Tag: swing

Itinerary: 3 days in Baños

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Baños de Agua Santa is the un-rivalled adventure capital of Ecuador. Not only is it the gateway to the Ecuadorian Amazon it is packed fill to the brim of exciting, adrenaline filled things to do with some hot springs to rest your weary muscles in once you are done. No wonder its such a popular stop for travellers making their way through Ecuador.

GENERAL INFO

Getting there and away:

Baños is just a short trip away from Quito. Buses take 4 hours and leave from Quitumbe station every 15 minutes before 7pm. To can also get to Baños from Guayaquil in 8 hours via bus (perfect for an overnight bus journey).

Accommodation:

 I recommend Community Hostel in Baños – they have a great vibe, organise lots of activities including bar crawls and serve up a wonderful breakfast! You can book through booking.com.

Food:

The best food we had in Baños was Arepas at ‘Arepas to Go’ – a takeaway joint run by a Venezuelan refugee. These are the BEST arepas I have ever tasted. Hands down.

The other must try dish in Baños is candy! The town is well-known for its Melcocha and there are candy stores all over the town where you can see it being made along with other sweets and treats. I polished off a whole giant rainbow lollipop and felt so sick.

Top Tip:

Baños is a great place to spend New Year (as we did)! Its the perfect mix of away from the hustle and bustle of a big city and the frustrations that come with this but popular and busy enough to be buzzing with New Year spirit and have great nightlife (its a bit of a party town).

Ecuadorian New Year is fascinating. There are two traditions that you have to see to believe: Firstly, on December 31st large dolls that represent the old year are ‘burned’ in bonfires in the middle of the street. This is the cleansing of the old year and represents starting anew for the new year – extra points if you jump over the fire as the dolls are burning. Secondly, related to this is the New Year ‘Vuidas’ (Widows of the old year). These are men dressed up in drag complete with makeup and wigs who dance in the street stopping cars and collecting small change for the new year party. On new year’s eve you can’t drive down any road without getting stopped by one of these ‘tax’ collecting groups.

SUGGESTED ACTIVITIES

Bike ‘Ruta de Cascadas’

This is a great activity rain or shine as you are going to get wet under the waterfall at the end of this journey anyway! The day we biked along the waterfalls was pretty poor weather but we still had a great time. I suggest getting up early and taking it easy so you can stop for as long as you like along the way and rest or explore (especially if you aren’t really into biking like me). You can hire bikes in Baños for about 15 USD per day including a bikelock etc. When you rent a bike you will be provided with a map of the waterfall route. The Ruta de Cascadas is a 16km ride to the town of Rio Verde but is downhill almost the entire way. Pickup trucks wait at the end and will take you back to Baños for a small fee. There are 4 key spots that you should stop at (but feel free to stop and explore anywhere you like!):

First stop: Cascada Agoyan – There is a zipline here 

Second Stop: El Manto de la Novia – Take the cable car for a bird’s eye view (2 USD, make sure you take the right cable car there are lots along the route).

Third Stop: Rio Verde – Bring bathing suit if its a nice day and you can pop in the water for a swim here.

Fourth Stop: Pailon del Diablo – It’s a strenuous walk to get to this waterfall but its worth it. You can hike (for 2 USD) right up to the falls and climb underneath them (you will get wet). 

Visit La Casa del Arbol

Try to do this on a clear day as you are pretty high up in the mountains here. To get here, take the local bus for 3 USD or a taxi for approx. 15 USD (taxi’s are unmetered so confirm a price beforehand). Once dropped off there is a short 200m steep hike. The top attraction here is called The Swing at the End of the World and its definitely worth trying – my husband braved it even though he is afraid of heights! There are a few other activities and photo spots so its worth a little wander around and you will probably have to queue quite a while for the swing (its pretty popular!)

If you want an even bigger adrenaline rush head down the road another 3 km until you reach El Vuelo del Condor – this is an even bigger swing right out over the valley but you are properly strapped in to this one thankfully! Ask the management here to call a taxi to return to town or walk if feeling up to it (takes 2 hours but beautiful views).  

Piscina de la Virgen

You can soak in the Thermal Baths (USD 2 entrance fee) only 5 minutes walk from the centre of town. These baths have a nice view as they are located next to a waterfall. It’s a great idea to rest your weary muscles after your bike ride, calm your mind after swinging out over the canyons or to sweat out your hangover. Wear jandals as the ground around the pools and the changing rooms can get a bit gross. 

Party in Zona Rosa

Baños is quite a party town so I definitely suggest having a night out here before you leave! There is a sign to the Zona Rosa on Ambato Street. You can Salsa the night away and make sure you have a big sleep in in the morning and a soak in the hot pools to recover from your hangover!

Let me know if your planning to go to Baños and if there’s anything you would add to this list!

Erika xx

Itinerary: 2 days in Quito

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Quito is Ecuador’s capital. It sits high up in the mountains and has beautiful colonial architecture in a serene setting. It’s likely you will spend a day or two here if you are going anywhere else in Ecuador so take your time, enjoy it, it doesn’t feel like a big city until you see the urban jungle sprawled out from high up Vulcan Pinchincha.

GENERAL INFO

Getting there and away:

Quito has multiple connections to many other locations in Ecuador and beyond as big cities do. We arrived in Quito via Otavalo (3 hours by bus to the North Terminal) and left on a bus to Banos (4 hours by bus from the South Terminal). The distances in Ecuador are refreshingly short after Colombia.

Note: Both regional bus stations are approximately 30 minutes from Centro Historico in opposite directions. Make sure you know which one you will need to take a bus from and taxi to the correct one (The taxi should cost approximately 7 dollars). Quitumbe is the South Terminal and Carcelen is the North Terminal.

Accommodation:

 I recommend Community Hostel in Quito – they have a great vibe, organise lots of activities and serve up a wonderful breakfast! You can book through booking.com.

Food:

Enjoy the great free breakfast at the hostel, look for a restaurant that does a cheap ‘Almuerzo’ set menu for lunch and then you can splash out on dinner. Calle La Rhonda has nice restaurants and bars.

Top Tips:

  1. Despite using USD Ecuadorian coins are unique to the country and useless outside of Ecuador so try to use your coins up as tips etc.
  2. Centro Historico (and many other parts of Quito) are not safe at night. Be careful – wander in the daytime and at night stick to lighted streets and get restaurants to call a taxi home for you. 

DAY 1

If its a clear day, take a taxi to the TelerifiQuo which is the cable car up to Vulcan Pinchincha (swap your mornings around if the weather is bad as you need a nice clear day for this). The Telerifiquo opens at 8am, costs approx $9 USD and takes 10 minutes to reach the top. The cable car offers beautiful views over the city and there are a few photo opportunities – a swing looking out over the city and some tame llamas. You can also do a hike right up to the top of the volcano (be aware you will need to allow a few extra hours if you are going to do this hike and only go if the weather is very calm – the conditions can get dangerous up this high).

Spend the afternoon in the old city. Spots of interest include:

  1. La Iglesia de Santo Domingo (a church in the distinct ‘Quito school’ architectural style)
  2. Museo de la Ciudad which details the history of Ecuador
  3. Plaza de San Franscisco
  4. Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus
  5. Plaza Grande
  6. Basilica de Voto Nacional
  7. La Casa de La Moneda (a money museum)
  8. Calle La Rhonda (picturesque street)

Once you have toured all the key landmarks in the historical center head back to Calle La Rhonda for the evening as at night this street comes alive with food, artisans, games and music. The street itself is safe so you can wander up and down enjoying the atmosphere and get dinner and drinks.

DAY 2

 In the morning, get up early and wander the Mercado Central to experience the morning hustle and bustle and then taxi to Capilla del Hombre Art Gallery. This gallery explores the suffering of indigenous and poor people in Ecuador and the building overlooks the city. Allow 2 hours to explore here. Entry includes a free tour in English. From here, you can have a wander around the La Floresta neighbourhood which is filled with art galleries and eateries and stop for lunch.

In the afternoon, head to Mitad del Mundo. You can get transport here from Community Hostel whether or not you are staying here – the transport will take you to both main ecuator sites. Although neither site is exactly on the ecuator its still a fun trip and photo spot. Take your passport as you can get it stamped with a souvenir stamp here.

Erika xx