Huw and Leigh Parry went on an Explore Adventure Holiday to visit Ecuador and the Galalpagos Islands.

These are just a few of their beautiful photographs they took whilst away.

See details of trips to Ecuador and the enchanted islands of the Galapagos

Volcanoes, Indian Markets & Cloud Forest

Arriving into Quito it is often possible to see the snow-capped volcanic cones rising magnificently above the clouds, whisps of smoke and steam escaping from their fiery centres.

After exploring this historic city, witness to much turmoil and revolution, we travel south, deeper into the Andes to Cotopaxi, one of the world's highest and most active volcanoes.

At the bustling markets at Latacunga and Otavalo, we can wander amongst the colourful stalls bedecked with handmade rugs, carvings and Panama hats.

Leaving the highlands, we head through native cloud forest to El Mindo, a nature reserve famous for its diverse range of fauna and flora, in particular the 400 different species of birds found here.

The Enchanted Isles.

The Galapagos Islands lie on the equator 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador.

They provide a fantastic tableau of prehistoric creatures found nowhere else on earth.

Charles Darwin arrived here on the Beagle in 1835 and studied the isolation of the wildlife.

His observations of the unusual plants, birds and animals such as giant tortoises eventually led to the hypothesis of evolution by natural selection.

Different in style to our other tours, here we offer the chance for independent-minded travellers to join a locally operated cruise.