Yay for Noé from Bucay! - It was all about Noé from Bucay Adventures. He lives in Bucay, knows the area, plants, sights, people - couldn't be a better guide and driver! As planned for my... read more custom adventure, we visited the gorgeous Bucay cloud forest reserve and met fascinating representatives of the Shuar people on Day 1, then on Day 2, drove to and walked in the magnificent El Cajas National Park (13,000+ feet, a new high for me).

An extra bonus was an unplanned side trip to Cuenca - since we had time to squeeze this in. Visited Boris Ordoñez' OFF gallery and drove around the city. Then back over the summit to return to my hotel in Guayaquil. So all together, a marvelous experience that I will treasure for years to come.

  Great way to visit the mountains of Ecuador!  - Noe is fantastic. He was prompt, polite and knowledgeable. The cloud forest is beautiful and the waterfalls are worth the visit. HIGHLY recommend!

  Great experience  - It was amazing. I enjoyed the walk in the cloud forest, walking along the stream, and swiming in the waterfall and then going down on a rope down the waterfall.... read more /> Amazing & trustworthy guide

  Brilliant day trip to swim at a lovely waterfall.  - Our guide, Noe, picked us up from our hotel in Guayaquil and drove us to Bucay then into the Cloud Forest. He explained that he would tailor the tour... read more to be what we wanted so just to say if we wanted to stop anywhere etc. Our trip inclided picking up some bananas of varying types - very different from the bananas that make their way to the UK! - as well as a walk to the waterfalls and a swim there. Noe was wonderfully friendly, helpful, and knowledgable.

A nice lunch in a local restaurant before heading back to Guayaquil. Really glad we did this trip during our stopover in Guayaquil.

  Beautiful area and great guide - Private tour done at our pace  - Noe was a great guide and this was a very enjoyable private tour. The area is very pretty and we were given a choice to do an easier route... read more (two waterfalls) or a little harder route (three waterfalls). We chose the first option due to my daughter's asthma and felt that it was just right. It does feel like you are in the clouds and although we were offered the ability to step into the pool at the bottom of the falls, we declined. Very enjoyable day.

  Nice excursion out of the city  - We were excited to get out of the city to explore the natural beauty of the cloud forest and learn about the indigenous community. The hike through the cloud forest... read more was beautiful, but was more strenuous than the description suggested. It included some steep climbing on wet rocks in fairly humid weather. Combined with the altitude (which I am not used to), I found the hike somewhat difficult. However, our guide was patient and took some breaks so I could catch my breath. After the hike, we went to visit a Shuar family, who introduced us to some dancing and taught us how to hunt using a traditional dart-type of weapon. I appreciated that the visit was not overly commercial (they didn't try to sell us anything), but I thought there would be more to the visit - perhaps some introduction to how they lived and cooked inside their home, etc. Lunch on the way back to the city was nice and included a lovely lentil soup, choice of chicken or beef with rice and beans, and juice. All in all a good excursion.