Hacienda Hopping in Ecuador
OutdoorHub 09.01.11
Quito, Ecuador, Sept. 1, 2011 – Enchanted Expeditions, a leader in authentic Ecuadorian travel http://www.enchantedexpeditions.com/, combines world-class spas and healing hot springs while relaxing at glamorous hacienda accommodations.
A five-day / four-night program priced at $2,368 double includes all meals and accommodations (except in Quito), horseback riding and personal tours of, among others, the Andean Condor breeding center.
“Most people come to Ecuador looking for adventure but we are now offering luxury trips that visit authentic Ecuadorian estates,” said Judy Carvalhal, the founder of Enchanted Expeditions. “With this itinerary we hope to give discerning travelers a glimpse into Ecuador’s rich and colorful past while also celebrating today’s contemporary service, cuisine and comfort.”
The tour begins at Cotopaxi National Park two hours south of Quito, home to the highest active volcano in the world, Cotopaxi (19,348 ft). It continues to the 15th century San Agustin de Callo, a luxuriously furnished farmhouse built on the site of an important Inca palace that is one of the two most important archaeological sites in Ecuador.
Next day the journey moves to the northern province of Imbabura for two nights at Hacienda Zuleta, a 19-room, 4,000-acre working ranch in the Andes owned by the family of former Ecuadorian President Galo Plaza Lasso. Host Fernando Polanco takes visitors hiking to Condor Huasi where Andean Condors are being reintroduced into the wild. Guests can also ride pure bred horses raised at this hacienda that also produces dairy products, grains and organic vegetables.
The last evening is at the 23-room La Mirage Garden Hotel and Spa, the only Relais & Chateaux member property in Ecuador and built on the grounds of a 200-year-old hacienda.
For more information on this and other special interest tours offered by Enchanted Expeditions in Ecuador please visit:
http://www.enchantedexpeditions.com/english/special_interest/special_interest.html
About Enchanted Expeditions
Enchanted Expeditions http://www.enchantedexpeditions.com/ (formerly Angermeyer’s Enchanted Expeditions) is in its fourth decade of operating tours in Galapagos and mainland Ecuador. Over 30 years ago while travelling around South America, Judy Carvalhal, the founder of Enchanted Expeditions, fell in love with Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands, settling thereafter.
Judy first worked as a naturalist guide in the Galapagos, gaining valuable experience in the tourism business, before moving on to operate her own yachts, and then progressed to form her own company, which has helped pioneer the modern tourist industry in the Galapagos and mainland Ecuador. Enchanted Expeditions is the exclusive representative of the yachts Beluga and Cachalote I.
