Long Weekend in Quito
 

I've spent the last year admiring the trip reports on Flyertalk and thought I would give back by sharing some of my recent adventures. In the fall of 2013, my wife and I spent a long weekend traveling to Quito, Ecuador. We had a fantastic time and would not hesitate to return.

Travel: We booked roundtrip tickets on American Airlines, via Miami, using Avios and stayed at the Marriott hotel. The flights were fine, but the flight times are terrible when traveling from the US. We arrived late at night and had to depart very early in the morning. For the most part we used local taxis to get around, with the exception of two guided tours. We took advantage of the British Airways Lounge (priority pass) in Washington Dulles, the AAdmiral's Club in Miami, and the Sala VIP in Quito. All were adequate, but nothing to go out of our way to visit again.

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The old First Class section of the BA Lounge at IAD. The lounge has since been remodeled

Day 1 (Friday): Having arrived late the night before, we were a little sluggish getting out the door for our first day of touring. As first time visitors, we felt obligated to visit the Equator and see the other major tourist spots of the city. While it is certainly geared towards tourists, I'm glad that we did it. We enjoyed learning about the history involved in marking the Equator (which they got wrong) and about various other facts associated with life on the Equator. We were able to stop at both the original marking and at a spot nearby where the actual equator is located. Guides provide some great explanation about the history and culture of Ecuador.

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The monument to the original marking of the Equator

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The actual Equator several hundred meters away

We followed our stop at the Equator with a visit to "La Virgin del Panecillo". The statue sits atop a hill overlooking the city of Quito. The views are breathtaking…….literally. The altitude difference between home and Quito did start to affect us and was most noticeable sitting high above the city.

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La Virgen del Panecillo

We followed with tours of the major churches, plazas, and buildings in the city's historic center. Our final stop was outside of the presidential palace and the Plaza de la Independencia.

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Plaza de San Francisco

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Daily life outside one of the churches

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The interior of each church was ornate, intricate, and unique.

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Plaza de la Independencia

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Entrance to the Presidential Palace. We did not go inside, but tours are available to the public.

We had lunch at Hasta la Vuelta, Senor located just off the plaza. The restaurant has a unique story about how it was founded. We really enjoyed eating there while looking down at the shops and people below.

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View from the restaurant

After returning to our hotel to relax for a while, we changed clothes and headed out for a fantastic dinner at Zazu which was not far from the Marriott. The food and service were fantastic. Despite the short distance we were strongly advised to take a taxi in both directions.

Day 2 (Saturday): Started our morning with coffee on the deck outside the Marriott's club lounge. The views were very nice of the mountains surrounding the city.

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We arranged for a private horseback riding trip in the countryside followed by lunch at one of the local haciendas. The altitude gave us some trouble, but didn't stop us from enjoying the views and scenery. It was great to get out of the city and see more of the country. We returned in the early evening and enjoyed dinner in the executive lounge on the patio. I'm a huge fan of the weather in Quito. It never got too hot and never got too cold. I'm told its consistent pretty much year round.

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Day 3 (Sunday): We chose to explore other parts of the old city on our own. We spent a pleasant day walking through some of the plazas and watching performances. We walked to the Basilica del Voto Nacional. While the main part of the Basilica was closed, it was possible to climb to the top of the towers. The initial parts were simple and easy. However, to get all the way to the top requires a real adventure crossing the inner ceiling via a wood bridge and climbing external ladders. The reward was breathtaking views of the city.

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Sights around Quito's old town

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Sights around Quito's old town

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Street performers

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Outside the Basilica looking back at Panecillo Hill

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Climbing to the top

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The outside ladders were not for the faint of heart

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The reward for the big climb

Day 4 (Monday): Our flight departed from Quito airport early in the morning. Cabs from the hotel are more expensive than the regular city cabs. As such, we arranged for a service to come pick us up instead. The new Quito Mariscal Sucre airport is a ways out of the city. Traffic at such an early hour was light, but the journey still took nearly an hour. The airport itself is nice, but nothing special. Check in was relatively easy for American Airlines, but other counters looked overwhelmed. We spent some time at the Sala VIP Lounge. It was marginally better than staying in the terminal itself.

Conclusion: We had a great time in Ecuador. I certainly would have liked to spend a few more days exploring some of the sights we missed. The people were friendly (they even tolerated my poor attempts at Spanish), the food was fantastic, and there are plenty of things to do. Considering that Ecuador does not require visas for US Citizens and the USD is the de facto currency, it is a relatively easy trip for a short visit.

Thanks for the report! I'm considering going to Quito this year, and really enjoyed reading it.

What tour companies did you use for your trip to the Equator?

We used Gray Line Ecuador for the half day Equator and city tour. We used Surtrek for our horseback riding excursion. Have a great trip.

I noticed one needs as long as 2 weeks in Ecuador mainland and that does not even include Galapagos.

Makes me want to go. So it takes time to get used to the altitude?

In Denver I always had to take aspirin and drink tons of water.

The altitude is much more noticeable than Denver. It took a day or two to get adjusted, but wasn't too bad. We would have a mild headache by the end of the day and got tired more easily. Water (some wine) and aspirin did the trick for us.