ECUADOR

Visas, Embassies and Border Crossings

Visa extensions for travellers with a T3 tourist card can now be obtained from the Jefatura De Migración at Isla Seymour and Rio Coca. This is quite a distance from the centre--a taxi ride down 6 de diciembre.
Wendy Hamilton - ENG (Feb)

Huaquillas-Peru border: The immigration office is no longer near the bridge, it's a 2km taxi ride out of town on the road to Guayaquil.
Dawn & Kevin Hopkins - Australia (Mar 98)

Border Ecuador/Peru, La Tina Crossing.There are only taxis, no buses from the border to Sullana. You can only change money on the Ecuadorian side at the border (we had to cross back to do it.).
Adam Roberts - UK (March 98)

Travel Tips

Another thing that seemed to be on the upswing in Quito was Internet cafes. There were a lot of them located in the hip area of the new town along Juan Leon Mera, close to the Magic Bean Youth Hostel. We found these Internet cafes particularly useful in communicating with friends at home, because the Internet proved more reliable than the phone system, and cheaper. It came out to around a dollar or two for half an hour of use. What's more, some cafes had the technology to let you call the states via the Internet, and at around .20 cents a minute, it was a steal compared to any other international calling prices. We also like the cafes because they were full of travelers, usually served good coffee, and had English book exchanges and magazine racks. Particularly popular was the Papaya Net cafe on Juan Leon Mera one block away from the Magic Bean. While I found this a very travel oriented part of town interesting it tended to get rowdy at night. One student living with a host family in the area said there were a group of cross-dressers that always hung out near his doorway, and one night they were hitting on him. Good to see Quito is catching up with the 20th century.
Julie & Jennifer Vick - US - (Oct 98)

The entrance fee to the Galapagos Islands has recently gone up from $80 to $100 US.
Erika Malitzky (July 98)

Scams & Warnings

Rafting Warning Near Banos 4 Belgians lost their lives whilst rafting with inexperienced guides.
Jacky Upson & Martin Scott, UK (Dec 98)

In Machala, we experienced the "secret-police" scam, but fortunately realised what was going on. An English-speaking Ecuadorian meets you on the bus, and offers to guide you to the office from where you can get the next bus. On the way, you are stopped by an "undercover" police officer, who hastily waves his ID at you and asks to see your money. Your new friend obliges, and you are expected to do the same-obviously don't. He then asked us to go to the police station whith him, but evetually we just walked away with no problems.
Luke Skinner - UK (Jan 98)

Gems, Highlights & Attractions

Although there is a great view of colonial Quito from the statue of the Virgin of Quito, it is entirely possible that you will be robbed if you make the hike up el Panecillo on foot. I recommend walking the opposite direction up Venezuela street to the Basilica de Voto Popular. For less than 2 dollars you can buy a pass to the upper floors of the church (only sold in pairs). From the 2nd and 3rd floors you can see all of Quito and for the truly brave, you may climb the belltower -- if you aren't afraid of heights the view is spectacular.
Phil Knoll - USA - (Oct 98)

Machalilla has one small hotel on the coastal highway. It's an interesting village. There are many many fishing boats along the coast here and in the mornings you can witness the beaching of millions of fish and all the townspeople vigorously cleaning them small children and octogenarians. Further south is Pt. Lopez, a very small village with very spartan accommodations. It is from here that you can meet with one of the park rangers to arrange transport to Isla de la Plata, the poor man's Galapagos. Unfortunately, you may not get to go out if there are not enough people to par for the boat transport, and you cannot stay on the island overnight, at least not back in 1997.
Wayne - (Jan 99)

In Quito, a museum has just opened called the Museo del Observatorio Astronomico de Quito. Located in downtown Quito exactly on the equator, this is the oldest astronomy observatory in South America, built in 1873 by German and French scientists. It is a beautiful building filled with antique astronomy, meteorology and seismography equipment, as well as old maps, photos, books and other exhibits. There is an amazing brass telescope in the observatory tower which still works. Museum entrance costs 5000 sucres ($1.00) or 3000 sucres for students, and includes a guided tour by one of the astronomists.
At night, visitors can view the stars and planets. There are also nightly lectures on various topics ranging from astronomy to the Inca Cosmology. The elderly astronomist who was our guide said that the observatory hopes to generate revenue by being a museum, otherwise it may have to close down. The contact info is: observaq@uio.satnet.net, http://www.satnet.net/observatorio. phone (593) 2 570-765 fax 583-451, located in La Alameda, Quito (smack in the middle of a large park in downtown Quito, very accessible by bus, foot, trolley, etc.)
Regina Marchi - US (Sept 98)

I am writing to inform you of a new hostal in the tiny town of Chugchilan - "La Casa Mama Hilda". About three months ago a number of travellers convinced a family in Chugchilan to open a hostal. The travellers were frustrated by the higher priced alternative of the Black Sheep Inn. They spent a week painting and building and giving cooking advice.
The result of their efforts and the family's friendly character is a family atmosphere in a clean hostel with great food. Beds cost USD 3.00 and meals run from $1 to $2. Hardy vegetarian dishes are the norm. Hot water had not yet arrived, but it's promised in the next couple weeks.
La Casa Mama Hilda is friendly and comfortable and provides an authentic atmosphere without being too authentic!
Brian Morgan - US (July 98)

Jungle Tours: Yachona lodge: If looking for a jungle lodge trip we would recommend Yachona- 2 hours from Misahuali by dug-out canoe. Lodge experience is different to other commercial lodges as it is a charity-run lodge- tourism is used to pay for development projects in the area. As well as staying at a great place, doing jungle walks etc. you also get the chance to see and understand about local projects such as medical centre, sustainable agriculture projects, and other conservation projects. You also get the chance to see how coffee is grown and harvested and get to make your own 'chocolate' from caco beans. It's not cheap at $360 for 4 nights/ 3 days ($330 for SAEC members) but at least your money is going to a good cause. Info is available in Quito from the charity-Fundesin (Fa Marlin y Diego de Almagro). SAEC also has info.
Susie Knott - Australia (March 98)

For more news, views and the odd bit of gibberish, drop in on the soc.culture.ecuador, soc.culture.latin-america and rec.travel.latin-america newsgroups.

For detailed up-to-date travel information check out Lonely Planet's Destination Ecuador & the Galápagos Islands.