Mashpi Lodge

Mashpi Lodge is a magnificent place to stay, dine and explore the Ecuadorian cloud forest. The guides are excellent making sure you see and learn as much as possible. The staff are friendly and helpful. Plus the food is delicious. The rooms are spacious with beautiful views of the cloud forest. Best view from a toilet ever.

During our 3 night stay, we were confused about what was going on, and felt like we were on our own to figure out what to do. Our experience at the lodge did not live up to our expectation or the price. We arrived in the evening on a private transfer around 6PM. We were welcomed and checked in, and were told there was a night walk but we should probably skip it since we had been traveling all day, and we should come back to the front desk after we unpack and eat dinner so we can talk about what we were doing the next day. The rooms are spacious and well appointed, and housekeeping was perfect. After dinner, we returned to the front desk and shared with the front desk that we had just arrived and were looking for instructions about our stay. A male took us over to the map and described the different excursions, and which one was embarking the next day. They also shared there was a birdwatching workshop at 6AM out on the terrace. We woke up early for the workshop, and it turned out to be instruction on how to use the binoculars, which we already knew. We did a nice walk along the waterfall, and our guide Stuardo was great at spotting birds and telling us about the area. On the gondola ride, our guide was kind but only spoke Spanish so we were not able to get information on the hour ride. For the afternoon excursion to the hummingbird garden, we needed to get back for a spa appointment in the evening, which we mentioned but ended up running a bit late and rushing. I would have expected the front desk to inform the guides about this ahead of time, but they did not know. The quantity and diversity of hummingbirds was incredible, but it felt a bit artificial to watch them drink provided sugar water. At the end of the day, our guide let us know what was available the following day but we had to dart off for the spa. The spa was great, we had two relaxing massages. At one point we got a beer at the bar midday, and one of the staff asked if we had done a drone zoom-out video. We did not know that was an option - apparently something you typically do upon arrival. It came out really cool, we were glad to have been in the right place at the right time. The following day, our last full day, we did the sky bike and life center. The sky bike was similar to gondola - great view over tree tops, though not much to see in terms of wildlife. The life center was interesting, but like the hummingbird garden, centered around human provided food which made it feel unnatural. On our way back, we learned from other guests that there was an orientation upon arrival, which included instructions on how to book a hot tub in the forest. What? We had no idea that orientation or a hot tub existed. The guests shared other details about the lodge’s mission and efforts that would’ve been great to know from the beginning of our stay. By this point we were frustrated, because we felt like we had been uninformed on the lodge’s offerings, but we were leaving early the next

Mashpi is in an incredibly beautiful location. The surrounding area is full of life and with many spectacular views. And they have made really good use of the area with a number of really cool walks down into rivers etc. We thought the Dragonfly ride might be a bit of a gimmick but, actually, it was really impressive. The different views you get of the canopy and cloud forest are unique. The hotel itself is also incredibly nice along with very comfortable rooms and great dining. Sharon on the front desk and Jairo in the restaurant are credits to the hotel! The only thing worth mentioning, which I think could be improved, is organisation of the tours. The tours you can go on - when you can go and how - all seem a bit rigid. You are put into groups and while it seems like you don't all have to do the same thing - exactly how you can choose to do something else isn't clear. And then you have to decide in front of everyone else in your group which is pretty awkward. We wanted to do one tour, another group wanted to do something else, and the guide basically emphasised it was easier for us all to do the same thing. I think for the money you spend to be here, they should make this better. But - you can't fault the quality of the hotel, the people that work there and how they employ many staff from the local community.

World class experience and staff! Every detail thought of and every desire accommodated! The daily activities were unforgettable. Gabriel our guide was made sure everything was perfect! The lodge, room and restaurant are stunning! The 3 hour trek from Quito was fine. Note the last 45 minutes were very bumpy but worth every minute to be delivered to this amazing experience in the cloud forest Don’t walk…run to book your stay. Stay 3 night to get the most of your stay.

We stayed 3 nights here and it was well worth the nearly 4 hours to get here ! Yes it’s a long way and Road is a bit bumpy but you know that . The room is lovely with high glass windows overlooking the forest .the bathroom is a little small but there are loads of shelves . Good amenities but towels a little small. Decent size safe , no iron the whole place is so amazing that it’s negligible. There is a great service that’s included and it is the clothes drying. The food is absolutely delicious! Wonderful use of Ecuadorian flavours and local produce. It is all very fresh and never heavy . Portions are perfect in size and choice really good. Always a wellbeing dish available so it’s really healthy. The deserts are wonderfully light and delicious.Menu changes every day . Bravo to the chef ! The staff at restaurant are great and a special thank you to Darwin who gave us some a personal touch ! Breakfast is served buffet style and good choice. The bar has a great choice of cocktails. We had a wonderful guide Jonathan who guided us through all the adventures here and he’s very knowledgeable and friendly. Really enjoyed the Magnolia walk through the river getting lots of water in our boots ! A must do and if you’re careful not dangerous. The visit to the hummingbirds is also great as they come close on your hands . Also the life centre where you can see loads of birds and tayras and agoutis It’s good to see such an ecological place that’s helps the local communities. The staff are all lovely and helpful The shop on site sells good quality products too.Lovely ladies at the desk Melissa at the spa is wonderful and very gentle A must if you visit Ecuador!

It is hard to define Mashpi. It is a staggering concept- a hotel which has no business existing in the middle of cloud forest, an hour on dirt roads from the nearest highway and an hour and a half from the nearest town of any size. If people are thinking of this as a relaxing wallow in sumptuous surroundings - think again. The hotel is not full of soft furnishings or drapes- they’d rot in the climate. It is functional concrete with as many glass walls as possible. The forest is the decoration and the forest is the point of being here. Each guest is allocated a guide for their stay and a programme of activities decided each day to get the maximum out of the location- sky bike, river hikes, humming bird viewpoint and so on… yes, some seem to resent the idea of putting out food for the humming birds as intrusive, yet it means all get to see these amazing creatures and have a chance of seeing them in the dense forest while hiking. The night walks, often preceded by a short lecture are amazing opportunities to move in small groups among the undergrowth and to see a wealth of species simply going about their business. On top of all this, the rooms are spacious, all with floor to ceiling windows, there’s a complimentary cleaning and drying service and the food is great- breakfast is wonderful and the hot food changes daily abd is beautifully prepped and served. It is wonderful . You will get wet and dirty and it’s not called a cloud forest without reason- there will be wet days and days when the clouds roll in and the views are non existent. That’s is a risk. The re of the reserve in preserving the cloud forest is amazing and makes the hotel good value. Think of it as a surcharge. If it was t 13 hours flight from home, we would come back!