Ecuador and The Galapagos Islands Travel Guide

Yay! Traveling! It is what I love most. This year we took our entire family of six to Ecuador! People are generally surprised this country was our destination of choice, but I would pick this vacation all over again if I could. Ecuador is magical!

Also we met a couple from Ecuador while living in Las Vegas.  We have been solid friends for the last 10 years. About a year and a half ago they decided to return to their home county.  They day they told us they were moving I nailed down dates to visit!
One of the most amazing things about Ecuador is that they use the US DOLLAR!!!  Yep, no need to exchange money. 

We flew into Quito, Ecuador. Our friends live in the suburbs of this pretty city. We stayed with them, so I have no advice on hotels. I do have advice on car rentals! Every rental company I looked at gave you a mileage allowance when renting cars with a hefty charge if you went over miles. I knew we planned on visiting the jungle and I am so used to unlimited mileage this was a bit frustrating.  I finally let my husband research out the car rental situation. He found that if you book through RENTALCARS.COM you will get unlimited miles. We did just that, but you MUST book through their site.  Our rental vehicle through this online service ended up being from AVIS.  We did get unlimited miles.  There was a couple turning in a car at the same time as us at the end of our trip. They went 150 km over there allowance and had a hefty charge!  Rentalcars.com for the win!

These mountain top swings are popular in Ecuador! This one is in Quito at the top of the TelefériQo (cable car).  Adult non resident tickets to ride the tram were $8 each.  Once you get up to this pretty view point the swing is free.
We found this llama at the top of the TelefériQo. There was an Ecuadorian women with her small kids with three llamas at the top of the mountain. It cost $1 to snap this shot, but look how dang cute this photo turned out.


At the top of the TelefériQo we were able to take a 45 minute horse ride up in the Andes with great views of Quito.  I highly recommend this excursion. The cost was only $10 a person. Cash only. My entire family only cost $60!

While in Quito you will also want to visit the Middle of the World Monument known as the Mitad del Mundo. The cost is $5 per person. Visit the equator is EPIC mostly just to say you have done it. This can't be missed.


Downtown Quito is gorgeous! It reminds me a Europe with fountains, cathedrals and renowned architecture!  I especially found this city fascinating as our friend kept pointing to gorgeous colonial buildings and letting us know they were once owned by his grandpa.  I mean his GRANDPA! That was not too long ago.  All these years and I had no idea our best friends are from early Ecuadorian nobility.  The things you learn when you travel!
After Quito our friends took us to Baños, Ecuador! This was probably my favorite part of the tip. This part of Ecuador is gorgeous and adventurous! The photo above is a picture from a famous waterfall in the area called The Pailon Del diablo. Be prepared to get wet. I had all my kids and myself wear rain boots or Natives and a rain jacket. There are lots of mists of water along the trail. You are able to view the back of the waterfall as well which if you aren't careful you will get drenched. This is an easy hike! 
The waterfall is in the background and you can tell we are damp!
There are a few suspension bridges along the path as well.  


Zip lining in Baños is EVERYWHERE!!  The cost is anywhere from $10 to $20 a person. There is no age limit on anything as far as I could tell, so my adventurous six year old was having a blast! Make sure you barter in Ecuador.  Luckily I had natives with me, so they did a lot of the work for me.  My husband speaks fluent Spanish which is also a plus.  



Yes! More swinging! This time in Baños at the world famous La Casa del Arbol ! As you can tell we hit a cloudy day, but look up pictures of when the sun in shining. The views are breathtaking!  This swing is on top of a large mountain. On a sunny day it looks like you are flying over a large mountain range. The cost was $1 to get into the Las Casa del Arbol and $50 for kids.  There were 4 different swings and you could go as many times as you wanted.  There are workers that push you on the swing. They like to twist you around and make you fly high. We loved this place and it cost me a whole $4 for the entire family! 
As far as accomodations go in Banos we stayed at the La Casa Verde- Eco Guest House. It is right outside of Banos on a gorgeous property with a massive flowing river in the back. Breakfast was available for free every morning and was delicious. If you book online you may be able to use a credit card, but we booked the property when we got there. No credit cards were accepted. Cash only. In fact, almost everywhere in Banos only cash was accepted including restaurants, zipling, ice cream shops, etc. Definitely have cash with you.


This is a pretty familiar view while driving in Ecuador. The country is beautiful and green.

You will also find a lot of local delicacies like GUINEA PIG! No, we did not try this!



After Baños we headed back to Quito and then flew over to The Galapagos Islands! I know this is the part of the trip most people are searching for information! You do not need a guide to visit the Galapagos. I also thought you need to be on a tour or a cruise ship, but NOPE! Just buy a plane ticket and go.
Flights to the Galapagos only go from either Quito or Guayaquil, Ecuador. There are no international flights that go directly to the Galapagos, so you must head to mainland Ecuador first.  Tickets from Quito are around $300 round trip.  Once you get to the airport you need to buy a $20 immigration card at the airport per person. CASH ONLY!

Once your plane is close to landing the flight attendants spray the cabin with disinfectant spray. After you exit the plane you will get your passport stamped and pay a $100 per person National Park Entrance Fee. The kids entrance fee is $50! Again, CASH ONLY!
From the airport no matter what your destination is you need to make it to the island of Santa Cruz. The airport is on Baltra Island which is a small desert island. The only thing on the island is the airport. You will take a small bus ride to a ferry. Then a short ferry ride to the Island of Santa Cruz. From there we grabbed a taxi which took us to our hotel in the town of Puerto Ayora . It was about a 40 minutes drive and all three modes of transportation together cost my family of 6 around $50. On the way to our hotel our driver suggested we stop by and see the giant turtles as it was on the way and it would be a hefty taxi ride back.  The cost was $25 for my family of six to visit a large area of land where large turtles are just hanging out. You are not allowed to touch any animals in the Galapagos.

If you are heading to another island make it to Puerto Ayora and then take a ferry to your destination.

We spent 4 nights at the HOTEL FIESTA and loved it!  It is HOT in the Galapagos, so my kids spend hours in this pool each day.  Each morning a complimentary breakfast was served. First you would be given a plate of fresh fruit, yogurt and granola. This was followed by toast, scrambled eggs and another bakery item which changed each day.  It was excellent and filling. 

We booked two rooms at this location. Each room has a king size bed and then two twins. The rooms were spacious. Traveling with four kids sometimes means booking two hotels rooms.





We spent two days in Santa Cruz scuba diving! Most of the action is underwater.  Hammerhead sharks, sea lions, Galapagos sharks, manta rays can all be found in a single dive here. I highly recommend NOT booking your dives early. The rates are much higher online than if you wait and book your dives when you get to the island.  Online the rates were around $245 for two dives. We paid $160 for two dives the first day and $150 for two dives the second day with Galapagos Travellers. There shop is right in the heart of Puerto Ayora, Santa Cruz. You can't miss it.

My 11 and 13 year old are Padi certified divers. You must be 10 years old to get certified. Luckily the company allowed my 9 and 6 year old to join our dive session FREE OF CHARGE! They snorkeled with their own guide while we were scuba diving. I don't think this is always offered, but again! Barter!

Again! Bring cash!! If you use a credit card this establishment charges you an extra 22%!  Highway robbery, so be prepared.


The sea lions are playful in the water. They mostly come up to land to take a nap! We happen to catch these two coming out of the water when we were getting on a taxi boat.
Every afternoon the boat comes in with the catch of the day for the restaurants! This is fascinating as pelicans, sea lions and other animals swarm up around these men in the hopes of getting some food! An hour or so later you can walk down what the locals call KIOSK STREET and restaurants galore are cooking up today's catch. I am not a seafood eater, but there is a great Italian restaurant at the end of the street that was delicious for those of us not wanting the local catch.  The owner grew up in Italy. There are also quite a few establishments set up for the tourists with chicken fingers, hamburgers and fries. You won't go hungry.
Tortuga Bay is worth checking out if you find yourself on the island of Santa Cruz. This is a gorgeous beach. The waves are quite strong, but if you head up to the right (follow the locals) you will find a cove great for swimming. We were able to see baby sharks and manta rays while swimming. Yes, even these black iguanas are swimming in the water. They are pretty chill even though they look like tiny dinosaurs.

Since we spent time on the mainland we did not go island hopping in the Galapagos. You need a good two weeks to be able to see everything. If you are going to the other islands it is a $25-$35 ferry trip to Isabela or San Cristobal.  From what I hear the majority of the sea lions are on San Cristobal. Flamingos and penguins along with volcano craters are on Isabela.  

There Galapagos Islands were more populated than I expected. There is virtually no crime there, so it is an extremely safe place to travel! Best of luck if you decide to plan a trip!

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