Arasha: $350 per person

Optional single supplement (if you don’t wish to be assigned a roommate or are not traveling with a friend): $2149 with inside cabins; $2499 with superior accomm. package

Other optional excursions available on our free days at Arasha:

• Emerald lagoons and waterfalls tour $15
• Blue lagoon and waterfall tour $15
• Primary Forest Tour of Macallares  $20

Deposits/cancelations:  A NON-REFUNDABLE $600 deposit is required at time of reservation. Balance is due June 15th and is non refundable.

This special trip is limited to just 15 passengers so make your reservation early to avoid being shut out

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