The Quilotoa Loop is a famous hike in Ecuador because it's that damn good! It takes you to rural mountainous areas of Ecuador. We love hiking, but this adventure was the first time we tackled a multi-day hike that required us to get up everyday and cover a certain distance. It ended up being the perfect adventure in Ecuador.

The Quilotoa Loop is named for the Quilotoa volcano, which is also the Quilotoa caldera, or the Quilotoa lagoon. It's an extinct volcano that is now filled with a beautiful green-blue water. It's seriously one of the most breathtaking sights I've seen. The 'loop' part of the name is a bit of a misnomer. You don't exactly end up in the same place you started, but both starting and ending spots are a a couple hours by bus from Latacunga, which connects to Quito, Banos, Riobamba, Cuenca, and pretty much anywhere you want to go in Ecuador.

We kind of did the loop backwards - most people want to end at the Quilotoa volcano for the reason that it's sort of the main attraction. We were more than happy to see the Quilotoa caldera first though. Mainly because it makes the hike much easier - it makes the first day the hardest day and it makes it more downhill than up. If we would have done it the other way, I think we would have struggled a lot more.

The first day involved hiking around the outside of the volcano crater (about a quarter of the way around), then you have 2 options: you can either go the easier way, which follows the road, or you can go the extreme way, which has incredible views but is more difficult. We're extreme to the max. At first we were like, 'this ain't that extreme', but then we reached a cliff and realized we had to go down it. It was actually really cool and not all that tough (going up with have been much harder). It takes you down into a valley and across a river, and then back up the other side to the first stop, Chugchilan.

All the stops have a few options for accommodations. It doesn't seem like you have to book ahead, but we did. They all feed you breakfast and dinner, which is good because the villages are small and there aren't really many options for food.

The next day we headed back into the canyon and up and out the other side. We had purchased a pack lunch from our guesthouse, which was ready to go when we checked out. It was a nice rest and refuel for us.

The rest of the second day was fairly easy, and really quite beautiful as you walk along a country road, past small farm houses and lots of views over the valley. We arrived in Isinlivi at around 2:00PM.

The last day was suppose to be the easiest, but it was a bit muddy. I slipped and fell back on my hands at one point. Unfortunately, there was a thorn bush right where my hands landed. I had to pull a couple of thorns out of my hand, but I was okay. The mud didn't last long and after a bit of a difficult climb, we arrived at our last stop, Sigchos where we grabbed lunch (there's an amazing hornado ([ Ссылка ]) place on the corner of the square.

Each day was about 4-5 hours of hiking - about 13 hours of hiking total. It was cheap, with the only cost really being some food and 3 nights in hostels. I think it cost us about $65 each.

I recommend leaving early to get the hiking over with by early afternoon. That way you miss the rain, which always started in the afternoon to early evening, and it also means you don't necessarily have to pack a lunch. We only took a lunch on the second day, but snacks to refuel are recommended as well as plenty of water, sunscreen, a hat, and sunglasses.

AMAZING ECUADORIAN FOOD, PLUS THE BEST BURGERS, PIZZA, BEER, COFFEE, & MORE IN MY QUITO FOOD GUIDE! With 50 recommendations!
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I currently live in Quito and I am constantly exploring and traveling the country and other parts of the world. My channel will entertain you (I encourage you to laugh at me), educate you (I do a lot of research), and make you downright ravenous.

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