Quito Travel Guide: My Honest Take – From Stopover to 10 Days

To travellers in Ecuador, Quito is affectionately known as The Vortex, because all roads seem to lead to this mountain city. Every transport connection into the country, from the sierra, the jungle or the coast converges on the capital. If you are planning on visiting Ecuador, you will most likely find yourself in Quito at least once. Its mountain location is awe-inspiring; set in a bowl beneath volcanoes, a sea of lights spill up the surrounding slopes. The taxi-ride from the bus station through the forest of concrete can feel overwhelming, but charmingly, the main attractions are centered on the UNESCO world heritage five-hundred year old town. This is a riot of Baroque fancy, gold-leafed churches, cobbled streets and some of the best museums on the continent. With the Andes overhead, pumping salsa clubs and the Equator on its doorstep, what starts as a transit stop easily becomes a sojourn into one of the great South American cities. Note on safety While I wholeheartedly recommend visiting Quito, it is important to acknowledge the patchy security situation here. It is one of the edgier destinations in South America, and you notice the effects of the crime wave almost immediately...