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Hi Wayne, I think that speaker might have been me. 🙂
Here is a rundown…and there are many neighborhoods worth exploring in Quito, but these are a few of my faves:
Old Town
Not long ago, Quito’s Old Town, the first-ever locale to be designated a UNESCO World Heritage site and called “el Centro” by locals, was a place best avoided. Pickpockets… ladies “of the night”… stolen goods being re-sold… beggars, thieves and panhandlers… all this and more of life’s seamier side could be found here.
Today, though, after a multi-million-dollar investment by both the government and private interests, Quito’s colonial heart beats to a far tamer and more rhythmic drummer. Rather than mischief, you’re far more likely to encounter schoolchildren on field trips and families strolling the famous “Calle La Ronda” where comfy restaurants and small cafes beckon and street games like hopscotch and ring toss are the norm these days.
This Renaissance—and an abundance of ancient thick-walled, tile-roofed colonial buildings ripe for renovation (at more than 800 acres, this is the largest historic center in the Americas)—has drawn young professionals and artistic types to Old Town. You can still find a bargain, though. On a narrow cobblestone street with views of the gothically iconic Basilica del Voto Nacional church, an impressive 3,325-square-foot building with arched windows and doorways—comprised of five apartments and two ground-floor commercial spaces—is selling for $99,000. Bring your drawing board, it will need complete renovation.
La Mariscal
Sometimes referred to as “Gringolandia” because of the hordes of tourists and backpacker hotels found here, La Mariscal is also where Quito’s rowdiest and most eclectic nightlife and some (but not all) of the city’s best ethnic restaurants can be found.
The intersection of Calles Reina Victoria and Foch is this neighborhood’s epicenter—with bars and outdoor cafes on every corner. Definitely a great place to relax with a drink and do some serious people watching.
La Floresta
Back in 2001 and 2002, my husband and I rented a house for a year in La Floresta, an established (and far quieter) neighborhood just up the hill to the east from La Mariscal. The house had four bedrooms, two bathrooms, even a separate casita for guests. And of course, there was a nice-sized walled yard for our traveling companion, a 90-pound Chocolate Lab we called our “man in a dog suit.” We paid $600 a month.
Today, prices have certainly gone up—as has the popularity of La Floresta. I’d expect to pay $1,000 a month for similar housing in this area today, roughly located between the Hotel Quito and the Swissotel and south to the University La Católica. There are far more upscale restaurants and shops here now than when we lived here 11 years ago, including a modern new SuperMaxi (Ecuador’s leading supermarket chain).
González Suárez
Want to feel like you’re living on Manhattan’s upper west side—while spending less than you would to live high on the hog in Manhattan, Kansas? Then González Suárez is the neighborhood for you.
The neighborhood stretches downward, and takes its name, from Avenida González Suárez, which runs north to south directly atop the highest ridge on Quito’s eastern side. The boulevard is lined by high-rise apartment buildings with ground-floor commercial areas where you’ll find health clubs and spas, beauty salons and dry cleaners as well as chic bakeries, pasta shops, sushi cafes, and more. If you didn’t notice the snow-capped volcanoes off in the distance, you might think you were in any upscale metropolitan neighborhood anywhere in the world.
Apartments on both sides of the street offer beautiful vistas, but if you’re lucky enough to live in an apartment on the east side of the avenue, you’ll be rewarded with a million-dollar view times ten. You’ll look directly upon the distinctively bohemian and charming colonial town of Guápalo, with its famous 17th-century walled church, the Santuario de Guápalo, and to the Valley of Tumbaco and beyond. You can literally see for miles and miles…and the feeling of the fog rolling up the ridge and enveloping you in its cool embrace is simply surreal.
La Carolina
The Parque Carolina area, and specifically Avenida República del Salvador, is another area where we’ve focused our Quito property search. Parque Carolina is one of the city’s largest parks…more than 165 acres of recreational options including jogging and walking paths, volleyball and soccer courts, a pond where you can rent paddleboats, concert centers, an exhibition center, botanical gardens, and more.
La Carolina neighborhood itself surrounds the park. And much like Avenida González Suárez, Avenida República del Salvador is a slice of metropolitan city life—a combination of office and apartment buildings towering above the avenue lined with upscale shops and restaurants. At the northern end of the avenue is Quicentro, one of the city’s largest and most upscale shopping malls. It doesn’t hurt, of course, that Cyril’s, my favorite artesan chocolate shop, is located in this neighborhood.
Several of the city’s new ultra-modern high-rise condo towers are bring built in this neighborhood. From what I’ve seen, the trend is for apartments to be small and compact and for the building to offer many services, including health clubs and swimming pool, theaters, communal barbecue areas, playgrounds for children and so on.
Bellavista
Quito’s Bellavista neighborhood, east of La Carolina and north of González Suárez, borders another of Quito’s biggest parks, the 14,000-acre Parque Metropolitano. Like González Suárez, some of the ridge tops of Bellavista offer expansive views of the city and the western Cordillera. Hence the name. Bellavista literally translates to “beautiful views.”
You’ll find well-established upscale homes in this area as well as apartments with super-sized views of the forested park, the city, or the valleys below the city.
Bellavista is also home to the former home of famous Ecuadorian painter Oswaldo GuayasamĂn and one of the city’s most impressive art museums, the Capilla del Hombre, dedicated to the indigenous and exploited people of Latin America. Be sure to visit when you travel to Quito…it’s interesting to see the painter’s home and studio (with extraordinary city views) and the museum itself, with its large-format murals, is hauntingly impressive.
Quito Tenis/El Batan (and Cumbres/Colines de Pichincha)
Where do U.S. embassy staff and international professionals live? Many choose Quito Tenis…and no, that’s not a typo. That’s the way the game is spelled here and if you’re a player, you’ll be happy to know that this neighborhood is named for the ultra-private Quito Tenis and Golf Club located here. With an 18-hole golf course, numerous courts for a variety of racquet sports, swimming pool, soccer fields, gym, health spa, nine restaurants, and more—even an equestrian center.
(Being a member gives you reciprocal rights at major golf and country clubs throughout Latin America and Spain.)
Prices in the upscale Quito Tenis neighborhood tend to be among the highest in the metropolitan area. But this is also considered one of the safest and most luxurious addresses in the city.
The Valleys: Tumbaco, Cumbayá Cumbaya, Los Chillos
If city living is not your style but you’d like to be close to all the amenities the city offers, head for the nearby valleys that can be reached in about 30 minutes from Quito.
The most popular valley towns are Tumbaco and Cumbayá (both in the Tumbaco Valley), just 10-15 miles or less from northern Quito, and close to the location of the new international airport scheduled to open in February, 2103. South of Tumbaco, the Los Chillos Valley is more closely accessible (15 miles) to southern Quito, and home to the popular towns of SangolquĂ, Conocoto, San Rafael and Guangopolo.
You’ll not sacrifice a thing living in any of these, and that’s why most of the city’s middle- and upper-class families and commuters choose to live in the valleys, along with a good number of foreign embassy staff and foreign corporate employees. You’ll find convenient shopping, first-rate hospitals—like the well-respected Hospital de Los Valles in Cumbayá —and excellent schools, including the country’s top private international schools. Cumbayá is also home to the University of San Francisco, Ecuador’s top university.
Because the valleys are at a slightly lower elevation than the city, you’ll find the climate here tends to be a bit sunnier and warmer than in Quito. Tumbaco and Cumbayá, especially, are in the most sheltered parts of the valley.
Give me more time and I will really disappoint you. 🙂
Do you speak Spanish? If you do, you’ll be in better shape to find employment, although keep in mind that wages in Ecuador are very low. The minimum wage is less than $400 a month. It’s doubtful you will find work as an RN, but you may find someone in real estate who might be looking for help, depending on your experience and enthusiasm. The best thing to do is to find a niche that needs filling and start your own small business.
Stray dogs are usually very docile.
Gretchen, I am sorry for your family but this kind of thing has NEVER been my experience in Ecuador. I’ve been living there off and on for a decade now and have never had a problem. I don’t spend much time at all in Guayaquil but I don’t think armed robbery is a “common” occurrence there either. I am not saying it doesn’t happen, but it has never happened to anyone I know.
If this packs in your luggage and is for your personal use, you should not have any problems at all.
I’ll let Edd comment on Cuenca — he lives there and knows the landscape far better than I. There are several small illages around Cuenca that also look attractive – -Paute and Gualaceo come to mind.
From there you could also go to Loja and Vilcabamba for a few days and see how those places suit you.
Or…another small town I like quite a bit is Banos, about three hours south of Quito. (There is also a Banos at Cuenca, so don’t confuse the two. And of course the village of Cotacachi, two hours north of Quito, is very nice. That’s where I live.
You could hire a driver to take you from Quito to Banos and spend a few days there before venturing further south to Cuenca…
So many possibilities…
I’m not a Canadian but the trick to minimizing ATM fees is to choose a bank that doesn’t charge those fees. We’ve chosen Capital One for that reason. I think Citi bank and some others may have accounts that don’t charge foreign transaction or foreign ATM fees. A Google search ought to turn up that info for you.
Any Canadians out there who care to answer this?
Kevin, you were probably on the bus to Ibarra. And they let you off on the Panamerican Highway at the entrance road to Cotacachi. I’ve found it more convenient to take the bus to Otavalo, as I mentioned and then take another bus or taxi from there.
I like being lost so I have never ever used GPS — but my son has one in the US and it is amazing. I understand some type of GPS system is available in Ecuador but not sure what — you can buy the equipment at El Condado Mall in Quito and it is far more expensive than in the U.S.
Just like anywhere else in the world, there are areas to avoid. In Cotacachi where I live, I (a woman) feel safe walking alone at night. I wouldn’t do that in larger cities, of course. In 12 years of living off and on in Ecuador, my husband and I have never been mugged, robbed or otherwise assaulted. Do we know others who have? Yes, of course. And we hear about incidents now and then. But I could count the number of people I personally know who have had a problem on one hand…and I know a lot of people. 🙂
If you are going to have a lot of luggage, I’d suggest a private driver. Your hotel can help with that or you can email Mauricio Bonilla (in English) at Mauricio Bonilla <gbsmaury@hotmail.com>  — and he can arrange transport with his father. Probably about $60 total (not per person). I am hearing that there are still kinks at the new airport and you need to get there 3 hours ahead of your flight. There are buses from Quito to the new airport but I am unsure about the routes between Otavalo and the new airport. Like Edd said, your best bet is to ask someone in Otavalo. You may have to take a bus to the nearest large town (El Quinche, perhaps) and then a taxi from there. If it were me, I would hire a driver. The roads still aren’t finished in and out of the airport and a lot of detours are necessary at this point.
By the way, Ecuador has now been declared malaria free, yahoo!
Right… and sometimes you have to find substitute products. 🙂
Donald, I agree that this is exaggerated nonsense — I’ve been taking taxis in Quito for 12 years now and never had an incidence. I’m not saying it couldn’t happen, but if you use common sense you should be perfectly safe. Look for official yellow taxis with licenses or executive (unmarked) taxis with licenses. Taxis in Quito are transitioning to all having meters, so that will stop the overcharging. If they don’t have a meter, negotiate the fare before you get in. If it seems too high, just say no… or offer what you think is fair and go from there. Restaurants will always call taxis for you late at night. If it is in the wee hours of the morning and you are drunk, alone, in a shady part of town…. then I might worry. But otherwise, I’ve had great and helpful service from most taxi drivers in Ecuador.
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