-
Museo de Arte Colonial
One block to the northeast of Plaza Grande is the excellent Museo de Arte Colonial . In a restored 17th-century building, the museum houses what many consider to be Ecuador's best collection of colonial art. It's surely the best place to see the famous sculptures and paintings of the Quito School, including the works of Miguel de Santiago, Manuel Chili (the indigenous artist known as Caspicara) and Bernardo de Legarda.
-
Museo de Ciencias Naturales
To acquaint yourself with Ecuador's flora and fauna, head to the country's best natural-history museum, the Museo de Ciencias Naturales. Contemplating the thousands of dead insects and arachnids on display is a good way to rile your nerves before a trip to the Oriente. It's next to the Jardín Botánico.
-
Museo de Jacinto Jijón y Caamaño
The Museo de Jacinto Jijón y Caamaño houses an interesting private archaeology collection and an exhibit of colonial art featuring some of the masters of the Quito School. This museum is on the 3rd floor of the library in the Universidad Católica, across the traffic circle from the Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana. Admission includes a guided tour (in English if you call in advance).
-
Museo de la Ciudad
The 18th-century Arco de la Reina (García Moreno at Rocafuerte), a massive arch built in the 18th century to give shelter to churchgoers, spans García Moreno. On one side, the Museo de la Ciudad occupies the beautifully restored San Juan de Dios hospital. Built in 1563, it functioned as a hospital until 1973. The museum depicts daily life in Quito through the centuries with displays including dioramas, model indigenous homes and colonial kitchens. ists.
-
Museo de San Agustín
In the convent of the Monastery of San Agustín, the Museo de San Agustín houses many canvases of the Quito School, including a series depicting the life of Saint Augustine, painted by Miguel de Santiago.
-
Museo del Banco Central
Across from Parque El Ejido, the circular, glass-plated landmark-building Casa de la Cultura Ecuatoriana houses a movie theater, an auditorium and one of the country's most important museums, the Museo del Banco Central. The museum showcases the country's largest collection of Ecuadorian art, from beautifully displayed pre-Hispanic and colonial religious art to 20th-century paintings and sculpture.
-
Museo Franciscano
To the right of the main entrance the Monastery of San Francisco is the Museo Franciscano, which contains some of the church's finest artwork, including paintings, sculpture and furniture dating to the 16th century. Some of the furniture is fantastically wrought and inlaid with thousands of pieces of mother-of-pearl. The admission fee includes a guided tour, available in English or Spanish.
-
Museo Guayasamín
In the former home of world-famous painter Oswaldo Guayasamín (1919-99), this wonderful museum houses the most complete collection of his work. Guayasamín was also an avid collector, and the museum displays his outstanding collection of more than 4500 pre-Colombian ceramic, bone and metal pieces from throughout Ecuador.
-
Museo Mindalae: Museo Etnohistorico de Artesanias del Ecuador
Just north of the Mariscal, the Museo Mindalae exhibits the artwork, clothing and utensils of Ecuador's indigenous people with special emphasis on the peoples of the Oriente. Run by the outstanding Fundación Sinchi Sacha.
Read more about Museo Mindalae: Museo Etnohistorico de Artesanias del Ecuador
-
Old Town
If you're short on time head straight to the old town. It's here that Quito distinguishes itself from all other cities in the world. Be certain to see the Plaza and Monastery of San Francisco, the Plaza de la Independencia (Plaza Grande), La Compañía de Jesús and the Museo de Arte Colonial.
-
Advertisement
-
Palacio del Gobierno
The austere white building with the national flag flying on top is the Presidential Palace. The president does actually carry out business here, so sightseeing is limited to the entrance. Inside, a mural depicts Francisco de Orellana's descent of the Amazon - if you ask nicely, the guard might let you have a peek.
-
Parque El Ejido
Northeast of La Alameda, the pleasant, tree-filled Parque El Ejido is the biggest park in downtown Quito. It's a popular spot for impromptu games of soccer and volleyball. The north end of the park teems with activity on weekends, when open-air art shows are held along Avenida Patria. Just inside the north end of the park, artisans and crafts vendors set up stalls and turn the sidewalks into Quito's largest handicrafts market.
-
Parque Itchimbia
High on a hill east of the old town, the newly resurrected green space of Parque Itchimbia boasts magnificent views of the city. It's the perfect spot to spread out a picnic lunch, soak up the sun and take in the unobstructed 360-degree views. The park's centerpiece is the Centro Cultural Itchimbia.
-
Parque La Alameda
From the northeast edge of the old town the long, triangular Parque La Alameda begins its grassy crawl toward the new town. At the southern apex of the park stands the Simón Bolívar monument. Toward the middle of the park are statues of the members of the 1736-44 French Académie des Sciences expedition that surveyed Ecuador and made the equatorial measurements that gave rise to the metric system.
-
Parque La Carolina
North of the Mariscal lies the giant Parque La Carolina. On weekends it fills with families who come to pedal paddleboats, play soccer and ride bikes. In 2005, Quito inaugurated a new addition: the Jardín Botánico. With more than 300 Ecuadorian plants and tree species and an outstanding orquideario (orchid greenhouse), it's well worth a look. The Museo de Ciencias Naturales, the country's best natural history museum, is next door.
-
Plaza del Teatro
Northeast of the Plaza Grande, at the junction of Calles Guayaquil and Manabí, is the tiny Plaza del Teatro, where you'll find - along with microphone-toting preachers, protestors and hollering newspaper peddlers - the exquisitely restored Teatro Sucre. Built in 1878, it is Quito's most sophisticated theater.
-
Plaza Grande
While wandering around colonial Quito, you'll probably pass through the Plaza Grande (formally known as Plaza de la Independencia) several times. The austere white building on the northwest side of the plaza (between Chile and Espejo) with the national flag flying atop is the Palacio del Gobierno (Presidential Palace; García Moreno). The president does indeed carry out business in this building, so sightseeing is limited to the entrance. Inside, a mural depicts Francisco de Orellana's descent of the Amazon. The guard at the gate may allow you in to take a look.
-
Plaza of San Francisco
This sweeping cobblestone plaza is one of Ecuador's finest sights. Backed by the whitewashed walls of the Monastery of San Francisco and the mountainous Volcán Pichincha, it is not to be missed. If you have time, pop in to the Museo Franciscano, which contains some of the monastery's finest artwork, and the Capilla de Cantuña, which holds an excellent art collection from the Quito School.
-
Plaza San Francisco
Walking from the old town's narrow colonial streets into the open Plaza San Francisco reveals one of the finest sights in all of Ecuador - a sweeping cobblestone plaza backed by the long whitewashed walls and twin bell towers of Ecuador's oldest church, the Monastery of San Francisco. With its giant plaza and its mountainous backdrop of Volcán Pichincha this is surely one of Quito's highlights.
-
Plaza Santo Domingo
Near the southwest end of Calle Guayaquil, Plaza Santo Domingo is a regular haunt for street performers, and crowds of neighborhood quiteños fill the plaza to watch pouting clowns and half-cocked magicians do their stuff. The plaza is especially attractive in the evening when the domes of the 17th-century Church of Santo Domingo, on the southeast side of the plaza, are floodlit.
-
Advertisement
-
Quito Cathedral
Although not richly decorated, Quito's cathedral has had a nice fresh slap of paint and houses a bundle of religious paintings by notable artists of the Quito School. Also, keep your eyes peeled for the ornate tomb of Mariscal Sucre, the leading figure of Quito's independence, and the spot where president Gabriel García Moreno was hacked to death.
-
Quito Observatory
The Quito Observatory stands in the center of Parque La Alameda, just by the statues of members of the 1736-44 French Académie des Sciences expedition that surveyed Ecuador. Opened by President García Moreno in 1864, it's the oldest observatory on the continent. On very clear nights the observatory opens for stargazing; call ahead to confirm if the weather looks promising.
-
Sanctuary of El Guápulo
If you follow Avenida 12 de Octubre up the hill from the Mariscal, you'll reach the Hotel Quito at the top. Behind the hotel, stairs lead steeply down the other side of the hill to the historic neighborhood of Guápulo. At the bottom of the hill stands the neighborhood's centerpiece, the sanctuary of El Guápulo , a beautiful church built between 1644 and 1693. The church has an excellent collection of Quito School art and sculpture, and a stunning 18th-century pulpit carved by master wood-carver Juan Bautista Menacho.
-
Statue of Francisco de Orellana
The best views of Guápulo are from the lookout behind the Hotel Quito, next to the statue of Francisco de Orellana. The statue depicts Francisco de Orellana looking down into the valley that was the beginning of his epic journey from Quito to the Atlantic - the first descent of the Amazon by a European.
-
TelefériQo
Quito's newest attraction - and a mind-boggling one at that - is the telefériQo, a multimillion dollar sky tram that takes passengers on a hair-raising 2.5km ride up the flanks of Volcán Pichincha to the top of Cruz Loma. Once you're at the top (a mere 4100m), you can hike to the summit of Rucu Pichincha (4680m), an approximately three-hour hike for fit walkers. Don't attempt the hike to Rucu Pichincha until you've acclimatized in Quito for a couple days.
