Machu Picchu - Lake
Titicaca
(11
days/10 nights)
Machu Picchu - Lake
Titicaca
(12 days/11 nights)
Machu Picchu - Lake
Titicaca
(14 days/13 nights)
Colca Canyon - Machu
Picchu
Lake Titicaca
(16 days/15 nights)
Archaeological & Ecological
Treasures
Galapagos - Machu Picchu
Lake Titicaca (or Amazon)
(18 days/17
nights)
Colca Canyon - Amazon
Machu Picchu - Lake Titicaca
(22 days/21 nights)
Machu Picchu
(10
days/9 nights)
Machu Picchu
(13 days/12 nights)
Machu Picchu - Galapagos
(15 days/14 nights)
Galapagos - Machu Picchu
(18 days/17 nights)
Manu National Park
(8 days/7 nights)
Enchanted Isles of the Galapagos
Galapagos
(11
days/10 nights)
Galapagos & the Kingdom of Quito
Galapagos - Andes
(16 days/15 nights)
Galapagos - Amazon
(16 days/15 nights)
Historic Haciendas of the Andes
Cotopaxi - Antisana
- Otavalo
(7 days/6 nights)
© 2008
Inka's Empire Corporation.
All rights reserved.
A Luxury Hacienda Tour in Ecuador
Gualavi, La Rinconada & Otavalo Valleys
Rolling hills of the Hacienda Zuleta, Ecuador.
Photo: Hacienda Zuleta.
Four centuries of history...
Land Price (4 days/3 nights)
Royal US$ 2,035 Imperial US$ 1,860
The land price includes escorted transfers, private excursions with a professional guide and driver, horseback riding at the Hacienda Zuleta, entrance fees, indicated category of accommodations, all meals with beverages, all transportation, and travel insurance for guests through the age of 59 years. Over that age, there is a supplementary fee. All prices are per person based on two people sharing a guest room. For a detailed description of our services, see About Our Tours.
Recently, Zuleta was opened to a limited number of guests so that the public could enjoy the many wonders it holds. To visit the hacienda is to experience four centuries of history steeped in Pre-Colombian, Spanish and Ecuadorian tradition. Tours of the entire farm, on foot or on horseback, are a typical part of every guest's stay. You are usually privately escorted by a Plaza family member, another gesture of Zuleta's renowned hospitality. Of special interest to many guests are the archaeological sites, working farm, hand-embroidery workshop, condor rehabilitation project, trout farm, cheese factory and stables. The hacienda is as famous for its horses and riding program as it is for its history and hospitality. Riding has been a Plaza family tradition for over one hundred years, and today Zuleta reflects this equestrian affinity by boasting one of the most exclusive stables in Ecuador.
Otavaleña, Otavalo Valley, Ecuador.
Photo: Iolanda Costa.
Highlights
Hacienda Zuleta
Day 1: Quito - Otavalo Indian Market - Hacienda Cusín - Hacienda Zuleta. Departure north from Quito to Otavalo. On the way, visit one of the first rose plantations in the Cayambe Valley. At the foot of the Imbabura Volcano, lies the valley of Otavalo. After exploring the market, visit a pre-Inca solar calendar, then choose between two options. For those more interested in native cultures, visit the village of Peguche, where musical instruments and woolen tapestries are made; the nearby sacred waterfall; San Antonio de Ibarra, known for its woodcarvings; and other artisans' pueblos. For those more interested in nature, drive up to Cuicocha Lake and hike around this flooded volcanic crater. Lunch at the Hacienda Cusín. In the afternoon, walk through the countryside a part of the way to the Hacienda Zuleta. Dinner and overnight in the Hacienda Zuleta -- Double Room.
Day 2: Hacienda Zuleta. Tours of the entire farm, on foot or on horseback, are a typical part of every guest's stay. Of special interest to many guests are the archaeological sites, working farm, hand-embroidery workshop, condor rehabilitation project, trout farm, cheese factory and stables. The hacienda is as famous for its horses and riding program as it is for its history and hospitality. Lunch at the hacienda. Dinner and overnight in the Hacienda Zuleta -- Double Room.
Quito
Day 3: Hacienda Zuleta - Cayambe - Quito. Drive along San Pablo Lake toward Cayambe. After lunch at an historic mill, the Molino San Juan, continue to Cayambe's "Middle of the World" Monument, then see how the pueblo's traditional biscuits and cheese are made. Returning to Quito under the shadow of the Cayambe Volcano, arrive at the Villa Colonna. Guided evening walk to the Plaza de San Francisco for dinner at the Café Tianquez. Overnight in the Villa Colonna.
Your next destination
Day 4: Quito - Your next destination. Continue on a cruise of the Galapagos Islands or an expedition to Ecuador's Amazon Rainforest.
Iglesia de San Vicente Ferrer, Quiroga, Otavalo Valley, Ecuador.
Photo: Mylene d'Auriol Stoessel.
Day 1: Quito - Otavalo Indian Market - Hacienda Cusín - Hacienda Zuleta
Departure north from Quito to Otavalo. On the way, visit Rosen Pavillon, one of the first rose plantations in the Cayambe Valley. The owner, María Eugenia Espinosa, will take you on a tour of this romantic place, which still maintains the tradition of women cultivating the roses by hand. Eighteen varieties are grown in six greenhouses, with each worker caring for and harvesting her own fifty beds. Six to eight-thousand stems a day are cut, most going to the United States.
At the foot of the Imbabura Volcano, surrounded by clear lakes, patchwork-covered hills and plantations of corn, lies the valley of Otavalo, a market town ensconced in its own mystical past and whose people are proud of their cultural heritage and traditions. Time to explore the Otavalo Indian market, which dates back to pre-Inca times. The market is an experience for all senses: the aromas of traditional fare, soothing Andean panpipes, a kaleidoscope of colors, soft alpaca scarves and customary bargaining. The Otavaleños are owners of a rich inheritance, the customs of their craft; lovers of the rhythm of their music and their dance; and disciples of the legends of their earth mother, Pachamama. Experience a close encounter with this proud race of people, whose cultural integrity endures, and discover ancient haciendas, authentic workshops and the incredible landscapes and lagoons of these fertile lands of the Gods.
Hacienda Cusín, Otavalo Valley, Ecuador.
Photo: Mylene d'Auriol Stoessel.
After exploring the market, visit a pre-Inca solar calendar, then choose between two options. For those more interested in native cultures, visit the village of Peguche, where musical instruments and woolen tapestries are made; the nearby sacred waterfall; San Antonio de Ibarra, known for its woodcarvings; and other artisans' pueblos. For those more interested in nature, drive up to Cuicocha Lake and hike around this flooded volcanic crater with its twin islets. Here, you'll observe a particular species of orchid that grows at this altitude (3,220 meters, or 10,562 feet).
Iglesia de San Pablo and the Imbabura Volcano, Otavalo Valley, Ecuador.
Photo: Mylene d'Auriol Stoessel.
Lunch at the Hacienda Cusín. Cusín was purchased by the prominent Luna family from King Philip II at an auction in Spain in 1602. The estate comprised the two valleys of Gualavi and La Rinconada, and all the land between the valleys and the lake, approximately 100,000 acres. During the last 400 years, Hacienda Cusín remained, for the most part, in the hands of two different Spanish families and was operated as a farm. After falling into ruins after several decades of neglect, the hacienda was restored in 1990 and opened for international tourism.
Courtyard of the Hacienda Zuleta, Ecuador.
Photo: Hacienda Zuleta.
In the afternoon, walk through the countryside a part of the way to the Hacienda Zuleta. Recently, Zuleta was opened to a limited number of guests so that the public could enjoy the many wonders it holds. To visit the hacienda is to experience four centuries of history steeped in Pre-Colombian, Spanish and Ecuadorian tradition. The original inhabitants of the Zuleta region were the peace-loving Caranquis, who have left a pyramid on the hacienda grounds. They were an agrarian-based culture and flourished in this area rich in volcanic soils from about 800 AD until the arrival of the war-faring Incas in the late 1470s. Although the Caranquis fought stoically against the Inca for forty years, they were eventually conquered and forced into Inca servitude. Yet Inca rule was short-lived. By 1533, the last Inca king, Atahualpa, had been captured and assassinated by the Spanish conquistador, Francisco Pizarro, leaving the Inca empire in collapse and a free-for-all for the land-hungry vassals of the Spanish Crown. The execution of Atahualpa by Pizarro marked the end of Inca domination in the Zuleta region, and the beginning of Spanish rule.
Zuleteño horses and equestrians at the Hacienda Zuleta, Ecuador.
Photo: Hacienda Zuleta.
In the late 16th century, King Carlos is believed to have bequeathed the Zuleta region to the Jesuits, who implemented their Spanish methods of farming and of cattle and sheep production. In the following years an "obraje" (small wool mill) was established. By 1691, the Hacienda house, granary and chapel were completed and the farm was in full operation. However, in 1713, under the direction of King Charles III, the property was confiscated and transferred to Canon Gabriel Zuleta, thus making Zuleta his seventeenth hacienda. From that day forth, the farm became known as Cochicaranqui de Zuleta. Upon the Canon's death, the farm passed to the Posse family, who were inspired to bring the hacienda back to its previous 17th century grandeur. Yet it wasn't until the farm was sold to Jose Maria Lasso in 1898 and passed through two more generations to Galo Plaza Lasso, the ex-President of Ecuador, bullfighter and diplomat, that Zuleta recaptured its original prosperity. Dinner and overnight in the Hacienda Zuleta -- Double Room.
Guest room in the Hacienda Zuleta, Ecuador.
Photo: Hacienda Zuleta.
Day 2: Hacienda Zuleta
Breakfast. Tours of the entire farm, on foot or on horseback, are a typical part of every guest's stay. You are usually privately escorted by a Plaza family member, another gesture of Zuleta's renowned hospitality. Of special interest to many guests are the archaeological sites, working farm, hand-embroidery workshop, condor rehabilitation project, trout farm, cheese factory and stables. The hacienda is as famous for its horses and riding program as it is for its history and hospitality. Riding has been a Plaza family tradition for over one hundred years, and today Zuleta reflects this equestrian affinity by boasting one of the most exclusive stables in Ecuador. The hacienda is known for its Zuleteño horse which is a unique mixture of Spanish-Andalusian, English and Quarter horses. The outcome of this cross-breeding is a robust Andean horse with a good disposition for riding. Lunch at the hacienda. Dinner and overnight in the Hacienda Zuleta -- Double Room.
Imbabura Volcano and San Pablo Lake, Otavalo Valley, Ecuador.
Photo: Mylene d'Auriol Stoessel.
Day 3: Hacienda Zuleta - Cayambe - Quito
Breakfast. Drive along San Pablo Lake toward Cayambe, the City of Roses. After lunch at an historic mill, the Molino San Juan, continue to Cayambe's very own "Middle of the World" Monument, marking the equator, then see how the pueblo's traditional biscuits and cheese are made. Returning to Quito under the shadow of the Cayambe Volcano, arrive at the Villa Colonna, a charming colonial home in the historic district. Guided walk to the Plaza de San Francisco for a simple but delicious dinner at the Café Tianquez. Overnight in the Villa Colonna.
Traditional, horse-drawn carriage, Quito, Ecuador.
Photo: Hotel Plaza Grande.
Day 4: Quito - Your next destination
Breakfast. Continue on a cruise of the Galapagos Islands or an expedition to Ecuador's Amazon Rainforest.
Thank you for choosing Inka's Empire Tours.
© 2008 Inka's Empire Corporation, Luxury Peru Tours & Travel. All rights reserved.
