Quito, Ecuador has something for everyone! This beautiful, ancient and diverse city is one that we know you will enjoy.
The city itself is 41 kilometers (about 25 miles) long, but only 7 kilometers (about 4 miles) wide, as it is nestled in the Andes mountains, between peaks of 4,000 plus meters (over 13,000 feet). Time to get from North to South? On a good day, in your own car, with little traffic: over an hour. However, many neighborhoods are very walkable and public transportation connects all but the most northern and southern areas.
Love history? Quito was the first city put on the UNESCO World Heritage list and is considered the best-preserved Latin American City with many museums, cathedrals and historic buildings.
Outdoorsy? Quito is a very walkable city and has parks all over! It is home to South America’s largest park, Parque Metropolitano Guangultagua.
Notable areas
Old Town is home to most of the old buildings and cathedrals. It’s a great place to walk around as there is always a lot going on. This is also a great place to eat inexpensive Ecuadorian cuisine.
La Mariscal is known as the foreigner area and is where you’ll find the best international cuisine as well as hostels, bars, street vendors, tourists, backpackers and tour guides. While not for everyone, this is a good place to visit if you are missing the US.
Local transportation in the form of buses run throughout the city. It’s easy to get around and most people are very friendly if you ask for directions. There are three main bus lines that run north to south on their own tracks in the middle of the street. They are the Trolebus (green line), Ecovia (red line), and Metrobus (blue line).
If you need to go north or south any distance, these are your best options. Going east to west or to areas not serviced by these larger buses will require you to take the regular buses that go on the normal road. These stop at designated areas along most large streets. Pay careful attention to where they are going as buses that look the same will go on different routes and buses that look different will go to the same place. It might sound confusing, but you’ll get the hang of it in no time!