February 24: Arrive in Quito, where you will be met at the airport and brought to the beautiful old city, where we will stay at Roberto’s bird-themed Bird Garden Guest House. Dinner & night in Quito.

February 25: We will have an early breakfast and drive to Zuroloma Reserve, an Andean gem where the hummingbird feeders attract the Sword-billed Hummingbird, the bird with the longest bill relative to body length. Several other hummingbirds and rare and hard-to-see Antpitta species are found here, as well as other high-altitude specialties of the west slopes of the Andes. Lunch at Reserva Yanacocha, a high-altitude reserve that is home to numerous rare and hard-to-find species including the Black-chested Mountain Tanager and Imperial Snipe. Dinner and overnight at the beautiful Sachatamia Cloud Forest Lodge in the Mindo Valley.

February 26: Another early morning to visit the legendary Refugio Paz de las Aves reserve, where Angel Paz and his brothers have created a true oasis on their family land, full of hundreds of bird species, including an Andean Cock-of-the-Rock lek. They also pioneered creating earthworm feeders for Antpittas and other species, and this is now one of the only reliable places to see Giant Antpitta, Moustached Antpitta, Yellow-breasted Antpitta and other species. Lunch at the lovely Guaycapi Overlook, where hummingbird feeders attract spectacular species such as the Andean Emerald and White-booted Racket-tail. After lunch we will drive to Papallacta Hot Springs Hotel, a world-class hotel with volcanic hot springs and a wonderful diversity of high-altitude cloud forest birds. Dinner & night at Papallacta Hot Springs.

February 27: Drive to Antisana, a Fundacion Jocotoco reserve high in the Andes, home to Andean Condor, Andean Ibis, Andean Gull, and other high-elevation paramo specialties. Lunch at Tambo Condor Restaurant, the best spot to see Giant Hummingbird. Stop in the 15,000ft Papallacta Pass on the way back to look for Rufous-bellied Seedsnipe and other local & hard-to-find high elevation species. Dinner and overnight at Papallacta Hot Springs.

February 28: Breakfast at Papallacta Hot Springs. Check out and drive to nearby Guango Lodge to experience their amazing hummingbird feeders, where we may encounter Tourmaline Sunangel, Sword-billed Hummingbird, and many other species as well as Turquoise Jay, Gray-breasted Mountain-Toucan, and more. The river nearby has families of Torrent Ducks. Lunch at Guango, drive to Cabañas San Isidro Lodge for dinner and overnight at San Isidro. The unique & mysterious San Isidro Owl may be heard that night.

February 29: Morning at San Isidro Lodge, home to over 500 species of birds! We can enjoy their stunning verandah and many hummingbird species. The woodlands nearby are home to both Golden-headed and Crested Quetzals, as well as numerous tanager, warbler, and hummingbird species. Late morning we will drive to WildSumaco Lodge, lunch birding, dinner and overnight at WildSumaco Lodge.

March 01: Morning at WildSumaco Lodge, the site with the most birds in all of Ecuador - nearly 650 species recorded, nearly as many as in the entire state of Texas! After lunch, drive to Coca, where we will take a motor canoe up the Napo River to the Yarina Ecolodge. Dinner and overnight at Yarina Ecolodge.

March 02: Yarina Ecolodge - we will spend the entire day exploring the Amazon Basin lowland jungle around the Yarina Ecolodge, with blackwater rivers, terra firme forest and more. Home to numerous monkeys, caimans, Amazon River Dolphins, and of course scores of fascinating birds such as the unique and bizarre Hoatzin, Cocoi Heron, Zigzag Heron, Mealy Parrot, Blue-and-yellow Macaw, Paradise Tanager, and numerous Antbird species. Dinner and night at Yarina Amazon EcoLodge.

March 03: Breakfast and birding at Yarina Ecolodge, after which we take a motor canoe back to Coca where we will catch a short flight to Quito around noon. Return home that afternoon/evening from Quito, or you may choose to spend an additional night(s) in Quito or a nearby ecolodge (not included).