1 Days From £130 (205 USD)

The ancient inhabitants of Ecuador, right on the Earth’s equator, had the unique opportunity to observe the sky at its greatest. Being at the Middle of the World and up in the mountains,they had an excellent natural location for astronomy. For full no obligation pricing options and operator contact details please enquire: Full Name* Email* Your Country* Afghanistan Albania Algeria Amazon American Samoa Andorra Angola Anguilla Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Aruba Australia Austria Azerbaijan Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bermuda Bhutan Bolivia Bonaire Borneo Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil British Virgin Islands Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burundi Cambodia Cameroon Canada Cape Verde Cayman Islands Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Cook Islands Costa Rica Cote dIvoire Croatia Cuba Curacao Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Ethiopia Faroe Islands Fiji Finland France French Guiana French Polynesia Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Gibraltar Greece Greenland Grenada Guadeloupe Guam Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana Haiti Himalayas Honduras Hong Kong and Macau Hungary Iceland India Indochina Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kalahari Desert Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Limpopo River Lithuania Luxembourg Macedonia Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Martinique Mauritania Mauritius Mekong Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique Myanmar - Burma Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Caledonia New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria Niue North Korea Northern Mariana Islands Norway Okavango Oman Pakistan Palau Palestine Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Pitcairn Islands Poland Portugal Puerto Rico Qatar Republic of Congo Republic of Ireland Romania Russia Rwanda Saba Saint Lucia Saint Martin Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Silk Road Singapore Sint Eustatius Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea Spain Sri Lanka St Helena St Kitts and Nevis St Vincent and The Grenadines Sudan Suriname Swaziland Sweden Switzerland Syria Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand The Andes The Antarctic The Arctic Tibet Timor Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu UAE Uganda Ukraine United Kingdom United States of America Uruguay US Virgin Islands Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela Victoria Falls Vietnam Western Sahara Yemen Zambia Zanzibar Zimbabwe Telephone

Key Information Travel Style: Private Tour Start Location: Quito, Ecuador End Location: Quito, Ecuador Accommodation: N/A Period: All Year Round (Wed - Sun) Difficulty: Suitable for Most Travelers About The Operator Accreditations: LATA Awards 2008, 2009, Environmental Commitment, Corporate Environmental Policy Years In Business: 57

The ancient inhabitants of Ecuador, right on the Earth's equator, had the unique opportunity to observe the sky at its greatest, both during days and nights. Being at the Middle of the World, and up in the mountains, they had an excellent natural location for astronomical observations, an entire panorama of the celestial heavens, as both the northern and southern skies are visible, and it was easier for them to determine the movements of the Sun.

Tour Highlights
The ancient inhabitants of Ecuador, right on the Earth's equator, had the unique opportunity to observe the sky at its greatest, both during days and nights. Being at the Middle of the World, and up in the mountains, they had an excellent natural location for astronomical observations, an entire panorama of the celestial heavens, as both the northern and southern skies are visible, and it was easier for them to determine the movements of the Sun. Because of the earth's 23.5-degree tilt, the sun does not rise and set in the same place each day., but twice a year, during the Equinoxes on March 20 and September 23 the sun rises in the east and follows the equator line for 12 hours, setting exactly in the west. At midday on an equinox, the sun is at its zenith over the equator and no objects cast a shadow there. The sun not only determined the agricultural cycles, it was considered the highest deity in the Andean world.

Guests can now visit Tulipe, one of these ancient sites for astronomical and solar observations, in a kind of pilgrimage to this sacred place, a spiritual, mystical encounter with nature, the unique energetic sites and ceremonial practices of pre-Hispanic societies and their relation to the Solar Cultures.

Tulipe, unique due to its position as a link between the coastal and Andean pre-Columbian cultures, lies at the heart of an exuberant subtropical forest to the northwest and very close to Quito, bordering a river of crystal-clear waters; it was the ceremonial center of the Yumbo culture. The Yumbos were peaceful people dedicated to agriculture and commerce, with a close relationship with their environment and Solar Cosmovision. It features stone structures like pools or water mirrors of various forms, joined together by a network of aqueducts, where the shamans (priests) and yachaks (sage men) performed astronomic observations, ceremonies and cults to the sun and the moon. A hike on a path leading to the main pool is particularly interesting, surrounded by trees and medicinal, ritual and ornamental plants that borders the Tulipe River.

The pre-Hispanic Yumbo etnia lived in this region from 800 to 1660; they were mindalaes or merchants, who controlled the crucial trade route between the Pacific Coast, the Andes and the Amazon to the east. Their very interesting ancient mountain paths or coluncos can still be used; these are deep and narrow passageways, covered by entwined vegetation that formed a roof and allowed the merchants to travel under this cool protection.

After lunch, a visit is made to the Inti Ñan Museum, for a better understanding of the importance of the sun for the ancient civilizations of the Middle of the World - including a visit to the monument marking Latitude 0°.

Travel Facts
Dress in layers (T-shirt, blouse, sweater, coat). Take rain protection. This tour includes walking at altitudes averaging 1450 meters above sea level. Sun protection (SPF 40). Hat or cap. Good walking shoes. Temperature: Day, average 15° to 28° C / 59° to 82° F.

A full itinerary will be provided by the tour operator when you make an enquiry about this holiday.

Includes
- English speaking guide
- Transport
- Entry fees
- Lunch

Excludes
- Accommodation
- Personal expenses eg tips, drinks
- Travel insurance

Prices per person, based on 2 people traveling - please submit an enquiry to receive a personalized itinerary and costs.

Read our Ecuador holidays travel guide for more information on Ecuador.