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Ecuador & Galapagos Islands Andes to Amazon

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When is the best time to visit the Andes?

The cloud forest has an all year round spring-like climate with temperatures averaging 21°C.  There are on average a few hours of sunshine every day. It rains all year round, but the wettest months in the eastern Oriente jungle are Jun-Aug, when there can be landslides and airports may be closed. These however are the driest months in Baños, at a higher altitude. The closer you get to the Amazon region, the lower, more humid and hotter it will be. The hotels and tourist attractions in the region can be busy at weekends and at national holidays.

What language is spoken in the Andes?

The main language spoken in the Andes is Spanish.

What currency do I need in the Andes?

Ecuador uses the US dollar. You can withdraw cash from Quito and the larger towns in the region where there are banks and ATMs.

What is the time difference between the Andes and the UK?

The time difference between the Andes and the UK is GMT -5 hours.

What places combine well with the Andes?

The Avenue of the Volcanoes; Otavalo and the northern highlands.    

How do you get to the Andes?

It’s a 90 minute drive from Quito to Papallacta in the cloud forest, 3hrs 40 minutes to Misahualli in the Oriente and 3hrs to Baños.

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Meet our team

Real Latin american experts

  • Ben
    Ben Line - Travel Expert

    Ben fell in love with Latin America on a six month backpacking trip from Colombia to Mexico in 1995. Since then he has explored most of South America, including living in Peru for a year. He is now Head of Sales.

  • Maggie
    Maggie Wilson - Travel Expert

    Maggie visited Latin America on her first backpacking trip when she was 19. Since then, she has taken every opportunity to travel, and has managed to explore a lot of the region in subsequent trips.

  • Juliet
    Juliet Ellwood - Travel Expert

    After graduating with a degree in Anthropology and History and having been fascinated by Latin America since childhood by the book featuring photos of Nazca, Juliet first visited the region in 2003. Since then, Juliet has visited the majority of countries in Latin America but has particularly extensive experience with Peru, a country she loves for many reasons but not least, its incredible archaeological richness and delicious food!

  • Charlotte
    Charlotte Daubeney - Travel Expert

    Charlotte's fascination with Latin America began with a family holiday to Belize. She went on to study Spanish in school and at university before spending a year living in Santiago, Chile.

  • Hannah
    Hannah Waterhouse - Travel Expert

    Hannah had an early introduction to Latin America when her family moved to Ecuador and she returned to study in Buenos Aires for a year before backpacking across the continent.

  • Lina
    Lina Fuller - Travel Expert

    Lina's passion for the continent where she was born really took off when she moved to Córdoba (Argentina) to study, spending the holidays travelling between Argentina and her native Colombia.

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