Will anyone who’s traveled in Ecuador and/or Galapagos Islands please share their experience?

I had one of the best experiences of my life, and in a lot of ways (that I won’t bore you with), my first trip to Ecuador kind of changed my life.

My first trip was in the summer of 2007 for 15 days with my mom. We went to Quito, Mindo (a cloud forest) Galapagos, and then Manta (the coastal area). Galapagos was definitely my favorite of those places, but I love beaches and animals so it was really right up my alley. The water was so beautifully blue and warm, it was sunny, there were so many cool and unique animals, and beautiful landscapes. Truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

When we first got to Quito, I didn’t really like it. It seemed dirty and poor and I just wasn’t used to a city like that (it was my first time in Latin America). But as I explored more, I saw there were many beautiful places in Quito, and I liked that it was right in the heart of the sierra.

Mindo was pretty cool and only about a 2 hr drive from Quito, but you really only need 1 or 2 days there because there’s not a whole lot to do there (hiking, tree gliding, horseback riding, mariposeria, orquideria, and tubing on the river if it’s the right season).

Manta, which is right on the coast was also nice, but Manta itself (the third largest city in Ecuador) doesn’t have great beaches that you can actually go to because they aren’t very safe. You can stay in a hotel with a great ocean view and there are restaurants with an ocean view, but going in the ocean is pretty much out of the question.

My second time there I stayed for a little over a month visiting my boyfriend and his family and traveling a little. We went to Guayaquil, Quito, and Portoviejo, which is the capital of Manta and where his parents live.

Guayaquil was okay. On the one hand I really hated it because it was so hot and humid and I was miserably sweating all the time. However, there were some cool touristy attractions there, so I would probably recommend it for a few days if you have the time. It’s also the 2nd largest city and most people say it’s pretty unsafe (the drivers are absolutely horrible, but then again, that’s pretty much true for all of Ecuador), but I didn’t really feel all that unsafe. There were a few times that I was standing outside along and got a few comments from men walking by that weren’t very appropriate, but I didn’t feel unsafe.

Portoviejo is just a big city. Absolutely nothing to see, no tourist attractions, and I definitely don’t recommend going there.

My third and most recent trip was in September for another two weeks, and was probably the best.

We went to Cotopaxi which is the volcano. It was pretty amazing. We hiked up to the refugio (refuge) which isn’t even a mile but takes about an hour and a half because the altitude is so high. The view is absolutely spectacular, though. I would highly recommend going.

We also went to Banos which is a really lush area with beautiful waterfalls. I would also strongly recommend going there, especially if you like to hike or bike ride (you can bike to the waterfalls from the town).

Finally, we took a roadtrip up the coast of Ecuador and stopped at a bunch of beaches along the way. I can’t remember all the beaches that we went to (I could probably find a name of all of them if you really wanted them), but they were beautiful and all very different. Most were pretty small, which is what I like. We also went to Esmeraldas because everyone said the beaches are so beautiful, but I was seriously disappointed. It just felt like a large city with mediocre beaches. It’s also pretty dangerous there so I wouldn’t recommend going.

My answer is getting pretty long and I could still go on about places I’ve been to and experiences I’ve had, so if this was helpful and you have more specific questions, feel free to ask.

You should definitely go because Ecuador is an amazing country. It’s tiny but it has so much to offer and there’s no way you wouldn’t love it.