Mindo Cloud Forest

Quito was included in my most recent trip as a necessary city en route to and from the Galapagos Islands. I say this to set the expectations as low as mine were for my day of exploration in this city. It was much to my surprise a stunning city with lovely surroundings such as the Mindo Cloud Forest, which made for an excellent last day of our trip.

Quito

EXPERIENCE

On my first pass through Quito en route to the Galapagos Island, I only spent a night in transit. On our return trip however, we arrived early enough to enjoy the impressive landscape of the city on our drive in. Quito is called the “center of the Earth” and is the highest altitude capital city in the world. We had a nice dinner near the Old City and enjoyed this capital at the top of the world. 

Equator Museum

The next morning, our guide, Richard picked us up bright and early for a day of exploring nearby Mindo. This town is situated among the UNESCO heritage site, the Mindo Nambillo Cloud Forest Reserve. We began our day with a gorgeous rainforest hike here.  On our hike we saw many orchids, a snake, cock in the rock birds and other special birds. We next visited a very unique hummingbird refuge. Then we hit a butterfly sanctuary called Mariposas de Mindo. From here we went zip lining through the jungly trees and checked out the small town of Mindo. On our way back to Quito we stopped at the Equator Museum which ended up being much more interesting than expected.

STAY

Both of my hotel experiences in Quito were very positive. On my first pass through I stayed near the airport at Rincon de Puembo only 15 min from Mariscal Sucre Airport. This hotel was charming and local feeling, I’d consider checking it out again if I pass through. On our return we spent a night at the Holiday Inn Express which was a quick cab ride from the historic Old Town and a great accommodation. This hotel serves a wonderful local breakfast for free and has excellent wifi throughout the hotel. 

Hummingbird Refuge

EAT

We had an excellent and memorable dinner during our night in Quito near the Old Town at place called Vista Hermosa. The restaurant provided a stunning view of the city from a central point in the valley and we were able to see the entire urban center light up at twilight. We had a really memorable family evening here laughing over a pitcher of sangria and admiring the colorful rooftops. 

The following day we enjoyed lunch at a much more local establishment in Mindo. This hole in the wall was called Restaurante la Sazon de Marcelo. We had a big (Ecuadorians treat lunch as their primary meal of the day) and satisfying meal of trout, tilapia and chicken accompanied by rice and fried potatoes. 

Standing on the Equator

Since Ecuador is the primary cocoa producer for the world, even supplying the famed Swiss chocolatiers with their beans, we made chocolate tasting our secondary mission. Our guide encouraged us to taste the difference between the organic and sustainably farmed local bars and less environmentally responsible brands such as El Quetzal.

Mindo Cloud Forest