Canaima
National Park, Angel Falls, Andes, Llanos Grasslands &
the Los Roques Archepelago
14 days /13 nights
From $4,280 per person double
occupancy in 2008
Includes domestic airfare
in Venezuela, accommodations, tours, transportation and
meals as specified.
Day 1: Caracas
Welcome to Venezuela! Airport reception and transfer to
your hotel. Overnight accommodations at the Hotel
Olé Caribe. The hotel is located some 25 minutes
from the airport in the oceanside town of Macuto. It is
equivalent to a U.S. four-star property; all rooms are
simply decorated with ocean views. The hotel has a pool,
restaurant and workout facilities.
Day 2: Caracas
– Canaima National Park
In the morning set off on a flight to Canaima,
flying over the massive tepuis into the remote south of
Venezuela.
Upon arrival in Canaima, pay National Park
fee (about US$14.00), before proceeding to Ucaima
Camp, a small lodge located on the banks of the Carrao
River, above Hacha Falls with views of three tepuis and
the Auyan Tepui in the distance. Your transfer to the
lodge involves a five-minute jeep ride, followed by a
five-minute dugout canoe ride to the lodge. Ucaima Camp
offers tranquility and personalized service. Accommodations
are in comfortable cabanas with private bathrooms. The
grassy area in front of the lodge is a perfect place to
sit back and enjoy the unique backdrop of Canaima National
Park, and Canaima lagoon's cool, dark but clear water
offers refreshing respite from the Gran Sabana's mid-day
heat.
In the afternoon, set off on an excursion
to Sapo Falls. Setting off in a motorized dugout canoe
up the Carrao River to the Sabana (plain) de Mayupa, you
will enjoy a short hike to Sapo and Sapito Falls. Depending
on water levels, the rocky trail actually follows behind
the powerful falls.
Return to the lodge for dinner. (L,D)
Day 3: Angel Falls
After coffee and a light snack, board a motorized dugout
canoe (curiara) and set off up the Carrao River, which
is lined by luxuriant vegetation.After another short jeep
trip around Mayupa rapids, continue up river, stopping
to view the spectacular scenery of the "Lost World."
Giant tepuis loom over the savannah and jungle below and
countless waterfalls gracefully descend the face of Auyan-tepui.
The journey continues passing by Arautaima
rapids, Pozo de la Felicidad and Orchid Island. Upon arrival
at Orchid Island, breakfast will be served. Afterward,
continue upriver, leaving the Carrao River behind, and
proceeding up the Churun River. After about one hour,
you will reach Ratoncito Island, from where you can observe
Angel Falls.
From Ratoncito Island, a one hour hike
leads to El Mirador, a lookout point offering superb views
and photographic opportunities (weather permitting) to
capture the massive rocky face of Auyan-tepui and "Salto
Angel" in the warm morning sun. The rest of your
day will be spent exploring this "Lost World"
on your own. Your overnight accommodations are in a rustic
shelter close to Ratoncito Island. (B,L,D)
Day 4: Ucaima Camp
After a full morning enjoying Angel Falls, return downriver
to Ucaima Camp in time for dinner. (B,L,D)
Day 5: Canaima
National Park – Caracas - Merida
Fly to the Andean capital of Merida,
a historic colonial town. The Andean region is a picturesque
land of fertile soil, rich in traditional culture. This
exciting adventure lets you truly experience the tranquillity
and beauty of this wonderful area and its inhabitants.
There will be ample time for you to mix with the locals
and barter for handicrafts in provincial markets. You'll
be met at the airport by your guide and enjoy a short
city tour of Mérida, the capital of the Venezuelan
Andes. Includes visit to Plaza Bolivar, the historic cathedral
and museums.
Your journey continues on to Jají,
a reconstructed colonial village and then on to Hacienda
El Carmen, a 150-year-old working coffee plantation where
you learn about the history and processing of coffee.
You’ll also visit Lagunillas, famous for its inland
salt-water lake and the founding place of Mérida
in 1558. Your day finishes at an overlook of the Chama
River valley where paragliders soar 1000 meters above
the canyon. (Optional tandem paragliding is available-weather
dependent). Located in the city of La Mesa de los Indios
in the state of Mérida, Papa Miguel's Inn offers
the comforts of modernity in a traditional Andean setting.
The original building dates back to 1750 but has been
renovated to provide modern comforts. The town around
the inn is noted for the high number of children, as well
as adults, who play musical instruments, as they believe
that they have been given a special don (gift) to play
music. Overnight at the comfortable accommodations of
Papa Miguel.
(B,L,D)
Day 6: Andes
Start you day with an optional ride on the world's longest
and highest aerial cable car ($15 per person - not included
in package price. Does not operate on Mondays and Tuesdays).
From bottom to top, the ride takes about one hour, and
is especially remarkable for the changes in scenery and
vegetation along the way. From Mérida, the cable
car sweeps across the valley, planted with sugar-cane
and coffee and soon you are rising above the steep forested
hills and cascading rivers. From the summit, you see a
wonderful panorama of snowcapped mountains, as well as
glaciers and lakes full of Andean trout.
In the afternoon, explore small Andean
villages and the high mountain plateaus or parámos.
Discover the tiny town of Mucuchies, which was founded
in 1596 by the Spanish on the site of the pre-Hispanic
Chama Indian tribe. Opportunity for light trekking and
horseback riding to glacier lakes. You can purchase all
kinds of local Andean arts & crafts at the roadside
stall while here. Overnight once again at Papa Miguel.
(B,L,D)
Day 7: Andes
Today you'll visit Laguna Mucubají, one of the
largest of over 200 glacier lakes in the state of Mérida.
Your adventure continues with the opportunity to trek
or horseback ride to Laguna Negra observing the incredible
variety of mountain flowers and possibly seeing the world's
only high altitude hummingbird, the bearded helmetcrest.
Here you will be introduced to the diversity and adaptive
features of the Andean vegetation and the singularities
of this tropical high-mountain climate. An outstanding
feature of the paramo is a group of plant species called
Espeletiinae, the South American flannel flowers or locally
known as frailejones. Visit Eagle Pass, the highest paved
road in Venezuela at 4.047 meters and a biological research
station to see the Andean Condor, one of the world's largest
birds with a wingspan of more than 3 meters. Tonight you'll
sleep at Los
Balcones de la Musui, a world-class mountain lodge
with a spectacular view of the Sierra Nevada mountain
range and nearby hot springs. (B,L,D)
Day 8: Los Frailes
- El Cedral
Today you will descend through the dense Santo Domingo
Cloudforest into the flat Llanos
Grasslands. Arrive at Hato
El Cedral, a 160,000-acre working ranch and wildlife
sanctuary. The campamento takes a serious approach to
environmental issues, introducing the full protection
of wildlife within their ranches, installing research
stations and contributing to ecological funds.
The Llanos is a bird watcher's paradise,
with more than 300 species identified. Highlights include
hoatzins, pied lapwings, king vultures, storks and ibis.
See rugged Venezuelan cowboys, the llaneros, hard at work
as they skillfully move great herds of cattle across the
ranch. All meals included. (B,L,D)
Days 9, 10: El
Cedral
Embark on a variety of excursions in the early morning
and late afternoon in the "Serengeti of South America."
All meals included. (B,L,D)
Day 11: El Cedral
– Los Roques
You will be transferred overland to the Barinas Airport.
Fly to Caracas and connect with a flight to Los
Roques. Upon arrival on Gran Roque, pay entrance tax
and proceed to your Caribbean-style, comfortable guesthouse
- Posada
Mediterraneo. Orientation on Gran Roque is straightforward
- your accommodations are located just off the main plaza,
a minute's walk from the airstrip. Rooms have private
bathrooms, air conditioning, ceiling fans and room safes.
All meals are included in your stay, and optional excursions
can be easily arranged through the guesthouse. –
2 nights. (B,D)
The Archipelago
of Los Roques consists of over 365 islands 60 miles
off the north coast of Venezuela. The area is home to
coral reefs that are as of yet undiscovered by most divers
and fisherman. Enjoy your time snorkeling, sailing and
exploring nearby islands.
If you are interested in scuba diving,
Lost World Adventures can arrange diving and instruction
at the local dive shop for a variety of skill levels.
From the "Discovery Scuba" course, where you
can dive safely with a dive master (no certification obtained)
to the highly advanced "Rescue Diver" course
(for professional diving), and even the "Jr. Open
Water Diver" course in which divers aged 12 to 15
may obtain an internationally recognized certificate,
you can find what you need. Diving at different keys will
give you the opportunity to see marine life such as stingrays,
grouper, angelfish, barracuda, moray eels, and coral,
among others.
For those who would prefer to snorkel,
Los Roques is still an underwater wonderland. Healthy
reef systems are packed with life and contain thick forests
of soft coral, long stretches of virgin hard coral, black
coral bushes, brain corals, mounds of star coral and great
clusters of gray and brown gorgonia. These warm, unspoiled,
azure and aquamarine waters contain as many fish as were
found in Belize, Cozumel or the north wall of Cayman,
30 years ago. Although of the same reef system as Aruba,
Bonaire and Curacao, this is no underwater petting zoo.
Designated a National Park, all sites in the archipelago
are limited to 10 divers, so you get the intimate feeling
of diving in untamed, untouched waters. Most often, you
will be the only divers in any given area. Visibility
varies, but can reach 100 feet.
No matter where you dive, you will swim
among and marvel at immense swirling schools of fish:
armies of glassy sweepers, southern sennet, spotted drum,
jacks, Spanish mackerel, barracuda, grouper, red, gray
and yellowtail snapper, hogfish, tarpon, Queen angels,
thousands of silvery blue bogia, trumpet fish, white spotted
filefish, smooth trunk fish, colorful tropicals, parrotfish,
porcupine puffers, stingrays, moray eels and more.
Among the many spectacular dive sites are
the Rock of the Jewfish, which provides an excellent introduction
to the following days of diving. Although there are no
longer any Jewfish, there is still plenty to see during
a 30-minute circumnavigation of this seamount. Nurse sharks
are occasionally spotted at Los Noronkys. At the coral-laden
wall at Cayo Sal, you can take a break inside a cavern
at 100 feet and watch as tens of thousands of fish swim
by castles of hard coral and tall, swaying bushes of soft
corals. The wall at Punta Salina starts at 30 feet and
drops straight to 180 feet. You can also include a visit
to the Turtle Sanctuary, located in Dos Mosquices Key,
a 2 to 2 ½-hour boat trip from Gran Roque. Here
you will find an incredible reefs-cape of pristine hard
and soft corals.
Fisherman will find Los Roques to be a
heaven for flats fishing. Bonefish are abundant year 'round,
and tarpon and permit also easily caught in these waters.
In this National Marine Park, all fishing is strictly
catch and release, and a very limited number of fishermen
are permitted to fish daily.
For those who enjoy windsurfing, there
is a first class windsurf club located on adjacent Francisky
key. They rent a variety of equipment for excursions ranging
from one hour to a full day of windsurfing. Private instruction
for beginners is also available. From the resort you may
spend the day exploring the surrounding islands via windsurfer.From
the guesthouse you may also arrange a full-day boat tour
to visit Dos Mosquices Biological Station, located on
one of the farther keys from Gran Roque and home of Los
Roques Scientific Foundation's biological station. The
standard trip includes a visit to three keys. Departing
early in the morning, you'll visit Carenero, Cayo de Agua,
and Dos Mosquices keys. Most of the day is spent on Agua,
where lunch will be served. At Dos Mosquices visit to
the biological station escorted by a guide, who will provide
you with a tour of the marine turtle hatchery.
For those who want to stay on dry land,
the area offers an abundance of optional excursions. Gran
Roque's lighthouse, the oldest on the Venezuelan coast,
is recommended for a late afternoon visit as a great spot
to enjoy the sunset. Or if you are just looking to get
away from it all, the guesthouse will provide complimentary
transfers to nearby keys, along with a box lunch, sun
chairs and parasols. The only thing you'll miss is the
crowd.
Days 12, 13: Los
Roques
Days at leisure. (B,L,D)
Day 14: Los Roques
– Caracas - Int'l departure
Return to Caracas and connect with your departing flight.
(B)
Contact
us for a customized itinerary
of travel to Venezuela.
