Quito was the final stop on our three month South American adventure. We spent a total of 5 days in the city. During our visit, we spent two days sightseeing on foot, a day on the Tren de los Volcanes (not currently running), a day on an organised tour to two equator themed parks and the final day utilising the Hop on Hop off Bus. Here is my pick of the top 10 things to do on a visit to Quito.
Note: Bear in mind when planning a trip to Quito, that many museums and tourist attractions are closed on Mondays.
How to get to Quito
We flew into Quito’s Mariscal Sucre International Airport, which is 23 miles from central Quito. If you’re lucky, as you descend towards the city, you will catch a glimpse of Cotopaxi Volcano. There are cheaper ways to get into town (you can get a shuttle bus or a public bus to Rio Coca Bus Station) but we chose to take transport organised by our hotels because we thought it was safer and more convenient. There is a $25 fixed rate for taxis into town.
Getting Around Quito
Much of the city’s attractions can be visited on foot. To travel further afield, you can use public transport. However, having read that Ecuadorian buses were rife with pickpockets, we opted to purchase a Hop on Hop off Bus ticket. We don’t often join organised tours, but decided that this was the best way to get to one of Quito’s top attractions, Mitad del Mundo, which is located 16 miles north of the city.
Where to stay in Quito
We stayed in two places; the first, Hotel Casa Montero, is centrally located, so convenient for exploring downtown Quito. Casa Montero is an old colonial style building with plenty of charm. It is right in the centre of the old town, on the edge of Plaza de Santo Domingo. However, the surrounding area is a bit rough. The area in general and the hotel steps in particular appeared to be a meeting place for winos. On the plus side, its central location made it an ideal base for sightseeing. In addition, the hotel restaurant has a great view across the city to El Panecillo (which I managed to obliterate in this photo).
The second, Kinde House, is nicer, but on a rather steep hill. This means a somewhat strenuous walk back to the hotel at the end of a day’s sightseeing. But to compensate, it has a great rooftop garden with an amazing view of the city.
Quito: Top 10 Things to do
| 1 | Admire (and climb) the Basílica del Voto Nacional |
| 2 | Visit the opulent Iglesia de San Francisco |
| 3 | Explore and dine in quaint La Ronda |
| 4 | Visit the Palacio de Gobierno |
| 5 | Learn about Quito’s history at the Museo de la Ciudad |
| 6 | Admire some excellent art at the Museo Nacional del Ecuador |
| 7 | Play equator themed games at the Museo Intiñan |
| 8 | Visit the equator spanning Mitad del Mundo |
| 9 | Climb to the top of El Panecillo and admire the city views |
| 10 | Stroll round La Carolina Park and visit the Botanical Garden |
No 1 – Admire (and climb) the Basílica del Voto Nacional
The enormous Basílica del Voto Nacional dates from the 19th century and is, in fact, the largest church in Quito. Construction took place between 1892 and 1909, although technically the building remains unfinished. This is because legend says that when the Basílica is completed, the world will end. The exterior is carved with animals such as turtles and iguanas.
The old man decided to climb the tower, which is apparently involves a rather rickety staircase. It also requires crossing a wooden plank inside the main roof and climbing a combination of stairs and ladders to the top.
I opted for a more sedate visit to the interior of the Basílica. The highlight of the ornate interior is the collection of stunning stained glass windows.
The Basílica is open daily between 9 am and 6 pm. Entry to the interior costs $2 and the tower costs a further $2.
No 2 – Visit the opulent Iglesia de San Francisco
Another of Quito’s historic churches is the Iglesia de San Francisco. Construction of the church began in 1535, making it the oldest religious site in Ecuador.
It is set around a beautiful courtyard.
Museo de San Francisco
Within the church complex you will find the Museo de San Francisco, which contains some weird and wonderful religious art.
The museum is open daily from 9 am until 5 pm (1 pm on Sunday). Entry costs $3.
No 3 – Explore and dine in quaint La Ronda
In the evening, take a walk along la Ronda; a cobbled street lined with colourful 17th century houses, and find somewhere for dinner.
We opted for Casa los Geranios, a quaint little restaurant which is, as the name suggests, adorned with geraniums and artfully decorated inside.
The food is excellent, if a bit pretentious. I had chicken in orange and teriyaki sauce with a chocolate glaze (with chips of course). The old man had steak followed by a flambeed ice cream dessert which looked like it would burn for ever.
No 4 – Visit the Palacio de Gobierno
The Plaza Grande, the central square, with its large independence monument, is a popular selfie spot – some put more effort into their outfit than others!
Taking up one side of the Plaza is the Palacio de Gobierno, seat of government and official residence of the President.
We booked a guided tour of the Palace. This included a tour of the museum, which focuses on the political history of Ecuador, but also houses a collection of presidential gifts.
The Palacio some rather cool murals by Guayasamin depicting the first European navigation of the Amazon.
The tour concludes with visits to the enormous Banquet Room with its own chapel and the Yellow Room, which houses portraits of past presidents.
We really enjoyed the guided tour of the Palacio de Gobierno. Tours haven’t run since 2020. The official website confirms that the palace is a top tourist attraction, but gives no indication if/when tours will resume. However, the Changing of the Guard Ceremony has recently recommenced, so hopefully, tours will soon follow suit. Changing of the Guard takes place on Mondays at 11 am.
No 5 – Learn about Quito’s history at the Museo de la Ciudad
The Museo de la Ciudad is housed in a 17th century hospital and gives a chronological history of Quito. As long as you keep to the prescribed route. We attempted to bypasses a group of school kids and ended up going backwards through history, witnessing the fight for independence prior to colonisation, which was all rather confusing.
In the final gallery is a temporary exhibit. When we visited, it was an exhibition on the history of Quito’s markets, so rather an anti climax.
The Museum is open Wednesday to Friday from 8 am until 4.30 pm and weekends from 9.30 am until 5.30 pm. Entry for adult foreigners costs $8.
No 6 – Admire some excellent art at the Museo Nacional del Ecuador
The Casa de la Cultura is a huge, round glass building which houses the Museo Nacional del Ecuador (MuNa). The museum takes you through the history of Ecuadorean art. There’s some great stuff here, including lots of gold.
My favourite was a collection of sculptures entitled La Carga, which depict Ecuadorean women going about their daily business.
There’s also a fun play area, where you can interact with the art and even climb inside a painting.
The MuNa has a separate building which houses a temporary exhibition. When we visited, it was the work of artist Hernán Illescas, which was for sale; below, La Migración Sueño en la Memoria, a snip at $20,000.
MuNa is open from Wednesday to Sunday between 10 am and 5 pm (3 pm on Sunday). Entry is free.
No 7 – Play equator themed games at the Museo Intiñan
There are a couple of equator themed attractions just north of Quito. First up, the Museo Intiñan, which claims to be on the GPS equator. Here, you are given a guided tour, which includes such fun activities as balancing an egg on a nail (supposed to be possible at the equator) and trying to walk along the equator in a straight line (supposed to be impossible).
This is followed by a very lengthy chocolate making demonstration, for no particular reason other than to try and flog chocolate.
The Museo Intiñan is open daily from 9.30 am until 5 pm. Adult entry costs $5.
No 8 – Stand with a foot in each hemisphere at Mitad del Mundo
The Mitad del Mundo claims to be on the geographical equator. Here, there are a number of equator themed photo ops, as well as an equator museum and an eclectic mixture of other museums and attractions from beer to trains.
We took an organised tour which gave us just 28 minutes here, nowhere near long enough to see everything, but we managed the basics – the sign and the monument.
It is possible to get to Mitad del Mundo by public transport, but it requires taking two buses (change at Ofelia station). Alternatively, there are a whole host of travel agents offering day trips. We went with Go4Shuttle who charge $14.
The Mitad del Mundo is open daily from 9 am until 5 pm (6 pm at weekends). Adult entry costs $5.
No 9 – Climb to the top of El Panecillo and admire the city views
Head up El Panecillo; a small hill with an aluminium statue of the Virgin Mary on top. It is possible to walk up, but we opted for the Hop on Hop off Bus. It was an interesting journey in a double decker, navigating the narrow, winding streets and low hanging electric cables.
The Virgen de el Panecillo sits atop a dragon on a globe. You can climb to a viewing platform around the globe for a 360 degree view of the city and surroundings.
The monument is open from 9 am until 5 pm (9 pm at weekends). Entry costs $1.
No 10 – Stroll round La Carolina Park and visit the Botanical Garden
La Carolina Park is a large park with sports pitches, a running track, a lake and the Botanical Garden.
Botanical Garden
Inside the park is the Botanical Garden. The garden has a number of zones, with native habitats including cloud forest, wetlands, an orchid greenhouse, an Amazonian greenhouse and a Japanese garden. There’s even a greenhouse full of carnivorous plants.
We spent a long time in the Botanical Garden; my favourite parts were the Carnivore Collection and the Japanese Garden, which contains a collection of over 100 Bonsai trees.
The Botanical Garden is open daily between 10 am and 3.30 pm (4 pm at weekends). Adult entry costs $4.
- Trip taken: March 2019
- Updated: April 2025
I hope you found the above information useful. For more top picks from other destinations in the 50+ countries we have visited, check out my full Top 10 Things To Do list here.
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