Puerto Lopez Tour: Beach Time, 6 Days

This 6-day Puerto Lopez tour gives you the most leisurely version of the Pacific-coast experience — a perfect Galapagos alternative when time or budget rules out the Galapagos Islands themselves, and an extra pair of unscheduled beach days built in to recover and explore at your own pace. The trip begins with the cross-country drive from Quito to the coast, watching the Andes Mountains transition into green jungle and finally into the warm coastline of Puerto Lopez. You'll feel the temperature climb as you descend. Once you arrive, the rest of the day is yours — beach, hotel, or one of the local restaurants and bars that come alive in the warm evenings. Day two is a boat trip to Silver Island (Isla de la Plata in Spanish), where your local guide explains the history and wildlife. Hike to the best viewpoints of the island, where blue-footed boobies, magnificent frigatebirds with their huge red inflatable throats and other seabirds nest in the trees. Crabs and lizards are everywhere on the trail. Cap it with a snorkel stop among schools of colorful fish — with chances of sea turtles, stingrays and whales. Days three and five are unscheduled — for the beach, the fish market, the town, or just doing nothing in the sun. Day four is a guided hike into the humid coastal forest, a dense green jungle that rivals the Amazon Rainforest in feel, home to monkeys and exotic colorful birds. On day six, the travel adventure back to Quito completes the trip.