• Saddle up on your mountain bike—or horse!—and follow winding dirt roads along the slope of Imbabura Volcano to a tabletop ridge offering spectacular views of the Zuleta Valley.
• Enjoy the talents of local musicians playing handmade instruments and tour the workshop of Miguel Andrango, one of Ecuador's foremost master weavers.
• Visit Condor Huasi, a rehabilitation project managed by Hacienda Zuleta that reintroduces captive Andean condors into the wild and educates local children about the importance of preservation.
• Admire views of Cayambe Volcano on your walk to a local school—if class is in session, you can meet the kids.
• At an outdoor market, parents rub elbows with the indigenous Otavaleños and peruse booths filled with tapestries, musical instruments, ceramics and sweaters. Meanwhile, the youngsters team up with the Backroads Kid Coordinator for a scavenger hunt that encourages them to use Spanish and goodwill to negotiate for items.

• Santa Cruz Island: Visit the unique Primicias Ranch, a 600-acre private reserve where many of the islands most notable residents—giant tortoises—hang out. Kayak and snorkel at beautiful Academy Bay.
• Floreana Island: Here we take a short walk to a sea lion nursery. Young pups play in protected water, honing the skills they'll need in the open ocean. If the tide cooperates, you can join the friendly animals in the water for more snorkeling.
• Isabela Island: Hike to the caldera of Sierra Negra, the second largest in the world, and perhaps take on the challenging route to Chico Volcano, where active fumaroles and more stunning panormas await.
• Las Tintoreras: Walk and snorkel at this small island teeming with blue-footed boobies, Galápagos penguins, marine iguanas, as well as the white-tipped reef sharks for which the island is named—an unforgettable day!

• Hacienda Zuleta: This 4,000-acre working farm and living museum is open only to select groups of travelers. Our host is Fernando Polanco, the great-grandson and grandson of former Ecuadorian presidents, who introduces us to the property's pre-Columbian, Spanish and Ecuadorian history.
• Hacienda Cusín: A painstakingly restored 17th-century Andean estate with Colonial-style stateliness. It houses an extensive religious art collection and a secret staircase in one of its towers.
• Aventura Lodge: This beautiful waterfront lodge is nestled in the mangrove forest on Santa Cruz Island in the Galápagos.
• Floreana Lodge: On Floreana Island, these laid-back cabins, each with a front porch, sit atop black lava and face the ocean on the least populated island in the Galápagos. Our hosts are members of one of the first families to arrive on the island.
• Isabela Lodge: Soak up stunning sea views from the large deck or rooftop terrace of this Isabela Island lodge, separated from the ocean by a white-sand beach and palm trees.

View the Galápagos & Andes Multisport Trip Itinerary