Welcome to Ecuador.
Consider the following...
1. The high-altitude cities are Really High. Quito at 9,350 is 4K higher than Denver, The Mile High City. Take it easy the first few days, keep hydrated, do not push it. Don't make me tell you how bad some folks feel if they ignore this advice.
2. Take licensed taxis in the cities. There are multiple ways to identify them, but let's keep it simple. A licensed taxi will have a license plate that is all orange or white with an orange stripe. Stay away from the "gypsy" cabs -- which often are not even the standard color, yellow.
Phone or have someone phone for a cab when possible.
3. Take city-to-city buses in the daytime only. Nighttime buses are a security risk due to poor lighting. A variety of events you may not see back home can occur in Ecuador. Earthquake or volcanic eruption, for example, can rain debris on roadways...and you don't want to be dealing with resulting delays at night.
4. Spread your money around your person, including a money-belt or inner compartment. And stay alert. Most crime in Ecuadorian cities is non-violent (except for the place mentioned in #5 below). But there are pickpockets and grab-and-go artists in crowded areas. This week a street urchin on the Ecovia bus line here in Quito jostled me as we boarded a crowded bus, accessed-opened my pouch and stole my cellphone (value $34). He ducked off the bus at the very next stop before I knew what had happened.
5. Avoid Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city. It's hot, humid and not even at the beach. 510 express kidnappings were reported there in a 10.5 month period (Jan.-Nov. 2012; source: Latin American crimewatch publication "Dialogo"). That's way more than any other EC city. You don't need to be in Guayaquil.
Have a great visit.
cccmedia, Quito
City Visitors: Ignore This Thread and Your Trip Could Be Ruined
I am concerned about you point #1...altitude.
I currently live at 5,300 feet elevation and have for 6 years.
I tried living in Santa Fe, NM which is up at 7,000 feet elevation and I felt like I was going to
faint all the time. I spent a month there but perhaps if I had stayed longer I would have adjusted.
In speaking with the locals there they said it takes about 6 weeks to adjust......but some people never
do adjust and there is no remedy for that except to move to a lower elevation.
I would though also add that Santa Fe was the first place I landed when I moved to New Mexico from
the east coast (Atlanta, GA. - which is only 700 feet elevation). Perhaps going from 5,300 to 9,000
wouldn't be as much of a shock as 700 to 7,000.
Can anyone suggest a city around 5,300 or 6,000 feet elevation that is sizable and has most of what
would be offered in Cuenca?.....a place know for being safe for Gringo's.?
Thanks in advance.
Baños de Agua Santa (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈbaɲoz ðe ˈaɣwa ˈsanta]), commonly referred to as Baños, is a city in eastern Tungurahua Province, in central Ecuador. Baños is the second most populous city in Tungurahua, after Ambato, the capital, and is a major tourist center. It is known as the "Gateway to the Amazon", as it the last big city still located in the mountains before reaching the jungle and other towns that are located in the Amazon River basin.
Baños is located on the northen foothills of the Tungurahua volcano, at an elevation of 1,820 metres 5,971 feet).
I haven´t been there, but a Gringo amigo told me he liked it well enough that he could live there.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ba%C3%B1os_de_Agua_Santa
Thanks for your input I will check it out.
Vilcabamba is at the right altitude -- 5,000 to 5,300 feet altitude, depending on which websites you visit -- and attracts a relatively high percentage of Gringos.
It's also in a valley, the so-called Valley of Longevity, that is often described as lush, verdant and beautiful. Such places, of course, get that way due to lots of rain, and Vilca is no exception.
I thought it was worth mentioning even though it's smaller than Banos...and has a New Age flavor that is inviting to some and might deter others.
cccmedia in Quito
Thank you also for the input, I will go take a look,
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