Specific beach to chill out but also be social...

Hi, with five days in Ecuador at the end of a long trip, looking for the prettiest jungly beach to just reeelax but also easy to meet people as I'll be on my own, then back to Quito for departure. Solo 30something hippie professional? Might like to snorkel or raft, do not surf but like surf, do not like huge resorts but do like some easygoing nightlife, sandy roads, my own bathroom. It seems Canoa or Mompiche might be best, any opinions on those or any others? Considered Puerto Lopez/Isla de la Plata but may be too far. Beaches I have liked before include: Caye Caulker, Nha Trang, Mui Ne, Kahuku area, quiet parts of Goa, Thanks!!!

I see that no one has answered your question yet so I will tell you what I know.
I have not been to Mompiche, but only to Canoa and Puerto Lopez. It was the end of June when I visited Canoa, and it was not weekend, so it was very quiet. Unfortunately I broke my wrist and didn’t see very much of Canoa. If I had stayed longer I would have liked to do tandem paragliding.

A very nice excursion to do if you stay in Canoa is to Isla Corazon. There you have one of the largest Frigatebird colonies in South America, and it is interesting to see even if you are not a birder.

Puerto Lopez is larger than Canoa and besides walking on the beach or drink juice at one of the beach bars there are nice excursions you can do from there, to Isla de La Plata and Machalilla National Park.

I have written reviews about these places and have photos here:
Canoa: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3fbdb/184c01/
Isla Corazon: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3fbdb/22ac3d/
Puerto Lopaz: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3fbdb/183a5e/

Thank you! It's hard to tell from the searches which is the more impressive setting. What did you think? Any other suggestions?

The beaches in Canoa and Puerto Lopez are not among the most beautiful in the world, but they are okay and nice places to relax in a few days.

I don't know what time of the year you are visiting, but if it is during whale season I would go to Puerto Lopez. When I went on a daytrip to Isla de La Plata we saw lots of jumping whales on the way back. It was really impressive!

Nicer than the beach in Puerto Lopez is Playa Los Frailes in Machalilla National Park. You can't stay there, but it is a good daytrip from Puerto Lopez, and there is a nice trail to walk there (and also a dirt road).

Playa Los Frailes and Machalilla National Park: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3fbdb/183dde/
Isla de La Plata: http://members.virtualtourist.com/m/3fbdb/183b1a/

OK, would you consider it worthwhile in March? Otherwise I am considering Mancora, Las Pocitas, or Punta Sal in Peru.

a nice combo for us was staying in Olon to completely relax on a gorgeous long strip of beach with the odd ice cream wagon and beer cart jingling by, do a little boogie boarding then heading to the Ko San Road vibe of Montanita to watch some pro surfing, good eats and party till the sun comes up if you want to, retreating to the quiet of Olon less than a 10 minute taxi ride away. Montanita on its own can be to unrelaxing and not it's intention.

Great, hadn't seen anything about Olon so can check on that. Montanita did not sound the way for me :)

yes its a party town but you can take it or leave it, catch it early in the day. Puerto Lopez was ok and the beach in the park is beautiful. The coast in general can't compare to SE Asia beaches

Thanks! If you had to pick, which one would you base yourself in if you were on your own? Did you get to Peru beaches?

if we went again we would still use Olon as a base, nice and quiet and mostly empty beach. We are heading to Peru/Bolivia in a few weeks so haven't done any beaching there yet. An awesome beach spot in Colombia is north of Cartegena, Taganga and Tyrona National Park if your ever up that way.... ..enjoy

Enjoy! If you remember to, keep us posted! :)

here's a link to my blog from 2013, posts for beaches in Colombia & Equador etc, along with our wheelchair distribution project with Rotary, will chip away at Peru/Bolivia
cheers

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/sa2013/1/1359059746/tpod.html

Thanks! So it turns out it is cheaper for me to fly back from Lima, so now looking at outlying areas of Mancora! There will need to be a future trip to Ecuador as Galapagos won't be on the itinerary this time...

Hi,
I came upon this as I'm heading to ECU in 24 hrs. Landing in Quito and so far Otavallo & maybe Banos. Was hoping to do a beach town for a few days and after researching Montanita doesn't seem quite my thing (seems too much of a scene). I'd planned on Canoa but am seeing mixed opinions on that. Does anybody have any good beach towns in the North so not as crazy long bus ride from Quito? I'm a female traveling solo and any accommodation recommends welcome too. THANKS!

I'm interested in hearing about nice beaches in the north too as I hope to go there during my next visit to Ecuador. I have done some research and by now Same seems to be the nicest option.

It all depends on what you want from the beach.. local culture or resort style lifestyle... Same is resort style.. Me I liked Sua as it is not too touristy at all and you can enjoy a bit of life with the locals as well.. We stayed at the Bouganvillia on the beach and fell asleep each night to the sound of the waves on the beach across the road... There are other places to stay as well. We got up rather early and watched the fishing boats come in and ate some fresh cooked seafood from little places selling some of the catch on the beach. Most of the seafood seemed destined for Quito though... Me I prefer that kind of beach to the resort style which is more expensive anyway...

I don't like resort style places, but prefer places like the Sua you describe.
However, I have read that Sua can be very noisy at weekends and in July (and July is when I will be there). It can be crowded with jet skiis and inflated bananas pulled behind power boats. I don't want that! That's why I was thinking of Same, or actually I was hoping there would be a cheap, lovely place south of Same, towards the fishing village Tonchigüe.

Hey,
Thanks for the tips. Yeah- I should've been more specific- I grew up partially on a touristy Carib Island & def don't want more of that. And I live on the Nor Cal coast- I'm thinking more of a sleepy town with out a crazy party scene- like Santa Cruz, CA circa 1976 or something. DEF not resort. Totally not my scene & I'm currently not working so not in my budget. At any rate I think I'm going to mostly stay in the Andes but was hoping to catch more of the country by heading to the coast for a few days. If I was driving I'd just wing it but seems tricky to just pick a destination on a bus so want to get it right. I'll look up all the towns above- any other ideas- Bring 'em on!! THANKS!!!

Oh dear it sounds like Sua is going the same way as Atacames and Montinita. When we were at Sua a few years ago it was lovey and quiet and the people who run the Bouganvillia said it was quiet because most people now went to Montanita so it must have changed again since then. Back in 1996/97 we spent a few relaxing days at Muisne so I wonder if that has become more touristy also?

Olon is a beautiful beach with lots of good placed to eat. It's a $1.50 taxi ride and a world away from Montanita. We stayed at the Sea Garden, overlooking the beach. No scene there.Just gorgeous beach.

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