Museum of Tulipe, Reserve of Bellavista and Mital del Mundo Day Trip

Our day will start at 7:30 am with an early departure from Quito, pick-up at your hotel. At 8:45am stop at Nanegalito to taste some of the specialties of the region such empanadas, cheese with dulce de leche, bolones with coffee. By 9:45am our next stop will be the visit of the Museum of Tulipe where you will discover an outdoor museum where used to live the Yumbo civilization, (800 AD until the Spanish Conquest around 1660) predates that of the Incas. The Yumbo were a peace-loving, autonomous, independent, mature people, open to external relations. The Incas tried to conquer the Yumbo between 1520 and 1534, but judging this ‘naked people’ (‘gente desnuda’) to be poor, retreated to Quito. The Yumbo finally accepted Spanish domination. The Yumbo civilization was eventually more-or-less wiped out by epidemics introduced by European invaders (15,000 died between 1560 and 1570), local wars and the eruption of Pichincha, particularly that of 1660 which covered Tulipe in 20-25 cms (8-10 inches) of volcanic ash. Lunch at the Bellavista reserve at 12pm. In the afternoon we will visit the incredibly beautiful and well preserved reserve of Bellavista. Located at the southern edge of the Choco/Andean hotspots of biodiversity - that stretches from south western Colombia to northwestern Ecuador. And equally important, Bellavista is part of the Mindo Area of International Importance for Birds, the first area so designated in South America, by Birdlife International in 1997. The New York Botanical Gardens wrote that the diversity of epiphytes ("air plants" that grow on other plants) is higher in the cloud forests of Ecuador, Colombia and Peru than anywhere else on the planet. The reserve has diverse trails, depending on your interest we will choose one, we will able to do bird watching, Bellavista is the nest of a lot of endemic species. We will go for a trek and come back for a coffee. Return to Quito will be at 4:40 pm and we will visit of the Intinan Museum where you will make some incredible experiences, it is a fun and educational museum where you will learn about the culture and the center of the world history. After that, drop-off at your hotel

• Afternoon tea

• Professional guide

• Hotel pickup and drop-off

• Private tour

• Snacks

• Food and drinks

• Alcoholic drinks (available to purchase)

• Gratuities

• Lunch