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Travel and Tourism in Ecuador
Travel alerts, currency, climate, transit, health, and safety information for visitors to Ecuador.
Practical Information
Travel alert status, currency, climate, and transit details.
- Travel Alert Status
- Level 2: Exercise Increased Caution
- Time Difference
- UTC-5 (same time as Washington, DC, during Standard Time) time zone note: Ecuador has two time zones, including the Galapagos Islands (UTC-6)
- Currency
- 1
- Climate
- Because of variations in altitude, Ecuador has a variety of climates. The lowlands are generally hot and humid. Temperatures on the coast are moderated by the Humboldt Current to a range of 65°F to 90°F. Temperatures in the Sierra are generally cool, ranging from 35°F to 75°F. Due to the altitude and thin air, temperature in direct sunlight can reach 85°F at midday. In the evenings it can range from pleasantly cool to very chilly. The tallest mountains are always snowcapped, but it never snows in the inhabited altitudes, although it hails occasionally. During the Sierra dry season, from June through September, gusty winds are common. In Quito the temperature pattern rarely changes from day to day or month to month. Mornings are cool and crisp, and midday is agreeably warm, unless skies are overcast. Fog and mist may occur in the mornings or evenings as low-lying clouds spill over the sides of the valley. Since Quito is such a short distance from the Equator, sunrise and sunset vary only slightly from 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Average annual rainfall in Quito is 50 inches, with 43 inches falling from October through May, and 7 inches from June through September. Relative humidity averages 75%. Occasional tremors are registered in the area; these may or may not be perceptible to residents. Earthquakes and volcanic eruptions are infrequent but do remain a possibility.
- Ethnic Groups
- mestizo (mixed Amerindian and white) 65%, Amerindian 25%, Spanish and others 7%, black 3%
- National Holiday
- Independence Day (independence of Quito), 10 August (1809)
- Geographic Coordinates
- 2 00 S, 77 30 W
- Location
- Western South America, bordering the Pacific Ocean at the Equator, between Colombia and Peru
- Airports
- 205
Destinations
Regions and cities, top sights, national parks, UNESCO sites, and festivals for visitors.
Quito: The City in the Clouds
Of all the cities in the Americas that were founded during the Spanish colonial period, none has preserved its historic heart as completely and magnificently as Quito. The UNESCO World Heritage designation of 1978, which recognized Quito alongside Kraków as one of the first cities in the world to receive this protection, was awarded in recognition of a colonial city center exceptional not only for its scale and completeness but for the quality and artistic significance of the architecture it contains.
Quito's historic centre, known simply as the Centro Histórico, spreads across a series of gentle hills and shallow valleys in the city's oldest district, its streets following the grid plan laid down by the Spanish founders in the sixteenth century and its buildings reflecting four centuries of architectural evolution. The cityscape is dominated by the towers and domes of religious buildings, and the concentration of significant churches, convents, and monasteries in the Centro Histórico is unmatched in the Americas.
Health and Safety
Medical facilities, vaccinations, disease risk, and sanitation conditions.
Adequate medical and dental care is available in the major cities of Ecuador. In smaller communities and in the Galápagos Islands, services are limited, and the quality is generally well below U.S. standards. Ambulances, with or without trained emergency staff, are in short supply in cities, but even more so in rural areas.