What is quito known for

The Northern Highlands are home to important indigenous groups like the Otavalos, known worldwide by its tapestries, textiles production and embroidery. Explore Guayaquil, the main economic port of Ecuador. This fascinating city has gone through amazing urbanistic transformations. Home to the black-breasted puffleg This beautiful little hummingbird is critically endangered because there are less than left in the wild.

The highest constitutional capital in the world Speaking of heights, Quito is also the highest constitutional capital in the world, sitting at 2, m above sea level. Altitude sickness Because of its hight, some do experience altitude sickness when visiting Quito.

Here are some tips to recover: Drink lots of water Avoid big meals and alcohol Get some much-needed rest And ascend to higher altitudes slowly to let yourself acclimatize 7.

An amazing rose plantation Quito has an amazing rose plantation that measures 22 acres and was established in Watch on YouTube 8. No wonder this cloud forest is one of the most biodiverse places on earth! Long, sunny days Because of its proximity to the equator, much of Ecuador — including Quito — has 12 hours of sunlight all year long. The sun rises around am every morning and sets around pm every night. The most populated Ecuadorian city As of the census, Quito has a population of around 2,, making it the most populated city in Ecuador.

Only 2 seasons Like many areas of Ecuador, Quito only has two seasons: wet and dry. Related Tours. Proud members of:. Blog About Contact Us. Powered by Auveron Studio. Powered by Join. Join the , Members. Search Advanced. By Properties. Cultural Criteria: i ii iii iv v vi Natural Criteria: vii viii ix x.

Category Cultural Natural Mixed. All With videos With photo gallery. Country Region Year Name of the property. Without With. City of Quito Quito, the capital of Ecuador, was founded in the 16th century on the ruins of an Inca city and stands at an altitude of 2, m.

Ciudad de Quito Fundada en el siglo XVI sobre las ruinas de una antigua ciudad inca y encaramada a 2. Source: unesco. Integrity The great majority of attributes upon which the Outstanding Universal Value of the City of Quito is based are present and intact. Authenticity In general, the urban plan and its integration into the landscape may be considered as entirely authentic because the original generic form has remained unaltered and the Plaza Mayor Main Square has developed organically with very few changes.

Protection and management requirements With regard to the legal domain, aspects relating to the protection and safeguarding of cultural heritage are considered in the Constitution of the State, in the Law and Regulations for Cultural Heritage, in the Code of Territorial Organization, Autonomy and Decentralisation COTAD and in the Law on Culture which is awaiting approval.

News 1. Events 1. WebGL must be enable, see documentation. Media Activities News Events Links. State of Conservation SOC by year Donate Now. Extended 44 th session of the World Heritage Committee. For a little luxury, Quito has some fantastic value 5-star hotels to consider. This boutique hotel offers all the modern conveniences amongst gorgeous antiques and old-world charm.

This intimate space boasts an excellent location in Old Town. If we were to splurge in Quito, this would be our 1 choice. For longer stays in Quito, Airbnb can be a great option to have the conveniences of a kitchen, laundry, etc. There are plenty of Airbnb throughout the city. Of course, shorter stays are possible too. But we find that quick stays in Quito can be better served by a hotel or hostel, which are similarly inexpensive.

The weather in Quito is very unpredictable. The forecasted temperatures can be somewhat trusted. Or a compact travel umbrella like this. Weather changes in an instant in Quito. A beautiful sunny day can turn into a torrential downpour with almost no transition. Always take a rain jacket or umbrella with you even if it appears to be a bright sunshiny day. June through August are the driest months in Quito. But it still rains then too. The Spanish word for lunch is almuerzo.

But in Quito, it takes on a slightly different meaning. The incredible values are very common. Simply look for the sandwich boards or a handwritten sign outside of restaurants during lunchtime.

Quito is one of the highest capital cities in the world, with an altitude of 3, meters. Altitude sickness can occur at altitudes higher than 2, meters. Quito is meters beyond that. Some people visiting Quito from sea level experience symptoms of altitude sickness. Allow a few days to acclimatize before pursuing physical activities like hiking Cotopaxi and Quilotoa.

For those who are particularly prone to altitude sickness, consider taking this natural medication. Avoid that throbbing headache and instead enjoy your trip to Quito! In Quito, visitors are hit with a double-whammy of the equatorial sun and altitude. The sun in Quito is no joke. Visitors manage to get burned even on cloudy days. Pack sunscreen with you. It tends to be much more expensive in Quito compared to US prices.

Use at least SPF We like this Banana Boat sunscreen that Amazon sells at a good price. Also, consider traveling with this compact LifeStraw. We have one and it really came in handy a few times when we realized we were out of bottled water at night after all the stores were closed. Ecuador uses the US dollar as its currency. Some places that do accept credit cards may add a fee. Even twenties can sometimes be tough to break.

Carry small change if possible. It is almost always required if you do make any credit card purchases. It can be worth it to spend a few extra quarters to take an Uber or taxi, which both have reasonable rates. Often a taxi driver will turn on his meter upon you entering the cab. If he does, go with it. If not, be sure to negotiate a price immediately or you could end up paying more than expected. We found Uber rates tend to be about the same, or slightly cheaper than a taxi.

Ubers in Quito are safe and reliable. Uber is also a good option for non-Spanish speakers. As long as you have an international data connection, the same Uber app you use at home works in Quito.

Keep very vigilant, particularly in crowded places frequented by tourists. We found Quito to be safe overall. But there is a real threat of pickpockets in touristic areas. This holds particularly true in Old Town and in crowded public transport. Be very mindful if someone seems to be innocently bumping into you. Keep belongings close in these instances. You never know what could go wrong during a trip to Quito, from a minor incident like lost luggage or flight cancelation to a major disaster like an earthquake or a car accident.

Travel insurance will not only come to your rescue. It will also cover those unexpected costs. We always use travel insurance while roaming around Ecuador and recommend it. Enter the dates for your trip to get a quick estimate. Pack for Quito as you would for any cool-weather destination. We recommend plenty of activewear and sun protection. Check out our Ultimate Travel Packing List for all our packing tips and travel gear ideas, which we wrote while based in Quito.

We always love to hear from people who may have stumbled across our posts. Lastly, if this post has helped you, please consider sticking with us to continue receiving travel tips and inspiration! You can actually visit the Galapagos independently for cheap! Yet adventure abounds in the Andes that surround and our latest guide spills all the details. Guayaquil is near the coast with a warm and tropical vibe. So we set off on a rural adventure to find out. Read our tale to see how.

Publishing note: This article about the Best Things To Do in Quito is continually updated to best reflect the latest and up-to-date info.

Last updated January 29, Thank you so much for this very detailed blog. The best of any destination guide I have seen for any city! Keep up the great work. Just wanted to thank you for all the great info. I will be in Quito for 10 days in June for my 60th birthday. I have reserved a room at the Community Hostel and will be booking my trips through them.

I loved all your links and videos. Job well done, thanks again. Wow, great information on this site! Thanks so much for taking time to write and update it. I have one question about the Sunday bike days — do we have to rent bikes to go on the roads or can we get them elsewhere?

So glad you found it helpful! Most people that do the bike ride are local to Quito, so just bring their own bikes. You bring grab a bike from wherever to join in the fun. Have a great trip! It could be possible, but time would be tight. The main equator monument, Mitad del Mundo, is located on a different highway than the road to Otavalo.

Thank you for this guide! I really like and appreciate the details and organization of information. We referred to it a few times during our one week stay in Quito, and it was very helpful.

There were a couple of things that were different than what was described here, not sure if it was just our luck or maybe some things have changed since your last update. We boarded at the El Tejar bus stop although I imagine there are other stops along the route that people could get to , which was about a 15 min walk from Plaza Grande, along Meijia until it turns into El Tejar rough coordinates here: Amazonas until we reached La Carolina Parque area, where we saw a few, but not as many as we expected.

Google Maps has pretty good transit information on Quito, and we used it to get around with no problem. Anyway, sorry for the long comment. Am glad to hear this was helpful!

Thanks so much for taking the time for your thoughtful response and feedback. Great to hear about not having to do the transfer. And your details are awesome. Will incorporate this info into the directions when we make a quick update to this post again soon.