Galapagos & Amazon Advisors

  My friend and I stayed at Secret Garden Hostel and wanted to check out Quito sights. We found about a city tour with Fernando and went to it without too... read more many expectations. It turned out to be one of our best experiences in Ecuador so far! Fernando knew all the historical and modern facts about the city and the tour was even better with interactive parts such as fruit tasting, local candy products, city markets and much more. You wont regret going on this tour!
Thanks once again Fernando!

  I did the free walking tour with Fernando that meets at the Secret Garden Hotel. This was seriously the best free walking tour I’ve ever been on! Fernando took us... read more all around old town, even getting us past the barriers that were up due to a protest. He brought us to all the best places to sample the specialties of Quito, and even showed us a few salsa moves. I learned so much about the history and culture of Quito and Ecuador!

  Great three hour walk around the old town of Quito! Our guide was very nice, took lots of pictures and answered all of our questions

  Fabulous and patient guide! I was a slow hiker acclimating to the altitude. Dario had great information on the park, wildlife, birds and plants. He stopped along scenic areas for... read more pictures and knew all the food spots on the way to and from the park.

  Trying guineapig, kayaking and speaking with Stefy who was a great tour guide and full of information

  What an incredible tour and so close to Quito. My tour with Stefany could not be better. She catered to all my needs and was so knowledgeable about many things... read more from history of Quito to what you will see at Mindo. Our day finished with a delicious lunch of traditional food. Mindo is about nature but also lots of activities you can do.

  Always wanted to go to the Amazon and had a great time in Cuyabeno at the Tucan Lodge. I was consistently amazed at Gilbert's ability to spot animals. Every member... read more of the staff was great. Food was delicious every meal, and slept comfortably in the lodge every night. Pleasant surprise all around and was the best part of my Ecuador trip! Consuelo was very helpful with her recommendations. I also enjoyed the Quilotoa and Cotopaxi day tours. …

  Fernando told us very interesting facts about the city. We were allowed to try many typical foods and drinks. Fernando is very friendly, helpful and a great guide!! Thanks a... read more lot for this unforgettable tour!🥳🤩

  Could not recommend more highly! We were in Quito and did a day trip to Mindo. Our guide, Alex, was amazing. He was a wealth of information... read more and went far out of his way to show us everything we wanted to see. We zip-lined, went to the butterfly museum, did a chocolate tasting and learned how cocoa beans become chocolate. We also did a cable and hike to a waterfall. We really wanted to hit the equator museum on the way back and Alex made sure we got there -- we were running behind and he called to make sure they would stay open for us. Along the way, he gave us a great sense about Ecuador. Alex even helped us order pizza on the way home . He said that "no" was not in his vocabulary and that turned out to be true. The whole operation was so easy -- they even took us to the airport on our way out. The bus was comfortable, the driver safe, and it was just overall a fabulous trip -- our favorite activity in Quito. Thank you Alex and CarpeDM!

  The sight is very beautiful and we enjoyed the boating in Quilotoa. Our tour guide Stefy is very helpful and friendly. Walking down and up the mountain can be tiring.... read more Horse riding recommended.

  We did the free walking tour with Fernando and it was one of the moat special tours we ever had. It has a taste from everything - history, culture, cuisine.... read more We got to experience a lot - including tasting local fruits, chocolate factory and even some dancing. Fernando went above and beyond to make the group active and bonded. Definitely recommend! …

  The guided tour throughout Quito with Fernando was AWESOME !!! Very lively, fun and interesting. We got to taste chocolate, local fruits and local alcoholic beverages 🙂 It was my... read more first day in Quito and it will remain a very good memory thanks to Fernando! Cheers

  Best tour ever. Fernando was fun, educational, caring, informative and entertaining. We went on a free walking tour with a large group and it was good. We signed up with... read more Fernando and he impressed us beyond words. Pam I are so grateful to find Fernando. We became friends. He is a very smart hard working young man, he showed us places that impressed us in Quito. This is the highlight of our trip …

  I found the walking tour a lot of fun, a day very well spend in Quito! Fernando is also a very cool guide who brings nice energy to the group!

  The tour started early in the morning with us getting picked up from the hostel in a nice and comfortable truck. On the way to Cotopaxi, our guide Lincoln told... read more us about the history of Ecuador, Quito, and the Cotopaxi region (in great English!).

We stopped for a good and plentiful breakfast in view of Cotopaxi, before driving up the volcano to the parking lot. The hike up to the refuge hut at 4864m was taxing but beautiful, and Lincoln told us more about local wildlife. From the parking lot, we made our way down the volcano on bikes, with helmets, knee/elbow pads, and gloves provided. Lunch at at the same restaurant was just as tasty, before returning to Quito.

Overall, this was a breathtaking (literally) tour with a friendly and patient guide. There were plenty of great photo opportunities, and biosecurity measures were followed. While not cheap, this tour was excellent value for the price and we highly recommend Lincoln.

  I did the free walking tour with Fernando that meets at the Secret Garden Hotel. This was seriously the best free walking tour I’ve ever been on! Fernando took us... read more all around old town, even getting us past the barriers that were up due to a protest. He brought us to all the best places to sample the specialties of Quito, and even showed us a few salsa moves. I learned so much about the history and culture of Quito and Ecuador! …

  This was the best thing ever!!! If you plan to go to the Amazon jungle simply choose @toucanlodge with Carpedm. The place is beautiful. Super clean lodge, amazing staff and... read more the best guide. He was able to spot so many snakes (anacondas too), monkeys. He found frogs, birds, pink dolphins and so much more. I will recommend this trip 100%. Can't wait to return to Toucan Lodge in Cuyabeno Amazon the next time I'm in Ecuador. Thank you for everything!! And thank you CarpeDM for helping me plan this so easily. …

  Hi, we did the free walking tour with secret Garden, it was great and Fernando made sure we spend a good time and laugh while teaching us many interesting... read more things about the Ecuadorian culture and about Quito. I definitely recommend ! A piece of advice : beware of the guinea pig ! You'll have to do this tour to understand 😉 …

  We had a very nice day on route to and at Quilotoa! We travelled with a fun group and Renan was a very knowledgeable, fun and helpful guide!

  Super nice time with the guide Stuart, all the day was perfect! 🙂 the market / the canyon and the best for the end Quilotoa!

  My wife and I went on a private tour of Cotopaxi in March of 2021. Lincoln was our guide and we cannot recommend him enough. We were picked up from... read more our hotel and on the drive up Lincoln provided great detail regarding the history of the country, area, and landscape. His English was exceptional. We stopped for breakfast, and later lunch, at a nice little B&B, where the food was decent and service and atmosphere was great. When we arrived at Cotopaxi NP, Lincoln registered us while we purchased a few gifts for friends and families (prices were much more reasonable than in Quito and certainly the airport). The drive up to the parking lot was quite bumpy and had us a little concerned about the mountain bike ride down. The hike up to the refuge was slightly crowded and somewhat physically taxing (could have been partly due to the elevation). We were fortunate to have a mostly clear morning and day. We grabbed a hot chocolate and relaxed at the top for a little before our descent back to the car and the start of our mountain bike adventure. The bikes were well used but safe and functional (I imagine they frequently replace the brakes!) 26" hardtails. My wife and I both have experience mountain biking and would not recommend this for a first time person. To be safe, it required more advanced braking control and an ability to read the road as it was littered with ruts and holes. The views down were inspiring and we ended at a lake. During the descent, Lincoln would drive a little behind or in front of us, ensuring our safety and snapping some photos of us as well. We couldn't be more pleased with this experience and highly recommend Lincoln as a guide.

  Best free tour I’ve ever lived, superb knowledge and enthusiasm. Fernando really knows his stuff, and his way around a drink. Not to mention, boy can that man speak Spanish!... read more

  CarpeDM and our Tour Guide Dario took us from Quito to Cotopaxi for a hike up and bike down adventure. I don’t think I need to tell you that Cotopaxi... read more is breathtaking so I’ll focus on the tour company and guide. What set this company and tour guide apart for us is how thoughtful they were toward our son. They let us go at our own pace. We took stops when we needed and they also allowed us to push ourselves to our limit when we wanted (while making sure to pay attention to our safety). We looked around for a couple of weeks before deciding on CarpeDM. There’s a lot of competition out there, especially during the pandemic when there are less tourists. Many of them even have the exact same itinerary. In the end, we have no regrets about going with CarpeDM. So much so that we’ve recommended them to our friends who are coming to Quito in a couple of weeks. And, if we ever come back to Quito, we’ll be checking out all of the other day/multi-day trips they offer.

  We started in front of the carpedm. The tour through quito was amazing and very interesting. I can recommend to do this tour when you arrive in quito to get... read more some informations. It was really an amazong tour with our guide Fernando 🙂

  Went to the free walking tour with Fernando. The tours was very informational, fun and well directed.

  We had a walking tour with Fernando and it was brilliant, so informative and he showed us all around the city!! Would highly recommend ! Thanks again ! X

  John Pierre was a really great guide. The market was nice, but I’d recommend trying to spend more time at Cuicocha. We ran out of time to see Peguche waterfall,... read more which would have been nice.

  We booked a Galapagos boat tour but due to circumstances outside of our control, we were unable to take that trip. Carpe DM worked relentlessly on our behalf by negotiating... read more with the boat owner for a credit or refund. They were in constant communication with us and completely understood our difficult situation. Carpe DM has exceeded all of our expectations by helping us navigate a stressful and difficult time. I’ve already recommended their travel agency to friends and hope to take a trip with them in future.

Traveling during a pandemic is challenging enough on its own, but you can count on Carpe DM to be there for you.

  Excellent one-day trip from Quito. The national park is truly beautiful and Cotopaxi is truly impressive. We really enjoyed both the hike and going downhill with mountain bikes. Renan was... read more a great guide and friendly guy. Absolutely recommended when in Quito!

  I had two fantastic experiences with CarpeDM, the Cuyabeno Amazon trip and the Cotopaxi hike. Paul and Angie were very helpful and both spoke perfect English while also allowing me... read more to practice my terrible Spanish. If you’re going to the Amazon, you must stay at Tucan lodge! It was truly a once in a lifetime experience. My guide, Carlos, was absolutely incredible! He was able to spot animals I would have never seen and perfectly imitate their calls which allowed us to see: a family of otters, many species of monkeys, and rare birds, all because he drew them in with his calls. Also, the lodge itself is great with nice, modern facilities and hot showers! The Cotopaxi hike was also a blast. The guide allowed us to go around your own pace as the altitude was very difficult for us. He helped me get lots of great photos too! I highly recommend CarpeDM for anyone looking to get the most out of their trip to Ecuador! …