Natural features
Galápagos Islands
Puerto Ayora, Galápagos
Volcanic islands 1,000 km off the coast where the unique wildlife inspired Darwin's theory of evolution: giant tortoises, marine iguanas, blue-footed…
Travel tips in Ecuador
Tours and activities
Baños
Baños, Tungurahua
An adventure town below the Tungurahua volcano, with hot springs, waterfalls such as the Pailón del Diablo, rafting, and the 'swing at the end of the…
Natural features
Cotopaxi National Park
Machachi, Pichincha
A snow-capped active volcano, 5,897 m, with wild horses and páramo grassland.
Walks and treks
Quilotoa Crater Lake
Sigchos, Cotopaxi
A volcanic crater filled with a green lake.
Historic sites
Quito old town
Quito, Pichincha
One of the best-preserved colonial centres in Latin America, a UNESCO site, at 2,850 m, with the gold-covered La Compañía church and the Basílica del…
Natural features
Yasuní and the Ecuadorian Amazon
Orellana
One of the most biodiverse places on earth, in Ecuador's Amazon, visited from lodges reached by boat from Coca, often run by indigenous communities.
Historic sites
Cuenca, Ecuador
Cuenca, Azuay
A colonial city of blue-domed cathedrals and cobbled streets, a UNESCO site, famous for Panama hats, which are made in Ecuador.
Shopping
Otavalo Market
Otavalo, Imbabura
One of the largest indigenous markets in South America, at its biggest on Saturdays, selling textiles, ponchos and crafts made by the Otavaleño people.
Tours and activities
Piedra Blanca ecotourism, San Luis de Pambil
Echeandía, Bolívar
A community-run ecotourism project on the western slopes of the Andes, in the subtropical forest near San Luis de Pambil in Bolívar province.