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Latest Otavalo hotel reviews
Pro
great atmosphere at the local market
Con
Too touristy
In a nutshell
Otavalo is a Great Handcraft Town! A wonderful climate and town!
MalenaN Says: Otavalo Saturday market is said to be the larges handicraft market in South America with lots of craftsmen coming to town to sell their goods. Already since pre-Incan times there has been a market here. For centuries the Otavaleños has been known for their high quality...
JessieLang Says: The condor park is an educational facility and a rehabilitation center for condors and other birds from the Americas. The private 30-acre park is on Pukara Alto, a pre-Colombian site, just a few miles from Otavalo. The unpaved road leaves a lot to be desired, but it is worth...
Rodrigo Mora, Zulaytur, Excellent Otavalo Guide
JimLuckett Says: There is an anthropologist who runs an extraordinary tourist guiding service in Otavalo. His name is Rodrigo Mora. His company is Zulaytur. His office is on the second floor at the corner of Colon and Sucre streets. He can take you to surrounding villages, into the homes of...
Central Plaza and surroundings
JessieLang Says: There is more to Otavalo than the market! Check out the Central Plaza and the surrounding buildings. There is a large bust of Ruminahui, an Inca general (and brother of King Atahualpa) in the Central Plaza. He hid a lot of the Inca gold to keep it from the Spanish, and...
1 Review and 152 Opinions The Hacienda Cusin is just outside Otavalo, at the foot of the Imbabura Volcano. It was built in...
MalenaN Says: Before going back to Quito I decided to have lunch and went to the restaurant Mi Otavalito. There I ordered the traditional plate Llapingachos de Otavalito. Llapingachos are fried, mashed potato patties with a cheese filling. Other things on the plate were avocado, a salad...
MalenaN Says: I saw a women and her daughter that were selling fruit salads at the market and the fruit salads in the big mugs they had on the table in front of them looked very yummy, so I bought one for $1 (June 2011). It was a mix of watermelon, mango, papaya and pineapple in the mug...
Food stands at the bus terminal
MalenaN Says: I had not bought a lot to eat at Carcelen in Quito and was still hungry when I arrived in Otavalo. The first thing I saw at the terminal was that there were several food stands on the south eastern side. I went over to Papitas de Doña Carmita and bought some chicken and...
malianrob Says: Traditional food from this region of Ecuador.My cousins that live in Otavalo brought me to this place and it was delicious. I wanted traditional food and they said this is the best place for traditional food. We had fritada which is fried meat, llapingachos which is a fried...
From Quito to Otavalo and back
MalenaN Says: Before coming to Quito I had read that buses to Otavalo leaves from Terminal Carcelen, in the far north of Quito. To know how to get there I asked for direction. Someone told me to take the bus to La Y and from there take another bus to Carcelen. When I left in the morning...
JessieLang Says: The Otavalo market has been in existence, in the same location, for centuries. It was there even before the Incas came. The Otavalo Indians are noted for their weaving, and many of them had booths at the market filled with rugs, scarves and sweaters. The market also had food...
Plaza de ponchos and else where: Get more for your money
malianrob Says: They say that the best day to go shopping in Otavalo is Saturday when the Plaza de Ponchos is full. I think the opposite. The Plaza de Ponchos is busy everyday and you can find everything that you see on Saturdays any day of the week. The Plaza de Ponchos is so large now on...
malianrob Says: My cousins took me up to this famous spot. It is on the way to the Condor Park. The Lechero is a very very old tree. They say its hundred of years old. Local shaman come here too because there is a certain positive energy found here. It is located on a hill that overloks the...
El Corazon de Imbabura/Heart of Imbabura
malianrob Says: I am not sure if you can see it well in this pictures but at the side on the Taita Imbabura there is a deep crevice. It is in the shape of a perfect heart. You can see this on the side of the mountain and there is a legend that goes along with it. Apparently there was this...
malianrob Says: Over all Otavalo doesnt have alot of violent crime. It is also much safer here than it is in Quito or Guayaquil. We walked around at night with absolutely no problem. What you do have to watch out for is when there are large crowds because when you least expect it you might...
JessieLang Says: Cuicocha Lake is in the crater of an extinct volcano that last erupted 3000 years ago. It fell in on itself, and the dome makes a big island in the middle of the lake. During the solstice the natives go to the middle of the lake to make offerings. (According to our native...
JessieLang Says: The Peguche Waterfall is considered to be one of the most important ritual places for the indigenous people in Northern Ecuador. This sacred waterfall is the site of an annual bathing ritual during the summer solstice festival of Inti Raymi.A winding path with interpretive...
JessieLang Says: In Peguche we visited the Nanda Manachi musician’s workshop and watched a young man make a flute from reeds. He uses seven reeds of different lengths. He blows into each one, then compares it to the sound of that reed in a finished flute. Someone without a good ear couldn’t...
HasTowelWillTravel Says: The Condor Park (Parque Condor) is a wildlife rehabilitation center and refuge on the outskirts of Otavalo. It brings in birds of prey from all over the Americas to help them survive and thrive. Those that can are released back into the wild; others make the park their home....
malianrob Says: Of course the game of choice here is soccer or futbol. I had a chance to watch a game and I blew it. I totally forgot that I got invited and I took off with one of my cousins somewhere. I y=think it would have been a great experience here. Well, maybe next time.
Go the day before market day and stay over
BE001903 Says: We took the bus to Otavalo the day before market day, so the bus was very quiet and so was the market, which gave us time to buy the stuff we wanted (at lower prices than on market day). The actual market day the whole town gets tranformed into a market and as we stayed the...
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Plan a Otavalo vacation with reviews, tips and photos posted by real travelers and Otavalo locals
Hostal Rincon del Viajero : Otavalo, Ecuador - Newly remodeled and recommended in ALL the travel guide books they offer us guests a cozy and quiet stay that is conveniently located close too the heart of Otavalo's Poncho Market .
2 members live in Otavalo
Q: Because of timing constraints, I can only visit the Otavalo market on Sunday. Are things really quiet on Sundays? Is it still...
A: Absolutely, it is worth going! The little people from Otavalo are very gentle. They are not aggressive and speak in a very quiet voice -- almost a whisper. I really...
Read 3 Replies
1
Our rain-forest trip in Cuyabeno ended in the airport of Quito, the capital of Ecuador. There a bus waited for us to bring us to the Northern part of Ecuador. Our destination was Otavalo. The...
2
Otavalo is one of my favorite towns near Quito. It is a very indiginous town with alot of history and about two hours away from Quito. Most of the people here speak quechua and some spanish. I mostly...
3
Otavalo is a town of 50,000 located between the Imbabura and Cotacachi volcanoes. The town is best known for its large indigenous market, which has been operating in the same location for centuries.
4
I've got some interesting experiences in Otavalo. I'd love to share with you the 5 tips I've written, the 35 photos uploaded, and 3 travelogues I've created.
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The indigenous market in Otavalo, which is held every Saturday, is a must do when visiting Ecuador.
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