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]]>Unfortunately, AFAIK right now Bahia is pretty much the farthest beach area to reach in Ecuador from Cuenca. It **should** be soon remedied when neighboring Manta gets improved airport connections…. but untill then, it takes two flights from Cuenca to Manta and the peak travel time (aka weekend flights) cannot really be considered “connecting” flights in that you have to stay overnight in Guayaquil or Quito. A drive to Bahia by private car is about 7-10 hours depending on roads and traffic, add a few hours if going by bus. For fellow North Carolinians, its analogous to driving to The Outer Banks from Asheville along HWY 64 in 1960.
That being said, Bahia ROCKS! Its clean, calm and picture perfect. Its the first coastal city that is more or less “environmentally aware” with hosts of sustainable horticulture, agriculture, and other ecolodge / projects going on in that region. Across the bay in neighboring and burgeoning Canoa, the surf and sun is right for a tranquil getaway that’s hip with the backpackers and surfer crowd. Its much more low key than Montañita to the south.
I truly hope the purported growth of nearby Manta and the new bridge being built across the bay are not too detrimental to the pristine environment in the Bahia de Caraquez, but continual pollution as Ecuador grows is almost inevitable.
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]]>- In general, how is bus travel in Ecuador?
- Do Ecuadorians travel with livestock on buses?
- What is the lechero?
- How can I avoid the lechero?
- What are the travel times between the major terminals in Ecuador?
- Night bus versus day bus for long distances?
- The Quito bus terminal… logistic
The Quito bus terminal… logistics?
The quito bus terminal is in a sketchy area on the southern end (near to nothing of relevance for a tourist). If you are in the northern part of Quito looking to go south, ask around for the Panamericana or Flota Imbabura (has the newest busses in Ecuador). Instead of heading all the way to the very southern part of town to the official bus terminal, I believe both of these companies have offices from where night busses depart in the central part of Quito much closer to the Mariscal district.
What are the travel times between the major terminals in Ecuador?
| Route | Time | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Quito – Guayaquil | 8-10hrs | ~$10.00 |
| Quito – Cuenca | 8-12hrs | $9.00-12.00 |
| Cuenca – Guayaquil | 3.5-4hrs | $8.00 |
Night bus versus day bus for long distances?
Trips between Quito and Cuenca are arguably better at night, if you can sleep through voracious speeds and curvy mountain roads. During the day, the options for direct buses are few and far between, meaning if you dont plan well, you will lose an entire day on a lechero. Direct day buses are nice because there’s lots of beautiful scenery between the two Andean cities, but, again, not for the faint of heart. If you know you easily get bus sick, I recommend going for a flight: 30 minutes, US$49… well worth the price in time saved and avoiding constant nausea.
In the end, as stated above in the sections about the lechero, some buses are light-years more comfortable than others. Its worth paying a few extra dollars for the $12 Flota Imbabura direct night bus.
Now-a-days its not so necessary because the newer buses have heating, but on older night buses a heavy blanket, or tons of layers is a must.
QUICK TIP: If the night bus you are on seems to be really cold, its probably because
- Some windows are cracked, stuck, or left open.
An obvious problem in Ecuadorian buses, but often very hard to fix. - Not enough cows on board!
The bus lacks enough bodies to produce interior warmth. This is also an unfortunate situation that can’t really be helped. - The window shades are open!
Subtly, these fabric/canvas shades do a lot to keep a buffer between the interior warmth generated by body heat and the constant stream of cold night air pushing against the glass windows from the exterior. Close as many as possible around you, and get others to do the same. This also helps keep distracting oncoming headlights from ruining your good nights sleep
In general, how is bus travel in Ecuador?
Bus travel is by far the most popular means of public transportation in Ecuador. Whether you are going to pueblitos within a specific province, or heading across the nation long distance, you can generally find a bus to get you there at a very low price. Quality, however, varies widely between routes and bus companies. A good model to keep in mind for longer distances is that they should charge you betwee US$1.00 and US$1.50 for each hour of travel. As nothing is ever “certain” in Ecuador, this factor does change in various circumstances. For example, the route between Guayaquil and Cuenca is now operated by an alliance of bus companies who, working together, have devised a schedule by which a bus leaves every 40 minutes during peak hours eachway and fixed the price at US$8.00 (for a 3.5-4 hour ride). This seems to me a bit outrageous when the most luxurious night bus between cuenca and Quito (twice the distance & time) costs only $12.
In general, tickets are only sold the day of travel. If you are planning one of the longer interprovincial night busses between Quito/Cuenca or Quito/Guayaquil, call ahead to find out the schedule for the evening as each company usually have 2 or 3 busses heading out each night. Buy your ticket in the afternoon, or try the true ecuadorian way by showing up 30 minutes to an hour early to get your ticket. Its only slightly more risky because these busses rarely fill up *the notable exception being during holidays when busses are packed out, stuffy, and stinky.*
Do Ecuadorians travel with livestock on buses?
Outside the larger cities, livestock is a way of life, and occasionally you do see people bringing smaller farm animals such as chickens or ducks onto the slower provincial buses. But certainly it is a rarity to see this type of thing on a daily basis, especially on interprovincial buses that don’t stop every 5 km to drop off or pick up locals. I’ve never seen a sheep on a bus, but it doesnt mean it wont happen to you!
What is the “lechero”?
I’ve heard Ecuadorians say something to the effect of “i caught the lechero”, which, in busing terms, means they caught the bus that is always slowest to arrive to a destination, because of frequent stops. These “lechero” buses are provincial (but also sometimes long-distance) buses that tend to stop in every village waiting for a “minimum” number of people to straggle in to warrant onward travel. They are also characterized by driving extremely slowly (10 to 15 km per hour) on the road out of town picking up every additional man woman and child until filled to literal capacity, in order to make an extra dime. These buses are the most interesting (read: dangerous) vehicles on the road, because if they are willing to overload the bus with passengers to exorbitant levels, then they are also as equally likely to throw caution to the wind, disobeying ever traffic law imaginable, in order to get to the next stop more quickly. Doubting, anyway, that any traffic laws are enforced or heeded by the majority of the public transport system.
How can I avoid the lechero?
In some smaller out of the way places, the lechero simply cannot be avoided. This could be because not many people happen to be traveling at that moment, and waiting for the bus to fill up is the only viable means of turning a profit. In other places, where there are different companies going to the same place, you have more options, and a better chance to avoid the lechero. It takes skill and a keen eye to succeed in beating the lechero. Here’s my tips for avoiding a long painfully slow, generally uncomfortable ride:
- Be wary of older buses covered in dust. They usually take the “long dirt road” home.
- Regardless of what the chofer (driver) or cobrador (guy who takes your money) tells you about when they are leaving, don’t ever get on a bus that is stationary with fewer than 6 people. Exception: large bus terminals where buses must come and go more or less on a schedule.
- Given a choice of buses: always pick the one with fewer medallions hanging in the rear-view and pictures/slogans of the virgin Mary or Jesus. These superstitious buses tend to throw all caution to their god(s) putting faith in these plastic or furry objects that they will arrive in one piece.
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*Money Issues, a.k.a “$end mon€¥ ₦ow, Mom!”*
# “How do I carry around my money?”:#1
# “Should I take traveler cheques with me?”:#2
# “Are Visa, MasterCard useful and are ATMs available in South America?”:#3
# “Debit Versus Credit?”:#4
h3(#1). How do I carry around my money?
Well, this is really a very personal question and thus requires an analysis of your personal preferences. I think every traveler I’ve ever met has a different scheme for toting his monetary wealth. The solution depends on a handful of circumstances, and the first thing to realize when you asses this situation is to consider how you deal with your money at home. Do you have a bank checking account with direct access via a check (debit) card. Are you currently under a wealth of credit card bills? Do you skip the tax and banking system altogether? Do you carry a fat wad of dough in your pocket? All these things add up to your monetary awareness. And now my personal solution, (so everyone knows where i hide my money at night): when I’m on the road…. i do things like MacGyver or your everyday boy scout would: a little bit of everything:
When traveling I rely mainly upon my trusty tarjeta (an ATM card) that has direct access to a small checking account where i control the amount of funds available from my bank’s secure website. I also have the everyday allotment of efectivo (cash) in my wallet that I’ve budgeted for daily use. You’ll find a tiny stash of travelers cheques (travelers checks) in the bottom of my backpack. And a kanguro, a flat, hidden waist belt i picked up at the market in Otavalo containing my passport, some extra cash, keys to tiny travel locks in placed on my backpack, to keep out curious fingers, and finally the ever useful earplugs. I dont keep cash in my backpack because of the three things I have when traveling (my pack and my clothes, and my person) i figure the pack is the most likely to get violated or stolen.
h3(#2). Should I take traveler cheques with me?
Why even bother with TCs in South America, when 1) almost no negocios (businesses) in SA accept travelers checks to pay for goods, and 2) most bancos (banks) charge a commission to exchange them or even buy new ones (eg, Banco de Guayaquil changes and sells them for $3 on every $100.)
Well, again, I think this has everything to do with personal preference about your illusion of security. If you get robbed, and you have the cheque numbers memorized or stored somewhere safe. Then yes, you can get some of your money back, but not without hassle. You’ll probably have to pay for an international call to file a claim and get the reimbursment. It is a little known fact that most banks in South America (particularly in Ecuador) that issue travelers checks will not reimburse you for checks lost. Don’t even bother going to one to complain that you lost money. Instead find out from a local where the nearest Western Union, go there and get their transfer id. Then make your call to the TC issuer to file a claim on the missing cheques. You give the TC issuer the numbers of the lost cheques and the Western Union id, and they give you a transfer code which you then take back to said Western Union to pick up your cold hard cash! Luckily you pay no commisions in this process other than the phone call (the TC issuer will pay for the wire transfer).
I suppose its really to your advantage to have some cheques, in the case that you loose all your money, your ATM card and your credit card. Then, independently, you still have your pride (and this essential wild card) to avoid the embarrassing “E.T., phone home” scenario to borrow more money.
h3(#3). Are Visa, MasterCard useful and are ATMs available in South America?
Here is the deal (quick and dirty) with ATM machines: ATM machines are indeed ubiquitous in Ecuador and everywhere else in South America. They work flawlessly for both debit (check cards) or credit cards on the Visa Plus and MasterCard networks [others beware!] It goes without saying that you definitely need your PIN to withdraw funds from either check or credit cards at ATMs. I highly recommend using ATMs as opposed to relying on changing travelers cheques, if and only if you 1) have your money in a bank that has affiliate banks abroad (in whatever country in South America you are visiting) such that they dont charge you a boat load for each withdrawal. PS, Make sure you tell your bank (in person, to a real person) you are traveling to X countries for X amount of time, so they can put a note into their security systems not to flag your account when it starts seeing money being withdrawn from abnormal locations.
h3(#4). Debit versus Credit?
You won’t know till you get there, but the odds are that credit card providers will charge more of a commission per withdrawal than your banks direct debit ATM card. For instance, I have both credit and debit cards issued from the same bank in the USA, but the Visa credit card fines me a hefty $10 commission per withdrawal, where as my debit card charges NO commission from withdrawals at affiliate bank ATMs, and a $2 commission for withdrawals from non-affiliates in Ecuador.
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]]>[csprofile (CouchSurfing.com: jrguitar21)]http://www.couchsurfing.com/profile.html?id=8ENMUP
Being one of few (active) members of the HospitalityClub.org and CouchSurfing.com living in Cuenca, Ecuador, I have the really nice opportunity to be contacted by lots of people traveling through ecuador. On my profiles, I advertise my willingness to help people with any questions they have. I’ve been receiving travel questions for quite a few months now and always try to be as detailed as possible in my responses, and so decided to start logging them here on my blog for posterity and to be able to refer people to view my views on my website, given that providing a link, albeit not heartwarming as a personal response, is 1000 times more useful and efficient that responding with the same answer twice.
[ "my HospitalityClub profile":hcprofile ] [ "my CouchSurfing profile":csprofile ]
So here comes a series called “SAGE FAQ” or South America, the Galapagos and Ecuador Frequently Asked Questions. Topics being updating over the next -week- _few weeks_ include:
*”Money Issues”:/2006/12/29/send-money-now-mom/* tips on traveling with cash, traveler cheques, ATM/Debit & Credit Cards in South America and Ecuador.
*”Ecuador by Bus”:/2007/01/11/ecuador-by-bus/* tips on how to make the most of Ecuador’s transportation system; logistics and tips for avoiding the infamous _lechero_.
*”Galapagos Islands”:http://www.gedanken-experiment.com/wp/2006/05/21/pure-nature-on-a-budget/* how to experience evolution and pure nature on a budget.
*Host Families* some people come to South America (and Quito or Cuenca Ecuador, in particular) to study Spanish or Portuguese (in Brazil). Its a good idea to bring a token of hospitality to their host families. Here is an outline of tips for choosing a gift. coming soon…
*Guided Excursions* Helps you choose whether or not you need a I need a guide to summit a volcano, do a National Park trek, visit the Amazon, et cetera. coming soon…
*SA Geography* an outline of the typical Ecuador travel route, a.k.a the Ecuadorian stretch of “The Gringo Trail”, as well as some lesser-known out-of-the-way travel gems. coming soon…
*Statistics* How about some Ecuadorian superlatives? The highest volcano, the farthest point on earth you can stand away from the nucleus of this planet, etc.
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]]>I realize now that it will take two weeks before i arrive back to Cuenca, Ecuador. Mainly due to the extremely slow process of upstream river travel. Tomorrow I catch another boat (wednesday 11th october) at 6pm to Tabatinga/Leticia further up the Rio Amazonas at the triple border with Colombia and Peru. Hop the border to Peru and head up another 12 hours by speedboat to Iquitos, Peru´s version of Manaus (big amazon city further up the Rio Amazonas). From there i head up a tributary river called Rio Napo into Ecuador for a trip of unknown length to the small town of Tena. I heard the Napo is really low right now, so it might be a because the boats are getting stuck in the sand. With that in mind, this morning i went to look for a flight to Quito to speed up the trip, also to allow me to hang out here in the jungle for a bit, instead of being restricted to the random schedules of the riverboats. theres no direct flight to ecuador from here, actually nowhere in brasil has a direct fligh to ecuador, the price (via panama!) is outrageous and so my only option is by boat.
thats all the travel routing information i have for now. more to come…
namaste,
James
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]]>ABADA has their own style and their own method of teaching, perhaps different from the free-style vibe of Salvador Bahia. But to GUETO I say: calm down here, you cant negate their existence as one of the largest groups in the world…. even if they have emerged as the McDonalds of capoeira, their system of training, and instruction must be doing something right! A few members have told me that my abada t-shirt is not well received in Bahia and that i shouldnt wear my corda crua (a beginners cord in the ABADA cord system) because this color in general is the color of mestres cords, which is true. I´m fine to forego the advertising and wear and wear all white with no cord, however the constant negativity against ABADA as a group and persistent badmouthing of other groups that to them have lost something of the “true essence” of capoeira, I find it to be redundant, petty and even offensive. I explained to them to take it easy and step back and look at what they are saying and to whom they are speaking… Im not Brasilian and i dont care about petty bickering, machismo, and competition for new $tudent$ between schools. Furthermore, i reasoned to them that without ABADA I would have never been introduced to capoeira and its highly likely i wouldnt be where i am today, and perhaps wouldn´t even exist as a capoeirista. Unlike Brasil, in the exterior much of the time there is no choice of schools / methods / mestres, in fact there is only ONE school in my city. I understand that the dynamic between mestres and personalities here is a complex, living, changing situation, but i believe capoeira is a beautiful means for cultural exchange and its really tiring to see so much negativity intertwined with the art.
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]]>The independent traveler community
“the gringo trail is far and wide” there’s thousands of people walking the globe right now, befriend someone in cyberspace and ask them for advice, help, or a homestay.
- Thorntree.lonelyplanet.com - the original travelers bulletin board, with a dedicated forum representing every corner of the planet (notoriously slow, even in first world)
- BootsnAll.com – trip planning advice, regional “insiders” advice, popular travel forums, and ability to publish your own free travelogue.
The global free accommodation networks
Find a free couch to sleep on anywhere in the world.
- CouchSurfing.com – the best of all the accommodations networks, this site is actually a gigantic blossoming traveler community. See my CouchSurfing profile here.
- HospitalityClub.org – big competitor with couch surfing
- GlobalFreeloaders.com – lesser known network
- Can I Crash? – less known accommodation network created by the blogging community
The “get there cheap” sites
The following sites are quite popular with any traveler (be it budget or business) because they make searching for airfare so easy by aggregating their results from hundreds of other airfare sites as well as many proprietary airlines, effectively giving you a concise listing of the best deals from across the web with one flight search.
Read and research before you go
- How to See the World: Art of Travel – website written in a book format with 20-some chapters of useful recommendations and life-hacks for travelers; how to turn your dream of travel into a real possibility. all the nitty gritty details of travel: safety, packing, what to take, how to pack, what to do while away, how to take care of business before you leave town. This is a must read for first time travelers.
- Transitions Abroad website great resource for more information on how and what to do while abroad (e.g. travel, volunteer, work, study, live). Global database of work and volunteer opportunities in nearly any corner of the planet. Great TESL / TEFL resource. Interesting info on responsible travel.
- Download and read a copy of the (free) Responsible Travelers Handbook (2006 Edition found here and here)
- OneBag.com – extensive travel-light site from an inspirational go-light guru
- WikiHow Travel Tips – fun and interesting how-tos written by the people who have learned from their mistakes on the road.
- Traveling with an iPod - interesting article from National Geographic.
- Rolf Potts’ Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide to the Art of Long-Term World Travel – the motivational and inspirational guide to round the world travel
Destination guides
- LonelyPlanet.com – a great guidebook publisher with basic country information on their website, also host the Thorn Tree travel forums mentioned above.
- WikiTravel – the original travel wiki
- World66 – another popular destination guide written and edited by the world
Staying in touch with homebase
- Meebo.com – chat client supports AIM/ICQ, Yahoo, MSN, Gmail, Jabber all from one webpage, based on nifty Web2.0 AJAX technology. This is a great tool to use from internet cafés around the world that may or may not have your favorite chat client downloaded and installed.
Continued motivation while on the road
- Pick up the Vagabonding book mentioned above and find inspirational excerpts you like, then using the FutureMe website, send yourself future emails to receive the clippings while you are on the road.
- Become a member of 43 Places and its sister site 43 Things where you can build your list of things you want to do and places you want to visit before you die. This site also allows you to send yourself future emails asking about the progress of the things you want to get done.
Other pertinent travel links sites
I’ve covered quite a range of things here but I’m sure there’s still yet more to find on the web. These are the links that I most frequently use while traveling. Other sites that i left off the list are my online email, search, calendar, and feed-reader sites that keep me organized and interested (i.e. distracted from real life) when I enter an internet café. If you´ve got an interesting or useful travel tool or site that I´ve overlooked, please let me know about it.
[edited by James, 7-Jun-2006 to add links to Responsible Travel Handbook and TransitionsAbroad.com in the "read and research before you go" section.]
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]]>Technorati Tags: budget, galapagos, ecuador, travel
>Hi,
>
>I’ll be heading to Quito in August with my family, and
>I have a few questions. Do you know of any good deals
>for seeing the Galapagos Islands?
Your cheapest bet is to do the trip on your own (i.e. no cruise ship fantasies) I
guess you already know about the tons of luxury cruises ($1000+) and $100 dollar day tours. Its not a cheap destination by any means, but it can be done more or less on a budget. The bottom line is that the cheapest it gets for foreigners on the islands is about US$600 per person for an entire trip (say 4 or 5
days). And thats doing things bare bones; heres somewhat of a breakdown according to what some ecuadorian friends have told me that have worked in
Galapagos in the past.
1. Getting There
The cheapest flight you can find is from Guayaquil to the islands at approx. $300 per person. One other option to arrive in the islands (if your time schedule is less rigid then your budget) is to take a 5 day trip by boat from Guayaquil, but I’m not sure of the price.
2. Fees The entrance fee to the islands is US$100 per person for foreigners.
3. Rooms Once you are there, you can find affordable hotels starting around $15 per person.
4. Board Nicer gringo meals starting around $5 to $8 per person, whereas local (and equally filling and delicious) meals start at $1.50 for an almuerzo.
5. Getting Around
You’ll find boats in the bays that can take you between islands for perhaps $5-20 dollars per person. Not sure about overland travel but I don’t believe it to be very common there. However, just for your general information, prices in ecuador for pubic bus transport go for between $1.00 and $1.50 per hour of travel (depending on the bus’ condition and comfort level).
6. Sightseeing You can reportedly find tours there for $20 per day.
Sorry for this potentially disturbing news about the extremely high prices (to put it in perspective for Ecuadorians its $10 dollars to enter the park and $150 dollar flight, an all inclusive trip for them might be $500 per person). However, one must realize that this is a very unique place on earth and moreover this country is in need of every penny it can get from tourism (especially now with the the Oxy petroleum scandal and the recent disputes that have interrupted the negotiations of a South American Free Trade Agreement) who knows what aid the US will end up taking away after that pans out. Ninety percent of all revenue generated from tourism in Ecuador is through the Galapagos, though that can hardly make up for the possible revenues lost to foreign oil exploiters.
The transnational Occidental Petroleum, a US owned corporation, has been [legally] robbing the country [under signed contract with the Ecuadorian government] by hoarding 88% of total earnings of oil for the past twenty years. Imagine having to pay only 12% to use the countries most important natural resource, its virtually all profit for them! The Ecuadorian government recently found Oxy guilty of breaching the exclusive contract and has decided to seize their oil-fields and wells until an accord can be reached between the governments.
Back to the subject though; all said and done, the Galapagos Islands are well worth a visit if you can work it into your budget. In my humble opinion, a life changing experience for you and your kids is better than any theme park or Zoo in the grand US of A if for no other reason than that the animals are living in peace in their natural habitat.
>Do you have any contacts on Galapagos? I know
>we’re coming during the busy (i.e., expensive) season,
>but there must be a way for a teacher to see the sites
>without using all of his savings. Any advice would be
>appreciated. Thanks.
To answer your other questions, I do not have any contacts in the Galapagos right now. And yes, you can bet your teachers savings that you will be there in peak tourist season with MANY american and european (but mainly American) tourists running around on super deluxe package tours…. it must be nice. My advice: go to the islands while you are here, because who knows the next time you will be able to organize a trip to this part of the world with your beautiful family.
>By the way, our plan is see the islands first and then
>head for Quito
Lastly, since you mentioned you would go to Quito after galapagos, perhaps you could look into finding a flight from US to Quito, then go Quito -> Galapagos -> Quito. However, alternatively, you could get your flight in and out of Guayaquil, and get conecting flights in between Quito and Guayaquil for $65 (one-way on TAME).