Quito to Baños & Cotopaxi: 3-Day Andes Crater & Volcano Tour

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Free cancellation

1/2

Duration3d

GroupPrivate

LanguagesEN · ES

PickupAt your hotel

Three Days in the Ecuadorian Andes: From Crater Lake to Active Volcano

You get three days moving through Ecuador's high country with a naturalist guide who photographs and explains what you're seeing. The itinerary covers a crater lake you can hike into, a waterfall route with a gondola crossing, a swing over a gorge, and trails around an active volcano — all with accommodation, meals, park fees, and transport included from your Quito hotel. No arranging permits, no figuring out which market operates which day, no negotiating transport between stops.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Quito to Baños via Quilotoa

Depart Quito early morning
Stop at indigenous market
Visit Tigua village painters
Stop at Toachi canyons
Arrive at Quilotoa Crater Lake
Hike crater edge or down to lake
Lunch at local restaurant
Try traditional ice-creams
Travel to Baños

Day 2 — Baños Full Day

Breakfast at hotel
Visit waterfalls route
Ride gondola over Pastaza River
View Manto de la novia waterfall
Hike to Pailon Del Diablo waterfall
Return to Baños for lunch
Swing at the end of the world
Visit Baños town
Free afternoon to explore

Day 3 — Baños to Quito via Cotopaxi

Depart Baños to Salasacas town
Visit Salasacas textile shops
Travel to Cotopaxi Volcano National Park
Admire volcano and natural environment
Hike around Limpiopungo Lake
Lunch near Cotopaxi
Return to Quito

The Experience

You start in Quito at dawn, and by mid-morning you're standing at the edge of Quilotoa Crater Lake, staring down at water so green it doesn't look real. The contrast hits you right away — the city's noise and traffic fade, and suddenly you're in high-altitude silence with a naturalist guide who knows which plants the locals use and why the crater filled with that particular shade. On the drive up, you stop at a weekly indigenous market (Pujilí or Zumbahua, depending on the day) where vendors spread out produce and textiles, and then at Tigua village where painters work on goatskin with Andean landscapes. The hike down to the crater lake is steep — demanding enough that mules are available for the return — but you can also walk just the rim if that suits you better. Lunch is at a locally owned restaurant near the lake, and then you drive toward Baños, stopping for traditional ice cream made in the region.

Day two is all waterfalls and one unforgettable swing. You take a gondola across the Pastaza River to get close to Manto de la Novia, a waterfall that hangs like a veil, and then hike a forest path for about 45 minutes to reach Pailon Del Diablo — Devil's Cauldron — where the water thunders into a canyon. After lunch back in Baños, you head to the Swing at the End of the World, which is exactly what it sounds like: a swing suspended over a gorge with nothing but air and the valley below. The rest of the afternoon is yours to walk around town, grab coffee, or sit with the view.

The third day takes you back toward Quito but not before Cotopaxi. You stop at Salasacas to see indigenous textile workshops, then enter Cotopaxi National Park where the volcano — 5,897 meters high and still active — rises in front of you if the weather cooperates. Your naturalist guide walks you around Limpiopungo Lake at the volcano's base, pointing out the flora and fauna, and you hike the trails at that altitude. Lunch is in the park, and then it's the drive back to Quito, arriving in the afternoon.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off in the Quito area, two nights accommodation in Baños, breakfast both mornings, lunch each day, light refreshments, bottled water, all activity fees, entry to Cotopaxi National Park, and a naturalist guide who also photographs the landscape and wildlife you encounter.

Good to know

Moderate physical levelWheelchair accessibleStroller friendlyInfant seats availablePublic transport nearby

Operated by GREEN ADVENTURES

Is this one for you?Choose this tour if you want the main Andes highlights — crater lake, waterfalls, volcano — in one trip without arranging your own transport, park permits, or timing between stops. The naturalist guide handles the logistics and the explanations, which is what makes three very different landscapes fit into three days.