Luxury between the trees - Mashpi Lodge Ecuador Just three hours northwest of Ecuador’s capital, Quito, lies a luxurious, five-star hideaway, ideal for birding and offering nature trails to hidden waterfalls. Mashpi Lodge Ecuador, set amid a 1,300-hectare private reserve, was built on land that was once part of a logging concession until it was privately purchased in 1997 and converted into the Mashpi Rainforest Biodiversity Reserve. Recognized as one of National Geographic’s Unique Lodges of the World, I had the opportunity to explore this rich ecosystem and the comforts of this high-end hotel that opened in 2012, spending a night at the impressive Lodge. Passing the Equator to Mashpi Lodge I left Quito for Masphi around 8.30am, accompanied by my guide. Located just 110km from the city centre as the crow flies, the journey by road winds its way to the cloudforest and rainforest on a combination of paved and unpaved roads, taking a little over three hours if driven without stops. The rapid change in altitude, from 2,800m to 1,000m sees a quick change in scenery. We first passed the equator monument La Mitad del Mundo (Middle of the World). Our guide had an app which showed us each time, as we twisted along the hillside road, we passed the Equator line – from which Ecuador gets its name. Tulipe Archaeological Museum Half way to Mashpi Lodge, we then stopped at the Tuilpe Archaeological Museum. The place was officially closed on a Monday when I visited, but Masphi Lodge’s guests get special access when closed, and I had the entire site to myself! There is a set of ruins belonging to the Yumbo culture, one of the last cultures to settle in Quito before the arrival of the Incas and Spanish. Here we were shown a few aerial images and recreations