To everyone who has given me an excuse to be nostalgic for Lindo Quito de mi vida by asking me about travel to Ecuador...
Quito:
- Since I obviously never stayed in hostels in Quito, I don't really know much about hostels. There is one called the Magic Bean that seems safe and nice and has a good restaurant. It's in La Mariscal, which is a district of town with tons of restaurants, bars, internet cafes, etc. So basically it's in the middle of everything.
- You can take the Ecovia or the Trole, which are two Trolley-type buses that run down the 2 main north to south streets in the city. You pay 25 cents to get on and you can get just about anywhere. Ask at information what stop to get off at and they'll give you directions. You can also take a taxi for extremely cheap...like a fourth of the price of what you would pay in Santiago.
- The historic center of Quito is absolutely beautiful. You should wander around and go into different colonial churches, museums, etc. Be sure to go to the Iglesia de la Compania. The altar is completely made of gold and it's supposed to be the most beautiful church in South America. You can also go to markets that sell anything you could possibly ever want...especially shoes! There are hundreds of shoe stores in the center of Quito.
- Take the Teleferiqo up the volcanoe Pinchincha for spectalucar views of the city. Also go to the Casa de Cultura museum to see historic art and go to the Capilla del Hombre, which in an absolutely amazing art museum of Oswaldo Guayasamin, Ecuador's most famous artist.
- Go to bars and restaurants in the Mariscal. Go to Tapas y Vinos, which is in the Plaza Fosch in the middle of La Mariscal. You can get unlimited wine and gourmet appetizers for 3 hours for $13.
- You can go to Mitad del Mundo, which is a monument on the equator. You can take a bus there from Quito that takes about an hour. It's kind of tacky and touristy, but since you're on the equator you should go and take cool pictures with one foot in each hemisphere!
- You can take a bus to pretty much any city in Ecuador from Terminal Terrestre. Generally you'll pay a dollar per hour for a bus ride. Watch your stuff in Terminal Terrestre.
- BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL! I hate to sound like a mom, but Quito is dangerous. Basically everyone I know had something stolen from them last semester and there were several muggings of American students at my school.
Otavalo:
- Otavalo is a town about 2 hours from Quito. Every Saturday they hold a huge market which has come to be famous all over the world. Otavalo indians have a unique culture because they have had great comercial success with their market, but they still dress in their indigenous clothings and maintain their traditions.
- If you can't make it on Saturday, they hold a smaller version of the market every day.
Esmeraldas:
- If you want to check out the beaches in the north, go to the state of Esmeraldas. You can take buses to the city of Esmeraldas just about every hour with Transesmeraldas.
- The city of Esmeraldas itself is shady. So bus there and then take a taxi to Atacames or one of the other beaches that's slightly to the south.
- I went to Atacames, which is kind of built up but it's still a gorgeous beach and it's a good place to party. We stayed in a really nice highrise hotel right on the beach with an ocean view and a pool on the roof for $8 each. I don't remember the name of it, but it was white and had a blue dolphin on it. There is one bus that leaves for Atacames from Quito at 11pm-ish every night.
Tena:
- Tena is kind of like the gateway to the Amazon. It takes about 6 hours to get there from Quito. Get a bus at Terminal Terrestre. The ride is absolutely beautiful. I would go just for the ride. Seriously.
- Go white water rafting down the Rio Napo with a guide. We did it and it was the most fun I've ever had.
- Go to Cavernas Jumandy with a guide to go caving.
- You can also book tours out of Tena for a few days/nights deep in the jungle. Or you could take an hour bus to Misahualli and set up a tour through Albergue Espanol to stay in a jungle lodge, kayak, hike in the jungle, and visit indigenous communities.
Guayaquil:
- I'm not sure if you'd really want to go to Guayaquil just to go to Guayaquil. Maybe if you want to go to a beach that's near Guayquil, spend a day or two there first.
- You can bus to/from Quito for $8. It takes 8 hours. You can fly for $40-60.
- Go to the Iguana Park and the Malecon.
- If you're looking for a beach that's near Guayaquil, go to Montanita. It's a famous hippie/surfer/party beach, but not built up at all and really chill. Everyone loves it. It takes about 4 hours to get there from Guayquil. Another beach you can go to from Guayaquil is Salinas.
Galapagos:
- You can fly to the Galapagos from Guayaquil or indirectly from Quito with Aerolinea Galapagos. It is about $330 with a student discount, but you might have to be a studying in Ecuador to get it.
- I was on the Poseidon a.k.a. the shittiest (literally) and cheapest boat in the Galapagos. It was about $1000 for 7 nights and 8 days, all inclusive. You really pay for what you get. Our guide was mediocre, the sheets were stained, the toilets were always backed up and flushed with a pump, and the shower was a hose that came out the wall. It also took forever to get anywhere because the boat was so incredibly slow. About once a year a boat like this capsizes. But the food was good and it was a funny experience so it was all worth it. Our boat was called the Poseidon and was through Golden Ray Travel. I would not recommend it.
- The vast majority of people who go to the Galapagos stay on a boat, but it is possible to stay in a hotel on the island and take day tours. This limits how much of the Galapagos you can see though, because the islands are really far away from eachother. You can set up your boat tour or hotel stay through agencies in Quito and Guayaquil.
- If you get seasick, plan accordingly. One especially rough night on our boat 6 out of the 10 people on board were throwing up all night.
