Day 1
Early in the morning depart by car from the city of Loja to the town of Vilcabamba.

Tucked away deep in southern Ecuador is Vilcabamba, in the heart of the country's southern province of Loja, bordering Perú. In Quechua, ancient language of the Incas still spoken today by Quechua Indians throughout the Andes, "vilca" translates as "sacred" and "bamba" means "valley."
Vilcabamba's biggest claim to fame is its reputation as the "Valley of Longevity." This reputation was perpetuated in the 1970s when a series of magazine reports, among them one by National Geographic, claimed that an unusual number of this valley's inhabitants were reported to be 100 to 120 years old. Although those tales turn out to have been exaggerated, there are a number of very healthy, energetic people in their 80s and 90s bounding around this hilly countryside like nimble but wizened mountain goats.

Lunch in one of the restaurants of the area.

Overnight at selected hotel in Loja


Day 2
Visit to The Podocarpus National Park

Located in the southernmost Andes of Ecuador, Podocarpus National Park straddles a mountain range called, "El Nudo de Sabanilla", between the cities of Loja and Zamora. Comprising 146,280 hectares the Park ranges in altitude from 950 meters to 3,700 meters and includes a diversity of natural habitats, from upper tropical rainforest to alpine Paramo. The National Park was named after Podocarpus or Romerillo tree, Ecuador's only native species of conifer tree.
The diverse ecosystems protected within the Podocarpus National park support a rich and varied avifauna. To date over 500 bird species have been recorded in and around the park. Since only the Cajanuma and Las Palmas areas have been adequately surveyed, the list could rise to somewhere between 600 to 800 species, making the Podocarpus National Park one of the most species rich national parks in the world.

Box lunch Turing the visit

Overnight in Loja at selected hotel


Day 3
Departure

Time to rest and visit the charming city of Loja, alter lunch, transfer to the airport to get your flight back to the city of Quito.