Ecuador & The GalápagosLatin AmericaMaY 2027Ecuador & Galápagos
[ OVERVIEW ]Why This Journey. Why Now.
There is something that happens when women travel together across generations. The roles you hold at home soften. The mother stops managing. The daughter stops performing. The grandmother, often quietly sidelined in everyday life, becomes the most essential voice in the room.
Travel strips away the noise and replaces it with presence. You notice each other differently when you are standing at the edge of a volcano, or watching a giant tortoise move through the morning light, or paddling a canoe through a river so still it mirrors the jungle above it.
Grit & Grace Adventures has been creating transformative journeys for women in midlife for years. This trip is something new. It is our first experience designed specifically to bring generations together, and we chose Ecuador and the Galápagos because no place on earth invites wonder quite the way these two do.
This Journey Is Exclusively For
Mothers, daughters, and grandmothers traveling as a pair or trio
Welcome to Ecuador & Galápagos
Some trips show you the world.
Some trips change the way you see each other
This is the first Grit & Grace Intergenerational Journey. An exclusive offering for mothers, daughters, and grandmothers ready to experience the world together in a way that goes far beyond any holiday you have shared before.
Twelve days. Two ecosystems, unlike anything else on earth. Three generations. And the kind of conversation that only seems to happen when you are somewhere that makes the ordinary impossible.
Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands will do that to you. To all of you.
This is not a vacation. It is a memory you will talk about for the rest of your lives.
Experience Details
Trip Duration
12 days 11 nights
16th May - 27th May 2027
Next Dates
deposit: $2,500
Private: $12,550.00
Shared PP: $11,550.00
Pricing (CAD)
A day-by-day look at our Ecuador & Galápagos itinerary
The Daily Rhythm
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This journey moves through two of the most extraordinary ecosystems on earth. We begin in the highlands and colonial streets of Quito before descending into the heat and density of the Ecuadorian Amazon, where three days at a jungle lodge immerse you in a world that operates entirely on its own terms. We surface, travel north to the living colour of the Otavalo market, then return to Quito for a private tour of its UNESCO-listed old city. The final chapter belongs entirely to the Galápagos: five days and four nights aboard a private catamaran, moving between islands with a certified naturalist guide, in an archipelago so protected and so singular that no other place on earth compares.
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You land in one of the highest capital cities in the world, sitting at nearly 2,900 metres above sea level and ringed by the peaks of the Andes. Quito is colonial and layered, with centuries of history pressed into its cobblestone streets and gilded churches. Tonight is yours to settle in, breathe the thin mountain air, and begin to arrive. Your boutique hotel near the airport makes the transition easy and the welcome seamless. Tomorrow, the journey truly begins.
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A short flight from Quito carries you from the altitude of the Andes down into the heat and humidity of the Ecuadorian Amazon, one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet. You land in Coca, a gateway town on the banks of the Napo River, and transfer by motorized canoe deep into the rainforest. As the jungle closes in around you, the sounds change entirely. The world you came from feels very far away. Your jungle lodge sits inside the primary rainforest, built to immerse you in the ecosystem rather than insulate you from it. This is your first night sleeping to the soundtrack of something ancient and alive.
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Your naturalist guide leads you into the forest before the heat of the day sets in. The Amazon rewards patience and curiosity in equal measure. You may spot pink river dolphins surfacing in the Napo, or watch a family of squirrel monkeys move through the canopy overhead. Canoe rides through flooded forest reveal a world that exists only at water level. Night walks illuminate what the daylight hides: the calls, the eyes, the extraordinary density of life that fills every layer of this ecosystem. Around the table that evening, over a meal prepared from local ingredients, three generations of women will find themselves telling each other things they might not have said at home.
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A second full day in the Amazon means a second set of excursions, each one different from the last. Your guide takes you further, to areas of the forest that require more time to reach and reward accordingly. You might visit a local community to learn how indigenous families have lived alongside this ecosystem for generations, their knowledge of the plants and animals around them both practical and profound. Fishing for piranha on a quiet oxbow lake. A slow afternoon paddle as the light turns gold and the jungle begins its evening chorus. The Amazon does not rush, and neither will you.
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Your canoe carries you back to Coca, and the flight returns you to Quito and the gentle comfort of your boutique hotel in the historic centre. After three days in the jungle, the colonial elegance of your Quito accommodation feels like a different kind of luxury: high ceilings, inner courtyards, the sounds of a city that has been here since 1534. Tonight is yours to rest, reflect, and prepare for what comes next.
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One of the most famous indigenous markets in all of South America sits two hours north of Quito in the Andean highlands, and today it is entirely yours. The Otavalo market has been operating for centuries, and what you find here is not a tourist performance but a living tradition. The Kichwa people of Otavalo are renowned weavers, and the textiles spread across the stalls carry patterns that have been passed down through generations, mother to daughter to granddaughter. This is a day for wandering, for colour, for the kind of shopping that feels like an education. Lunch is included, and the conversation on the drive back is often the richest of the trip.
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Old Town Quito is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and your private guide brings it to life in a way no map or guidebook can. The churches here are extraordinary, their interiors gilded and overwhelming, built by indigenous craftsmen whose work tells a story quite different from the one the Spanish colonizers intended. Then, just north of the city, you stand at zero degrees latitude. The equator is not just a line on a map here. It is a physical place, and standing on it with three generations of your family, on a planet that is round and spinning and full of wonder, is exactly the kind of moment this journey is designed to give you.
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The flight to the Galápagos Islands is short in distance and enormous in significance. You are crossing into one of the most protected and extraordinary ecosystems on earth, a place so isolated that evolution took its own path here, producing species found nowhere else on the planet. You board your catamaran in the early afternoon, and the Galápagos cruise begins. Your certified naturalist guide introduces the islands, the rules that protect them, and the itinerary ahead. That first evening on deck, watching the Pacific light fade over water that Charles Darwin once crossed, something shifts.
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Four nights and five days aboard your private catamaran, moving between islands each day with your naturalist guide. The Galápagos will ask nothing of you except your full attention, and it will give back more than you thought possible.
The wildlife here has no fear of humans. Marine iguanas warm themselves on black lava rock while you step carefully around them. Blue-footed boobies perform their courtship dances a metre from where you stand. Sea lions pup on the beach and do not move when you approach. Giant tortoises, some over a century old, move through the highland mist with a patience that puts human urgency into perspective.
Each day brings a different island and a different character. Your guide leads both land visits and snorkelling excursions, and the water here is unlike anything most people have ever experienced. You might swim alongside a green sea turtle. You might find yourself eye to eye with a Galápagos penguin, the only penguin species found north of the equator. Reef sharks move below you with complete indifference. No snorkelling experience is required, and all equipment is provided.
Kayaking in sheltered bays. Evenings on deck as the stars come out over the Pacific. Dinners where the day's encounters become the evening's stories. Three generations, ten women, one small boat on one extraordinary sea.
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Quito, Ecuador
Sitting at nearly 2,900 metres above sea level in a valley carved by the Andes, Quito is one of the most dramatically situated capital cities on earth. Its historic centre is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the churches here are unlike anything most people have encountered: gilded interiors of extraordinary intricacy, built by indigenous craftsmen in the 16th and 17th centuries, where European religious iconography was quietly reimagined through Andean eyes. Walk the cobblestone streets, and you walk through layers of time. Colonial facades open onto inner courtyards. Centuries of culture press in from every side. Quito is where this journey begins and where it briefly returns before the Galápagos chapter opens, and both encounters with the city offer something different. The first time you arrive to settle in. The second time, you arrive ready to see it truly.
The Ecuadorian Amazon
The Ecuadorian Amazon is one of the most biodiverse regions on the planet, a living system of such density and complexity that scientists are still discovering new species within it. You access it by small plane to the river town of Coca, then by motorized canoe along the Napo River, one of the great tributaries of the Amazon basin. As the jungle closes around you and the sounds of the city fall away entirely, something in the nervous system begins to slow. Your jungle lodge is built inside the primary rainforest, and the forest begins at your door. Three days here means three days of guided excursions into an ecosystem that operates entirely on its own terms: canoe rides through flooded forest, night walks that reveal what the daylight keeps hidden, the possibility of pink river dolphins surfacing beside you in the river. For three generations travelling together, the Amazon is the great equalizer. No one here has seen this before. You discover it together.
Otavalo, Andean Highlands
Two hours north of Quito, the Andean highlands open into a valley that has been a centre of trade and craft for centuries. The Otavalo market is one of the oldest and most extraordinary indigenous markets in all of South America, and what makes it remarkable is not its size or its colour. However, it has both in abundance, but its continuity. The Kichwa people of Otavalo have been weaving these textiles for generations, and the patterns carry meaning that predates the Spanish colonial period entirely. This is not a market designed for tourists. It is a living community economy, and you move through it as a guest and a witness. The drive back through the highlands, with purchases in your bag and the afternoon light across the valley, tends to produce some of the most honest conversation of the entire trip.
The Galápagos Islands
There is nowhere else on earth quite like the Galápagos. Six hundred miles off the coast of Ecuador in the Pacific Ocean, this archipelago of volcanic islands has been so strictly protected for so long that the wildlife here has simply never learned to fear humans. You do not observe the Galápagos from a safe distance. You move through it at close quarters, and it moves around you with complete indifference to your presence. Marine iguanas warm on lava rock inches from your feet. Blue-footed boobies court each other while you stand and watch. Giant tortoises, some of them over a century old, navigate the highland mist with a patience that makes everything feel slower and more important.
Below the surface, the water is equally extraordinary. Green sea turtles, Galápagos penguins, reef sharks, and schools of fish in colours that seem impossible move through the current around you. Your certified naturalist guide brings the science and the story to every landing and every snorkelling excursion, so that what you are seeing is never just beautiful. It is comprehensible. It is connected.
Charles Darwin spent five weeks in the Galápagos in 1835. He left with observations that changed his understanding of life on Earth. You will be here for five days. You will leave changed, too, though perhaps in quieter ways.
Your Catamaran
The catamaran is not just your transport between islands. It is your home, your dining room, your evening gathering place, and your platform for watching the Pacific sky go dark over water that has barely changed since Darwin crossed it. Small-ship cruising in the Galápagos is the only way to reach the most extraordinary sites in the archipelago, and the intimacy of a vessel carrying just your group of ten creates something that larger ships simply cannot. Meals are taken together. The day’s encounters become the evening’s stories. Three generations around a table on a boat in the Galápagos, under more stars than most people ever see in their lives. You will remember the wildlife. You will also remember the nights.
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• Penny Light as your lead guide for every day of the journey.
• All accommodation: your jungle lodge in the Amazon, your boutique hotel in Quito, and your catamaran cabin in the Galápagos.
• All internal flights, including Quito to Coca, Coca back to Quito, and Quito to the Galápagos and return.
• All meals during the Amazon stay and throughout the Galápagos cruise, plus lunch on both day excursions.
• Private guided excursions in Otavalo and Quito.
• Certified naturalist guide throughout the Galápagos.
• All snorkelling equipment.
• Galápagos transit control card.
Galápagos National Park entry fee (USD $200 per person, paid on arrival).
All transfers throughout the journey
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• International flights to and from Quito.
• Travel insurance, which is required for all Grit & Grace journeys.
• Tips and gratuities.
• Personal expenses and optional purchases.
[ FAQ ]Common Questions
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Your journey includes Penny as your lead guide for every day of the trip, all accommodation throughout (your jungle lodge in the Amazon, your boutique hotel in Quito, and your catamaran cabin in the Galápagos), all internal flights between Quito, Coca, and the Galápagos, all meals during the Amazon stay and throughout the Galápagos cruise, plus lunch on both day excursions, private guided tours in Otavalo and Quito, a certified naturalist guide throughout the Galápagos, all snorkelling equipment, your Galápagos transit control card, and all transfers throughout the journey.
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The good news: neither Canadian nor American passport holders require a visa to enter Ecuador for tourist stays. Both nationalities are welcomed visa-free for up to 90 days, and since our journey is 12 days, you are well within that window.
There are a few practical things to have in order before you travel.
Your passport must be valid for at least six months beyond your arrival date, and you will need at least one blank page for entry and exit stamps. If your passport is due for renewal, do not leave it until the last minute.
All travellers to Ecuador are required to complete a free online registration form within three days of arrival. Once completed, you download a QR code to present to border officials on arrival.
We will send you a reminder and the link as part of your pre-trip documentation, but it is worth knowing about now.
For the Galápagos specifically, there are two fees to be aware of on arrival. The Transit Control Card is approximately $20 per person and is processed at the mainland airport before your island flight. This is included in your journey. The Galápagos National Park entry fee of USD $200 per person is also included.
If you hold a passport from a country other than Canada or the United States, please reach out to us directly, and we will help you confirm your entry requirements before you book.
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Absolutely not. You never have to do yoga. You can stretch, nap, breathe, or just exist on your mat. Zero gold stars for pushing, full credit for listening to your body.
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We understand that life can bring unexpected transitions. Because our journeys are intimate and involves significant advance planning, our deposits are non-refundable. If you cancel before the final balance is due (90 days before the start of the trip), we offer a fifty percent refund of any additional payments made, minus the initial deposit and a small processing fee. Within ninety days of departure, we are unable to offer any refunds. However, we do allow you to transfer your place to another traveler for a small administrative fee if you are unable to join us.
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We focus entirely on the ground experience and do not book international flights. You are responsible for your own flights to and from Quito. We will provide clear guidance on recommended arrival and departure times to ensure your transfer into the journey is seamless. If you would like a recommendation for a trusted travel agent who can help with flights, we are happy to point you in the right direction.
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Yes. To ensure you are fully protected against the unpredictable, comprehensive travel insurance is a mandatory requirement for every guest. This serves as your safety net for any medical needs, travel delays, or last-minute cancellations. We will ask for proof of your insurance prior to departure to ensure you are covered for the entirety of our time together.
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The minimum age is 21. This journey is designed for adult women across generations, and we have set this threshold intentionally. It ensures the experience is right for everyone in the group, including the conversations, the pace, and the emotional depth of the shared experience. We welcome grandmothers, mothers, and daughters of any age above 21.
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You are welcome to travel as a single, a pair or a trio. Two sisters, a mother and daughter, a grandmother and granddaughter, or all three generations together, or just you.
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We always recommend consulting your doctor or a travel health clinic well in advance of departure, as requirements and recommendations can change. For Ecuador and the Amazon region, a yellow fever vaccination is commonly advised and may be required depending on your country of departure and onward travel. Malaria prophylaxis is sometimes recommended for the Amazon, and your doctor will advise based on your personal health profile. The Galápagos Islands are low risk for most tropical health concerns given their remoteness. Routine vaccinations should be up to date. We will provide a detailed pre-trip health guidance document to all confirmed guests.
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This journey is accessible to women of a wide range of fitness levels, though some days involve moderate activity. The Amazon excursions include jungle walks on uneven terrain and canoe rides, and the Galápagos land visits involve walking on volcanic lava rock, which can be uneven underfoot. Snorkelling is optional and requires basic comfort in the water.
The pace throughout is deliberately unhurried, and Penny works with every member of the group to ensure no one feels left behind or pushed beyond their comfort. If you have specific mobility concerns or health considerations, please reach out before booking so we can talk through what the journey will look like for you.
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Spanish is the official language of Ecuador and the one you will encounter everywhere throughout the journey, from the streets of Quito to your guides, drivers, and catamaran crew. Ecuadorian Spanish is widely considered one of the clearest and most neutral accents in Latin America, which makes it easier to follow even if your Spanish is limited or has been sitting unused for a few decades.
In the Andean highlands around
Otavalo, you will hear Kichwa, the indigenous language of the region's Kichwa people, spoken between vendors, families, and community members at the market. This is not a performance for visitors. It is a living everyday language that has been spoken in these valleys for generations, and hearing it woven through the sounds of the market is one of those small, quietly extraordinary moments that stay with you.
In the Amazon, the communities you may visit have their own distinct indigenous languages. Most community members who work with visitors also speak Spanish, and your naturalist guide will be with you throughout.
On the catamaran and across the tourism infrastructure of the Galápagos, English is widely spoken. Your certified naturalist guide will lead all excursions in English, and the crew will have working English throughout the cruise.
Your city guides in Quito and the lodge staff in the Amazon are also accustomed to English-speaking guests.
No Spanish is required for this journey. That said, a few words go a long way in Ecuador. Gracias, por favor, and buenos días are received with genuine warmth wherever you use them, and at the Otavalo market especially, even a small effort in the local language has a way of opening something up. We will make sure you arrive with everything you need.
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The Ecuadorian Amazon is a managed and well-visited destination, and your time there is guided throughout by experienced local naturalists who know the ecosystem deeply. You are not venturing into remote wilderness unsupported. Your jungle lodge is a thoughtfully run operation with years of experience hosting international guests.
The insects are real, the heat is real, and we will fully prepare you for both. But the Amazon is not dangerous when you are with the right guides and the right outfit, and we would not take you anywhere we did not trust completely.
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We will send all confirmed guests a detailed packing list tailored to each chapter of the journey. In general, think in layers and lightweight fabrics.
For the Amazon: long-sleeved shirts, light trousers, waterproof walking shoes or boots, a rain layer, and strong insect repellent.
For Quito and the excursions: comfortable walking shoes, a light jacket for cooler evenings at altitude, and one or two slightly smarter pieces for dinner.
For the Galápagos: a swimsuit and rash guard, comfortable walking shoes with closed toes for lava terrain, a sun hat, high-SPF sunscreen, and a light windproof layer for evenings on deck. The catamaran has limited luggage storage, so a soft-sided bag rather than a hard suitcase is strongly recommended for the cruise portion.
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Ecuadorian food is honest, flavourful, and deeply rooted in the landscapes you will be moving through. Each region of this journey has its own culinary character, and eating your way through them is one of the quieter pleasures of the trip.
In Quito and the highlands, the food is hearty and Andean. Locro de papa is a thick, creamy potato soup that has been warming people at altitude for centuries, often finished with avocado and fresh cheese. Llapingachos are pan-fried potato cakes served alongside eggs, chorizo, and curtido, a pickled vegetable relish. The markets and small restaurants of the old city offer some of the most satisfying and unpretentious eating of the entire journey.
At the Otavalo market, eating is part of the experience. Local women cook traditional dishes over open fires and in small stalls, and sitting down to a bowl of something made right in front of you, surrounded by the colour and noise of the market, is exactly the kind of moment that does not make it into the guidebooks but that you remember for years.
In the Amazon, your jungle lodge will prepare meals using local and regional ingredients, and the food reflects the abundance of the ecosystem around you. Fresh river fish, tropical fruits, and dishes drawn from indigenous recipes give the meals a flavour that feels genuinely of the place. Eating in the middle of the rainforest, with the sounds of the jungle coming in from every direction, has a way of making even a simple meal feel extraordinary.
Aboard the catamaran in the Galápagos, all meals are included and freshly prepared by the onboard cook. Seafood is a staple, and the quality is exceptional given how close you are to the source. Breakfasts are generous, lunches are often taken after a morning excursion when everyone is hungry and full of stories, and dinners on deck under the Pacific sky are something else entirely.
Dietary requirements are accommodated throughout the journey. Please let us know when you book, and we will ensure every kitchen along the route is briefed and prepared for you.
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Not at all. No experience is required, and all equipment is provided. The Galápagos waters are calm in the sheltered bays where we snorkel, and your naturalist guide is in the water with you. Many women who have never put their face in the ocean before find the Galápagos snorkelling to be the single most memorable experience of their lives. You will be fully supported, and snorkelling is always optional if you prefer to stay on the boat or on shore.
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Tipping is an important part of the service culture in Ecuador and is genuinely appreciated by the guides, drivers, lodge staff, and crew who work to make your experience exceptional. These are skilled, dedicated people, and a thoughtful tip is one of the most direct ways to honour the work they do.
As a general guide, here is what we recommend.
For your private day guides in Quito and Otavalo, USD $10 to $15 per person per day is a generous and appropriate gesture.
For your Amazon lodge guides and naturalist staff, a similar range per person per day is appreciated, and if you have had a particularly outstanding guide, do not hesitate to reflect that.
On the Galápagos catamaran, it is customary to tip the crew and your naturalist guide at the end of the cruise. A common benchmark is USD $10 to $15 per person per day for the crew as a whole, and a similar or slightly higher amount for your naturalist guide, who will have been with you for every excursion and every moment on the water. Many groups collect a shared tip envelope on the final evening, which is a lovely way to do it together.
For drivers and transfer staff, a few dollars per transfer is a kind acknowledgment of their time.
We recommend bringing a supply of US dollars in small bills specifically for tipping, as Ecuador uses the US dollar as its currency, and cash is always the right choice for gratuities. We will include a tipping guidance sheet in your pre-trip documentation so no one feels uncertain or caught off guard when the moment comes.
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Your catamaran is a comfortable, well-appointed small ship designed for small-group Galápagos cruising. Cabins are private and include en suite bathrooms, air conditioning, and everything you need for a restful night at sea.
The shared spaces, including the dining area, sun deck, and lounge, are where the real magic happens. It is an intimate vessel, which is exactly the point. Meals are taken together, evenings are shared, and the closeness of the boat creates the kind of connection that a resort simply cannot.
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Quito sits at approximately 2,850 metres above sea level, and altitude affects people differently. Some women feel entirely fine from the moment they arrive, while others experience mild symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, or slight breathlessness in the first day or two.
We build arrival time into the itinerary intentionally, giving you a night to settle in before the pace picks up.
Staying well hydrated, avoiding alcohol on your first evening, and taking things gently on arrival day are all helpful. If you have a history of significant altitude sensitivity or any relevant heart or respiratory conditions, we recommend consulting your doctor before booking.
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The Amazon is a tropical rainforest, and insects are part of it. A good quality DEET-based insect repellent is essential, and we will remind you to bring it. Long sleeves and long trousers for evening walks are also recommended. That said, the jungle lodge takes every reasonable precaution, and your accommodations are well protected.
Most guests find that with the right preparation, the insects are a manageable part of the experience rather than a deterrent. The wildlife you encounter more than makes up for the mosquitoes.
We build arrival time into the itinerary intentionally, giving you a night to settle in before the pace picks up.
Staying well hydrated, avoiding alcohol on your first evening, and taking things gently on arrival day are all helpful. If you have a history of significant altitude sensitivity or any relevant heart or respiratory conditions, we recommend consulting your doctor before booking.
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This journey is limited to 10 women, and bookings are taken on a first-come, first-served basis. To reserve your place, reach out to us directly through the contact form or by email.
We will have a brief conversation to make sure this journey is the right fit for you and your travel companion, and then walk you through the deposit process.
We do not believe in pressure or hard sells. If it is right, you will know. And if you have questions, we would rather answer them properly than rush you into a decision.
You can also secure your spot with a deposit right from this page. Just click on the link, and it will walk you through the payment.
