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Recs for Ecuador?
Posted on 1/21/22 at 8:31 pm
Posted on 1/21/22 at 8:31 pm
Wife and I (no kids 42&34 yrs old)
Looking to book late March/Early April. Budgeting 5-6 days for Galapagos and looking for recs for another 5-7 days. Don’t need help on lodging or flights. Just looking for experiences.
We like to hike, bike, climb, and other mild adventure stuff. I’m seeing horseback riding near Cotopaxi and Amazon trips. But anything specific would be helpful.
Also by chance - dining recs in Quito. TIA
Looking to book late March/Early April. Budgeting 5-6 days for Galapagos and looking for recs for another 5-7 days. Don’t need help on lodging or flights. Just looking for experiences.
We like to hike, bike, climb, and other mild adventure stuff. I’m seeing horseback riding near Cotopaxi and Amazon trips. But anything specific would be helpful.
Also by chance - dining recs in Quito. TIA
4
Posted on 1/22/22 at 7:56 am to kciDAtaE
quote:
Wife and I (no kids 42&34 yrs old)
Just move there
Posted on 1/22/22 at 7:44 pm to Yeti_Chaser
Why should I move there?
Posted on 1/23/22 at 11:44 am to kciDAtaE
My daughter and SIL are in Ecuador as we speak scoping out the countryside. They are near retirement age and are seriously considering retiring to Ecuador.
I'll update you on their adventures when they return home.
I'll update you on their adventures when they return home.
Posted on 1/24/22 at 1:21 pm to kciDAtaE
Have not been yet, but have been wanting to go to Banos for a number of years. There is a fairly active expat community in Cuenca. Those are going to be the first two areas I visit.
Posted on 1/24/22 at 2:53 pm to kciDAtaE
Climb Cotopaxi!!
Posted on 3/15/24 at 6:35 pm to DUKE87
Bumping this thread as our 2022 trip was Covid cancelled and now rescheduled for end of March.
4 days in Quito
3 days in Banos
5 days in Galapagos
Any tips? Day trip scheduled for Quito - Otavalo, Mindo, Cotopaxi.
Nothing scheduled for Banos.
4 days in Quito
3 days in Banos
5 days in Galapagos
Any tips? Day trip scheduled for Quito - Otavalo, Mindo, Cotopaxi.
Nothing scheduled for Banos.
Posted on 3/15/24 at 9:47 pm to kciDAtaE
Howdy. Just got back from 10 days! Here you go:
Quito - give yourself 2-3 days:
1)Quito itself - National Cathedral, San Francisco Square, Virgin of the Panecillo statue, etc.
2)Middle of the World - the equator!
3)restaurants - Cumbaya area, etc. (we can go deeper on this if you want)
Amazon? too late to do that?
Banos - 3 days is a lot. But there's good spas there. All of the "end of the world" stuff is sweet - swings, etc. The major waterfalls are quite worth it - including Diablo:
insane! It's like straight out of some fantasy movie or something. That's in a town just east called Rio Verde and there's a great restaurant there. Just east of Banos, there are also a number of tarabitas:
Amazingly fun for the whole family and people of all ages.
Day trip to Mindo is definitely recommended - hummingbird sanctuary was incredible. There's zipline tours and also group tubing that's really fun.
I'll stop here until I hear back from you.
Quito - give yourself 2-3 days:
1)Quito itself - National Cathedral, San Francisco Square, Virgin of the Panecillo statue, etc.
2)Middle of the World - the equator!
3)restaurants - Cumbaya area, etc. (we can go deeper on this if you want)
Amazon? too late to do that?
Banos - 3 days is a lot. But there's good spas there. All of the "end of the world" stuff is sweet - swings, etc. The major waterfalls are quite worth it - including Diablo:
insane! It's like straight out of some fantasy movie or something. That's in a town just east called Rio Verde and there's a great restaurant there. Just east of Banos, there are also a number of tarabitas:
Amazingly fun for the whole family and people of all ages.
Day trip to Mindo is definitely recommended - hummingbird sanctuary was incredible. There's zipline tours and also group tubing that's really fun.
I'll stop here until I hear back from you.
Posted on 3/16/24 at 2:28 am to kciDAtaE
Your wife is 8 years older than you? Hmm, that’s odd.
Posted on 3/16/24 at 9:09 am to blueridgeTiger
Has the unrest died down?
Posted on 3/16/24 at 9:35 am to Big Scrub TX
quote:
Big Scrub TX
Awesome. Thanks for replying. Few questions.
How cold does it get? Hard to tell with such elevation changes. Trying to pack light but guessing I’ll need layers for the daytrip to Cotopaxi.
Uber available in Quito? Reliable?
How long did it take to Middle of the World including transportation time? Is that a uber trip or guided? We won’t be renting a car.
Where is Cumbaya area? We staying at JW Marriott. Worth traveling there or stay in our area? We have one full day to explore Quito city. On Good Friday so some streets/businesses may be closed.
The days in Banos we have ATV’s, canyoning, paragliding, waterfalls, the swings, spa planned. Was thinking of adding an extra day in fact, but at the expense of Quito. Looks to be a lot going on.
Saving the Amazon exploration for another trip. Want to spend several days exploring and not enough time on this trip.
Posted on 3/16/24 at 9:36 am to Mo Jeaux
quote:That was barely anything to begin with. I have a relative who moved there essentially exactly coincident with the political assassination in August, moving into the escape of Fito early this year. There were a couple of curfew days just to be safe, but even that was overkill. When I was there last month, our entire group literally forgot about it until someone asked us this same question when we got back.
Has the unrest died down?
It's somewhat akin to asking someone about the risks of North Baton Rouge when they are visiting Ashville, North Carolina!
Posted on 3/16/24 at 9:41 am to Big Scrub TX
That’s good to know.
My daughter was there last year. Did Quito and the Galápagos Islands. Had a great time.
My daughter was there last year. Did Quito and the Galápagos Islands. Had a great time.
Posted on 3/16/24 at 9:41 am to TimeOutdoors
quote:I spent a couple of days there and was aware of this going in. I have to say, I don't think I saw a single other American in the wild, which was surprising to me.
There is a fairly active expat community in Cuenca.
Cuenca was nice, but I was a little surprised also at how obviously "developing" it also is (like the rest of the country). There is dilapidation everywhere and many things don't look all that nice up close. In traveling hundreds of miles all over the country, I'm not sure I saw even a single house that was up to an American standard of niceness.
One thing that takes getting used to is the bathroom situation - the overwhelming majority of toilets cannot handle flushing toilet paper...so you put your soiled squares in a trash can. It's not as bad as it might sound - but it's also just kind of nasty.
Posted on 3/17/24 at 9:02 am to Mo Jeaux
quote:
Has the unrest died down?
Yes, my daughter and SIL have been living in Cuenca for over a year now. During the unrest, she called me and assured me they were not in any danger. The rioting was mostly confined to prisons. It was over within a couple of days and life returned to normal.
Posted on 3/17/24 at 12:23 pm to kciDAtaE
quote:It seemed like it was always between 45 and 75 degrees - except for the Amazon, which was high 80s and humid. Along the coast (e.g. Guayaquil) it's a got a south Louisiana type of climate, so it's always hot and humid. For Cotobaxi, I imagine it's very cold at the highest elevations. Still, if you run warm/hot, you don't need to load up on a bunch of stuff. I was in either athletic pants or shorts the entire time and just had like a fleece I could grab if needed.
How cold does it get?
quote:I used it several times in Quito. It seemed OK, although they DO NOT speak English like you might expect. I think I remember also that Lyft doesn't operate there.
Uber available in Quito? Reliable?
quote:We had a private tour van for almost the entire trip, so I'm not sure how to give you the best answer. It took us at least 45 minutes in the car to get there from central Quito. You can take an uber there and do it yourself, but the guide was pretty helpful. We were strongly discouraged by locals from using public transportation.
How long did it take to Middle of the World including transportation time? Is that a uber trip or guided? We won’t be renting a car.
quote:It's on the eastern side closer to the airport. We ubered over there and it was worth it - 30 minute ride was like $10.
Where is Cumbaya area?
quote:I would say it's only worth it for dinner, as it seems trendy and more fashionable than most other areas.
Worth traveling there or stay in our area?
quote:Yeah, it was awesome. That sounds like a great itinerary. It might make sense to swap a Quito day for a Banos day. Question: is your Mindo trip just a day excursion from Quito?
The days in Banos we have ATV’s, canyoning, paragliding, waterfalls, the swings, spa planned. Was thinking of adding an extra day in fact, but at the expense of Quito. Looks to be a lot going on.
quote:Makes sense. There's tons we didn't do that I would go back for.
Saving the Amazon exploration for another trip. Want to spend several days exploring and not enough time on this trip.
Posted on 3/17/24 at 1:10 pm to Big Scrub TX
Thanks a bunch.
Yes. For Quito we have a day trip to Otavalo Market, a day trip to Mindo, and a day trip to Cotopaxi to ride bikes down.
Also have one free day in Quito with nothing planned. Plus the day we travel to Banos. Being a 3 hours drive, we can choose to spend more time in Quito by leaving late or more time in Banos if we want to get on the road early.
quote:
Question: is your Mindo trip just a day excursion from Quito?
Yes. For Quito we have a day trip to Otavalo Market, a day trip to Mindo, and a day trip to Cotopaxi to ride bikes down.
Also have one free day in Quito with nothing planned. Plus the day we travel to Banos. Being a 3 hours drive, we can choose to spend more time in Quito by leaving late or more time in Banos if we want to get on the road early.
Posted on 3/17/24 at 8:41 pm to Big Scrub TX
quote:
One thing that takes getting used to is the bathroom situation - the overwhelming majority of toilets cannot handle flushing toilet paper...so you put your soiled squares in a trash can. It's not as bad as it might sound - but it's also just kind of nasty.
That's the way it's done in a whole lot of the world, maybe the majority.
The drug violence isn't quite as minor as the board is making it out to be, I was there in January when it hit and know a couple of the local guides. Neither is willing to guide around Guayaquil or in the south anymore. But around Quito I think things are fairly safe. Luckily we were already where we wanted to be when the short lockdown hit and we were not disrupted at all. It's like anywhere in the world, stay out of the dangerous areas. But the dangerous areas have expanded.
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