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On leaving from Quito's Mariscal Sucre International Airport, every international passenger must pay $40.80 in departure tax. No doubt it is to finance the new airport they're building further out from the city. There are other ways they can raise the money without making the last impression of Quito a bad one. I am critical of the departure tax wherever it is practiced. I mention it here because Quito imposes the highest departure tax I have run across. I hope an enormous group of irate departing passengers pays their departure tax in small change, filling up wheelbarrows, and dumping it on the way to the gate as the bumfuzzled agents try to count it! The only good thing about this was I expected it was $47 based on what they told me downtown at the tourist office. It was actually a RELIEF to be paying the almost $41.
If there was a way to avoid paying $40.80 on my way out, believe me I would have found it and told y'all how to do it. Leave a Comment
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It's relatively cheap to get a ticket to Mitad del Mundo and to park there as well as tickets to the Teleferiqo. However, the shops and restaurants at both places are tacky and charge confiscatory prices when they bait you with this once in a lifetime opportunity to straddle the equator or be 4100 m. above sea level. When I was at both places, I didn't see many people making a move to eat at the restaurants or shop in the shops. Maybe we're starting to get wise to them.
Friends, nobody is forcing you to eat and buy stuff here!
Eat a good meal before you go and hold out to buy your souvenirs at an artisan market in town or on a Saturday in Otavalo. Leave a Comment
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Every October through to February (especially November and December) is rainy season in Quito. It is rare to see a washout, but you will see some rain on most days. The good thing is when it does rain, it normally does for round about 2 or 3 hours in late afternoon at a time and it is not widespread. That is, it could be raining up in Quito and not rain in a nearby valley. Temperatures also vary widely with the altitude.
Go shopping or see a movie indoors until the rain passes and carry on with your outdoor activities. Leave a Comment
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It is said to always take a taxi after 7pm, even if you are only walking 3 or 4 blocks. Whilel, being from NYC, this seemed ridiculous to me, I found that it is a worthy investment. A lot of people I met had been victim to some sort of petty crime. (About 15 people I met in Spanish school and others) Generally cabs cost about $1 to $2 to go anwhere. They usually charge more at night and this is legal, as they are not required to run their meters. The trick is to just give them how much it should charge. (usually a $1.50) If you ask them how much it will cost, they will usually charge you double or triple. Don't be afraid to protest a high or unfair charge. Leave a Comment
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It's a complete tourist trap, but admit it - who doesn't want a picture of themselves with with one leg in each hemisphere?! Rumour has it that the equator line was painted about 100 metres out of place, but it's still good fun.
There is a museum in the monument that you can climb up and get some views of the suburbs of quito, and watch everyone posing for photos.
Run backwards and forwards flushing the public toilets either side of the equator to see if the water DOES go down a different way in each hemisphere! Leave a Comment
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Who can resist standing in 2 hemispheres at once?
Go on Sunday - there's a huge festival with dancing and live music from all over the world.
Take a tour through the museum inside the monument - you'll get to see all of the country in a short time!
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It is worth going to the Mitah del Mundo, the monument which marks the location of the equator (at least in some people's minds-- it is evidently not in the exact spot, but close enough!) There are touristy shops and a little village on the site, but you can ignore these if you choose and just see the monument.
you've got to take a picture standing on the line! Leave a Comment
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Well, this is not a tourist trap is just a recommendation. You can get very good prices in this small market, lots of stalls with handicrafts, and if you´re lucky you will see local people dancing andean music.
The best prices i saw in Quito. At the end of Amazonas avenue and Patria street. Leave a Comment
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the Mitad del Mundo -- it's the monument on the Equator -- definitely a tourist trap, but a fun one. How many times can you say that you've stood with one foot in the northern hemisphere and one in the southern? It's located about half an hour's drive outside Quito. The monument is in a little tourist park with shops and restaurants. You can go up into the obelisk for a good lookout and see the museum on your way back down, but it's a little pricy compared to everything else and really not worth the money. The most fun of the whole experience is having your photo snapped while straddling the equator.
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