Quito, Cuenca or Guayaquil for 3 months?
Replies: 6 - Last Post: Oct 3, 2012 11:33 PM Last Post By: Zayra
jump to
Quito, Cuenca or Guayaquil for 3 months?
I would like to get recommendations on which people think is the best city to live in for 3 months - Quito, Cuenca or Guayaquil.My husband and I are going to Ecuador from May-July 2013 and want to live in one of these 3 cities and learn Spanish and use it as a base for taking daytrips/weekend trips to explore other parts of the country. We would like to live somewhere where we can relax but also has things to do and see, has good transport links and is cheap to live. After 3 months, we will be moving on to Peru. So what would you recommend?
Also, can anybody offer advice on budget accommodation? Should we try and arrange in advance or is it easy enough to just turn up and find an apartment to rent for 3 months? Many thanks in advance!
1
I would prefer Cuenca. Guayaquil isn´t relaxed at all, hectic, sticky, nosisy and more dangerous than Quito which hasn´t a good reputation. Less action in Cuenca but there are things to do.Budget accomodation for 3 months should be arranged once there on the spot as you will find in 2 or 3 days much better deals than before going there.
2
Dunno what Snatch is talking about, Quito's great, specially Mariscal! Cuena's also very nice. Guayaquil isn't as nice as either though, that's true.Also bear in mind that buses are SUPER cheap in Ecuador, so you could live in Quito or Cuenca and very cheaply travel to the beach for a couple days at a time whenever you wanted.
5
If you want to get out and around, see some nature, probly better to pick Mindo or Banos or Cuenca over Quito This is because leaving Quito is a pain, you have to go to Quitumbe or the Northern Bus station, to get out of Quito, and both bus stations are far from the center/nice areas.Whereas it's easier to travel out of Mindo, Banos, or Cuenca.
But if you want things like Cinnabon, Papa John's, etc, then Quito's the place for you.
If you can arrange the apartment ahead of time, all the better, but if you can't, I'm sure you can find somewhere cheap like a hostel to stay til you find a fit. You should try, but don't stress if you fail to find one ahead of time.
As for Peru, I recommend Arequipa.
Try google, try airbnb, try craigslist, and try lonelyplanet forum. That's all I can really think of for finding an apartment in Ecuador ahead of time.
Edited by: SummerOfGeorge
6
hi, I think between the three, Quito has more options to do. It´s a best place to learn Spanish because there are a lot of school options.About apartaments, it´s quite easy to find, but the prices depend on the location.
About cost of life, Quito is cheaper than Cuenca, even some place, specially touristic places are most expensive.
Cuenca is nice for travelling, but for living is not so good because is so quite.
Guayaquil is so danger and I don´t recommend you even for traveling, it´s not a good place not only for you, also for us.
So, I hope this help you, have a nice trip and enjoy my country...
