At a road
distance of ±440km from Quito, Cuenca,
at an elevation of 2500 masl, is located in the
Andes of
Ecuador slightly lower than
capital Quito.
With about half a million inhabitants, Cuenca, capital
of the Azuay Province, is the third largest city of the
country. The colonial center is listed as a UNESCO World
Heritage for its beautiful colonial buildings. Most
tourists visit the historic part of town, which is small
and incredibly charming. No doubt, colonial old town
Cuenca is among the ten most beautiful historic cities
of Latin America and absolutely worth a visit. Rather
poorly known internationally, the streets are dominated
by the Cuenqueños (inhabitants from Cuenca), even during
the tourist season, while there are so many things to
do in Cuenca, Ecuador.
Dear visitor, our website gives you info about
our
National Parks Tours,
our
Galapagos programs, the
Cuyabeno Loop,
as well as our
Cuyabeno and Cofan Lodges in the Amazon.
For those who want to combine the
Exuberant Nature of Ecuador with the Famous culture of Peru, we even have a
7
days Highlights of Peru extension! Our website
gives you the best information on the internet, because we are the only tour
operator run by professional biologists. Take a look:
OUR PARKS AND TRIBES ECO TOURS
(Scroll down for the full description of the current page)
STANDARD COFAN LODGE TOUR
Start your Cuyabeno journey on
Ecuador's most scenic wide Amazon tributary, the Aguarico River. Spend 3 nights in the Cofan Lodge,
exploring the lower Cuyabeno and Zábalo Rivers.
The Cuyabeno Loop explores
the breathtaking scenery of lower Cuyabeno and Zábalo
Rivers and the Cuyabeno Lake. Watch the amazing birds and
wildlife. Pass 2 nights with the amazing Cofan Indians in
the Cofan Lodge and enjoy 2 nights of comfort in the famous
Cuyabeno Lodge.
The Lagarto Cocha Expedition on hidden
creeks and lakes is the best Amazon journey in Ecuador!
Discover Indian tribes in Ecuador, Monkeys, Sloths,
Dolphins. No other Amazon rainforest in any of the
Amazon-Andean countries can match the wildlife viewing
of Cuyabeno and it is far better than Yasuní!
The Cuyabeno Lake Program
explores all the wild places surrounding the Cuyabeno Lake.
Bonsai-shaped Macrolobia trees with the whispering of the
mysterious prehistoric Hoatzin birds and the noisy Blue and
Yellow Macaws. Our Cuyabeno Lodge is on the best location,
because we were the first and chose the best location on a
seasonal island in the Cuyabeno Lake itself.
Our Northern Andes Tour lets you get a
taste of some of the best Andean National Parks,
visiting the highest groves in the world: the Polylepis
trees, the highest mountain in the world calculated from
the center of the Earth, the Chimborazo with Vecuñas and
Lamas, the highest active volcano in the world, the
Cotopaxi.
Our National Parks Tours take you on a fantastic
journey along the best possible sample of Andean and coastal
parks. They have been designed to complement
Galapagos and/or Amazon cruises. They can start from different places, particularly Quito,
Guayaquil and Cuenca. While the full program lasts 9 days, it is possible to
make a limited selection of parks, like the 6 days' "Andes
and Coast" module.
We have a fabulous selection of Galapagos
programs, including cruises, island hopping, scuba
diving or relaxing on one of the many different hotels
varying from modest inns to deluxe resorts.
A fabulous program for visiting the most
famous cultural highlights Lima, Cusco, Machu Picchu and the
Sacred Valley. At the same time it serves as the Lima hub
for the Peru National Parks Tour. This module is an
extension to our National Parks Tour Ecuador and/or Galapagos National Park
and/or Amazon Cruises.
The first major settlement was named Guapondeleg and built
by the Canari people. About 50 years before the Spanish
arrived, the Incas conquered the Canari and rebuilt and
renamed the city Tomebamba. Nevertheless, when the Spanish
arrived the city had been largely abandoned. The reason
remains a mystery. Indians told the Spanish stories about
golden buildings and splendor in Tomebamba and of course
it became one of the candidate places for the El Dorado
myth. The Spanish founded Cuenca - named after the city
in Spain - on the ruins of Tomebamba in 1957 and used stones
of the ruins for the construction on their new buildings,
including for the Sagrario Church.
While not known for any specific economic activity in particular,
the city is relatively prosperous with a variety of different
economic activities. From a touristic point of view, it
is important for the aforementioned UNESCO World Heritage
nomination of its old town Cuenca with its
colonial monuments. Interestingly enough, the Panama hats
are not produced in Panama, but in Cuenca and many tourists
buy themselves one of those wonderful ornaments. Of course,
the fashion has evolved and nowadays, Panama hats are available
in many shapes and colors for both men and women, including
modern straw caps. I recently revisited Cuenca after many
years and was amazed by the outstanding state of restoration
of almost all the colonial buildings and monuments and of
course, I bought several Panama hats in the large shop at
the south side of the Calle Largo (see detailed map by clicking
on the map below).
Debatably the Inmaculada Concepcion Cathedral is one of
the most impressive cathedrals of Ecuador. Construction
started in 1885, so it is not at all a colonial cathedral
and not all that old for South American standards. It replaced
the old cathedral, the Iglesia del Sagrario. Across the
street, in front of the Santuario Mariano Church you find a
beautiful flower market.
Construction of the Catedral El Sagrario started in 1567
with stones from the ruins of Tomebamba. For centuries this
old colonial church served as Cuenca's main church and later
as cathedral until the Immaculada Concepcion Cathedral took
over that function. It was no longer used for regular services
and after its restoration in 1999, the church became a museum
of religious arts, concerts and cultural events.
Rafael Paredes
is probably your best deal for shopping for a Panama hat.
Located on the South side of Calle Largo, you can recognize
it by the display of a hat on the wall. The actual shop
is deeper inside. It is a great place because there are
hatmakers weaving the hats behind the displays. The prices
are pretty much what you pay at the small shops but here
you have a great selection of both men and women's hats
and the quality is rather nice. The shop also includes a
great workshop where you can see how hats are being made,
as well as a Panama Hat Museum, which we further elaborate
at our webpage
Museums of
Ecuador
and on
Museums of
Cuenca.
There is a
more upscale shop, that looks more sophisticated, but other
than a slicker display and higher prices, I could not see
any difference in the products. For those that can't make
it to Cuenca, shops are also found in
Quito
at the
Mercado Mariscal
and the shops in Ejido Park. An alternative location is
the Plaza de los Ponchos en
Otavalo.
The Inca city of Pumapungo was supposed
to be more beautiful than Cusco, but no European has ever
seen the city in its full glory as the city was abandoned
and destroyed some time before the Spanish arrived. It now
is an archeological site at the South side of colonial Cuenca
and managed as part of the Pumapungo Museum of the Banco
Central.
When in
colonial old town Cuenca,I stayed in the lovely
Posada del
Angel Hotel,
owned and operated by an extremely capable and nice Argentine
family, great food and good wine for a reasonable price.
For our Southern package we like to book you in this hotel.
City tours
are almost daily available. Our
Andes Trek,
Ecuador
program includes the best
National Parks
of Ecuador
in the Andes as well as the famous cultural highlights,
like Quito, Cuenca and Ingapirca. Please contact us
for information,
rates
and bookings.