AbFabTravels

Is it worth visiting Quito?

by | Destinations, South America | 2 comments

Quito, the capital of Ecuador, was the start and end point of our trip to the Galapagos Islands. Since we were travelling all the way to South America, it made sense to add on a couple of extra days to explore one of the highest capital cities in the world. This is exactly what we did, but was it worth visiting Quito? What is there to see and do in Quito, especially if one only has a couple of days?

When we researched “what to do in Quito”, most of the guides advised leaving Quito to visit places like Mindo or the National Park, Cotopaxi. These are both at least a two-hour drive away. We did, in fact, spend one day in Mindo, but Cotopaxi was closed because the volcano had been a bit too active! Another suggestion for activities in Quito was to head to Mitad del Mundo and straddle the equator, but even this is a way outside of Quito itself.

So what is there to see in Quito in one day?

Jane on swing above Quito for is it worth visiting Quito?

The best view over Quito is from 12950 ft!

But first, a few facts about Quito

At 2850 ft, Quito is the second highest capital city in the world (after La Paz in Bolivia). The surrounding landscape of the Andean mountains makes for a dramatic backdrop to this city. Quito is the oldest capital city in South America and was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1978, largely because of its well-preserved historic centre. Quito was built on the site of an ancient Incan city and its full name is San Francisco de Quito.

One day in Quito

Of our additional two days staying in Quito, we spent one day on trip to Mindo in the cloud forest. The other day we spent exploring Quito.

Wandering around the old town

View of narrow street in Quito with angel statue in background

The old town is very characterful with lots of narrow, winding streets, plazas and parks.

Plaza in middle of Quito to show it is worth visiting Quito

Building with balcony and statues in Quito old town

We enjoyed wandering around and soaking up the atmosphere. Some of the architecture, particularly of the churches and other religious buildings, is quite beautiful.

Church with tower in Quito for is it worth visiting Quito post

Church dome in Quito

Beautiful old church facade in Quito

Architecture in old town Quito

Large white church on hill to show it is worth visiting Quito

Quito is known for its coffee shops and chocolate shops, but we particularly enjoyed meandering through the markets.

Fruit stall in one of the markets in Quito

For a small fee, some stall holders in the markets will allow you to sample a wide range of fruits they have for sale.

Plate with fruit and people sampling

Exploring the new town – or not

In addition to the old town, there is the modern Quito, which is very different. It is known for its nightlife and is famed for its eateries.  Several of us from the Galapagos trip, booked on to a free walking tour of this area, known as Mariscal Sucre. We took a taxi to the designated meeting place, a rather swish hotel, but the guide never appeared. The event was nothing to do with the hotel, which was just a meeting point, so they were unable to help.

No worries. We set off to explore by ourselves, discovering some interesting buildings, such as the Quito Publishing House, pictured below. This building was ranked 8th among the 500 best socio-environmental projects in Latin America in 2015.

Modern looking building in Quito

There was some fabulous street art:

Brightly coloured mural on side of building

And a great view over the city:

Peter and Jane with view over Quito in background

We also discovered this quirky cafe where all the furniture is constructed from bike bits.

Cafe furniture constructed from bike bits

Then we found a great cocktail bar!

Group of people sitting at table with cocktails for is it worth visiting Quito

There are lots of eateries and bars in Mariscal Sucre.

Riding the Teleferico in Quito

By far the highlight of exploring Quito though was the teleferico – the cable car which rises high above the city reaching an altitude of 3947 meters (12950 ft). This alone made Quito worth visiting. The cable car runs up the east side of the Pichincha Volcano and yes, it is an active volcano! It last erupted in 2002.

It costs $8.50 to ride the teleferico and the journey lasts around 20 minutes. When we went it was very quiet and there were no queues, but I believe that this is not always the case.

Cable car on the Teleferico in Quito

The views from the top are magnificent and even though it was not the clearest of days, we could see Cotopaxi in the distance.

View to Cotopaxi from the teleferico in Quito

View over Quito from top of teleferico

There are several trails to explore from the top of the cable car – and swings! I loved this: swinging out over the city at such an altitude is really quite an experience.

Jane on swing above city for is it worth visiting Quito

I would definitely recommend riding the teleferico in Quito.

Two people on swings at top of the cable car in Quito

 

Is Quito safe?

Quito is regarded as relatively safe in Ecuador, but it is important to have your wits about you. We were aware that pick-pocketing is an issue. Whilst wandering through one of the parks, one of our group was suddenly hit by a murky brown substance and a young man rushed up, apparently to help clean the bird crap from his shirt. We immediately closed in and shooed him away. Fortunately, he went. I have no idea what the substance was with which Peter had been squirted, but it was not bird poop. An innocent event? Given that exactly the same incident happened to someone else in our group later the same day, I doubt it.

It is also worth noting that when we returned from the Galapagos, we asked our guide for restaurant recommendations in Quito. She suggested a venue about a half mile from our hotel and it turned out to be an excellent recommendation. However, she was clear, that we should stick together and no one should walk through the streets by themselves in this area.

In short, it is important to be alert and take sensible precautions in Quito. Click here for other general tips and advice about visiting Eucador.

(For information, the restaurant we visited was called Miskay. It was a ten minute walk from our hotel, the Mercure. The food was imaginative with many traditional dishes on the menu and it was well prepared. The price was also very reasonable.)

 

Is it worth visiting Quito? Concluding thoughts

Of course it is worth visiting Quito! It is worth visiting any capital city in the world because each city has a unique character, culture and history. Who would not want to experience this? We enjoyed our time in Quito and have no regrets about visiting. It was time well spent. However, Quito is not up there with capital cities like Rome or Paris or Edinburgh. We are pleased we went, but Quito has been ticked off the list now. We would probably not go out of our way to spend more time in Quito in future.

Have you been? Do you agree? Please let me know in the comments.

 

If you enjoyed reading the article Is it worth visiting Quito?, you may also be interested in the following:

 

 

 

 

If you liked this post, please share on social media

Pin image for is it worth visiting Quito. Girl on swing with white writing.

 

 

 

2 Comments

  1. What a
    fab experience Jane on the swing looking over the city. Loved the cafe with the bike bits. Great post, honest and informative.

    Reply
    • Thank you! So pleased you enjoyed it, Liz.

      Reply

Please leave a comment. Your email address will not be published. Comments are held in moderation before being published in the blog.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Jane profile pic

Hello

Hello!  I’m Jane. I live in the Lake District in the north of England with my husband, Peter. We love to travel, but this is a great place to call home.

We gave up work in order to travel and do all the things we were not able to do in our careers. We know we are incredibly lucky to be able to do this.

We are quite active and love skiing, hiking, biking, exploring etc, but we also enjoy history, art, music, science…..and good food and wine! In this blog, you will find articles on all of these subjects as we discover them on our travels.

Please subscribe to the blog. You will only receive an email letting you know when there is a new post. I would love to have your feedback and hear about your experiences.

Thank you!

Jane

Meet Jasper, our border collie!

Jane and Peter with black and white dog on rocky landscape

Copyright

All photos & content are © Jane Frith and may not be used without permission. (Sharing this blog post on social media is appreciated though!)

Follow us on Social Media