Ecuador's important places?

Travel Info
what are some important places in the South America country Ecuador. ex: historical, monuments, museums,sites of interest for tourists

Travel Tips

Ecuador offers numerous activities for different types of interests in such a small territory. I lived in Quito over the summer and it offers a wide assortment of things for all types of interests. There is a historical part of town to the North and the South offers the more modern part of town. In the historical part, you can see the president's house, several museums, and numerous churces (Inglesia de San Francisco is probably one of the favorites, but the Inglesia de Colonia is pretty impressive since it's decorated almost entirely out of gold). In La Marsical, the more modern side, you'll find a wide variety of restaurants, youth hostels, and clubs along with lots and lots of tourist agencies. Teleferiqo is also another place I wouldn't miss. You just take a taxi there, and then ride the gondola up the mountain reaching about 14,000 ft (Quito is around 9,000). Just make sure you walk slowly until acclimated!

My first trip outside of the city required taking a bus to Otavalo (about $2). They're most widely noted for a huge outdoor market, but I spent my time watching a parade they have every Sunday afternoon in the summer months leading to a hidden city square in which they celebrate and dance all day. If you want to see a hint of Ecuadorian culture, this is a great place to do it! You can also sample cuy (guinea pig) here!

I headed to Mindo afterwards, which is another 2 hour bus ride (buses cost around $1/hour). This is a very small town in secondary forest and was one of my favorite adventures. We went intertubing down a river and spent the next day hiking to waterfalls. If you've never seen the rainforest and want to get up close and personal without going 10 hours away, this is the place to do it!

Banos was next on the list, but I'm not sure how accesible it is currently. The day after we left, there was a volcano and it was closed off for some time. However, I found it to be more expensive than Mindo and the natural baths were worth the trip (there's a small town about an hour outside of Quito that is cheaper and nicer than the natural baths in Quito~it starts with a P, like Pappalaycto or something. Plus you can fish for fresh trout or enjoy a meal from a local restaurant. I did take the best bicyle ride of my life down the main road. It's all downhill and there are a number of waterfalls to stop and take pictures all the way down.

If you're really adventurous you might want to opt for climbing Cotapaxi, the volcano. It's cold, high up, but amazing. I wish I had had the time/money to do it!

The rainforest is another great adventure. It takes 10 hours by bus, then another 3-4 by car, and around 2 hours on a canoe to get there, but we saw some amazing wildlife!

Lastly, the coast which I did not make it to, but had several friends that did. You can do the typical beach activities, but also have the opportunity to go whale watching.

Ecuador has so many things to offer in such a small space. This is only a very small piece of what is available~there's so much more in other cities! Hope you have as much fun as I did! Source(s): personal experience

Other Travel Tips
On a visit to Ecaudor, you should start in Quito, the capital. From there, visit the city of Cuenca where they make Panama hats and pottery and Otavalo (North of Quito) where they have a fabulous Indian Market. Of course, the Galapadgos (but everyone knows about that) and Guayaquil, the port city which is also the largest city. Papallacta is also North of Quito and is cool because of the spring water pools. Don't miss "the middle of the world" about 30 minutes from Quito where you can step on the Northern and Southen Hemisphere at the same time. There are crafts, tours, restaurants and fun things to do there. The food is great - have the soups, especially the quinoa soup and the empanadas are great, too. Remember, "cuy" is guinea pig - in smaller towns you will find it roasted on a skewer like a kebab. If you are adventurous, try it. Tastes like chicken. Have fun and enjoy.
Been there lots of times...married to an Ecuadorian.
here some important place a tourist shall visit

1. Galapagos, no dounbt, a very unique island, almost no man live that island is strong protected by the govt, species there often live very long, the longest lived turtle also live tehre 150+ years old, very beatiful place is not surfing or ski cons.

2. Quito, Equator line, very one kind of the world, quito is second highest attitue major city in the world, the major interst is the equator line is actually u can feel diff stand one line to another, even ppl test science experience there to confirm a diff.

3. Ecuador jungle, offer view lives of jungle indian how they survive in this type of enviroment, decent tourist guide can even proved u trave indian guide.
here in my country you can find many sites in quito

-plaza grande
-el panecillo
- wax museum
-bolivar theatre
- teleferiqo
-plaza de la independencia
-cotopaxi
-la casa del suizo (lodge in the jungle )
-papallacta thermal bathes
-ambato
-la victoria(they sell vases there)
and many more !!!
they are too much to name!