Southern Ecuador: Chimborazo, the Devil's Nose, Cuenca and Cajas

1. Day 1: Arrive in Quito

   Quito airport (UIO) to your hotel in Quito

   • Dinner
   • Stay in Quito
   Day 1 details

   Arrive at Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO), which lies outside the city, and transfer to your hotel; the transfer is proposed and we quote no time until the hotel is fixed. Quito sits at about 2,850 m in the Andes, which is the highest sleeping altitude on the trip's first days, so we keep the first evening quiet. If you arrive early, a short, slow walk in the historic centre is possible, or you can simply rest. In the evening your See Sight Tours guide, to be appointed, briefs the group on the seven days, including tomorrow's long road day, an optional Devil's Nose train ride, subject to confirmation, and how to handle altitude. A welcome dinner is proposed. Because the train and Ingapirca may open only on certain days, the start day of each departure matters and is set when dates are confirmed. Arrival times vary, and early or late flights may need a different plan.

   Included

   • Pick-up at Quito airport (UIO), proposed
   • Welcome briefing with your guide
   • Welcome dinner

   Free time: Free until the evening briefing

   Activity: Day 3 is the train visit day. If the train is included it must be confirmed to run on that date; the ministry and ticket page list Thursday to Sunday, which would mean a Tuesday to Friday start. Ingapirca is listed as open Wednesday to Sunday, so Day 3 should be a Wednesday to Sunday in either case, meaning a Monday to Friday start.

2. Day 2: South on the Avenue of the Volcanoes to Alausi

   Quito to Alausi past Chimborazo

   • Breakfast, lunch and dinner
   • Stay in Alausi
   Day 2 details

   This is a full road day, with the driving time and Chimborazo detour still to be confirmed by the local vehicle partner, so we plan an early departure and rest stops. We head south along the Pan-American highway through the high valley that Humboldt called the Avenue of the Volcanoes, past the snow cones of the central Andes. The high point of the day is the approach to Chimborazo, Ecuador's highest peak, whose summit is about 6,263 m; a stop at the high paramo viewpoint in the fauna reserve, above 4,000 m, is proposed, and whether the mountain is visible depends on cloud, which we cannot promise. We propose lunch near Riobamba, then continue to Alausi, with arrival time to be confirmed. Alausi is a small town on a hillside at about 2,350 m, where tomorrow's proposed train would depart. Altitude is a real consideration on the Chimborazo stop, so the stop is short. Dinner is in town.

   Included

   • Vehicle and driver, Quito to Alausi
   • Stop at the Chimborazo paramo viewpoint, weather permitting
   • Lunch and dinner

   Easier option: Remain at the lower viewpoint and skip the short walk

   More active option: Add a short walk at the Chimborazo stop

   Activity: A full road day; the local partner must confirm the route and driving time including the Chimborazo detour before quoting. Road conditions, rain and landslides can lengthen it. The proposed Chimborazo stop is above 4,000 m; exact stop, access and suitability must be agreed before booking.

   

3. Day 3: The Devil's Nose train, if running, and Ingapirca

   Alausi to Sibambe and back by train if running, then Ingapirca and Cuenca

   • By train
   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Cuenca
   Day 3 details

   Today we propose to ride the Devil's Nose, the Nariz del Diablo, a railway that descends a rock face by switchbacks between Alausi and Sibambe, a round trip of about two and a half hours by the listings found. The transport ministry reported on 6 June 2026 that the line reopened after a February landslide, and the ticket page lists Thursday to Sunday departures from Alausi at 08:00, 11:00 and 14:00 through 31 December 2026. We treat the train as a proposed option that must be confirmed for the exact date, with no tickets booked, and promise no schedule beyond the dates listed. If it is running we take the 08:00 departure, which is the only one that leaves time for Ingapirca and then drive to Ingapirca, Ecuador's most important Inca-Canari site, for about an hour with a guide, before continuing to Cuenca. If it is not running, the same day works without it: a slower morning in Alausi, then Ingapirca and Cuenca, with the extra time for the site and lunch.

   Included

   • Devil's Nose train, Alausi to Sibambe and back, if running and ticketed (proposed)
   • Ingapirca visit with a guide
   • Vehicle and driver, Alausi to Cuenca
   • Lunch

   Easier option: See the main Sun Temple area and skip the optional walk to the Cara del Inca

   More active option: On a road-only day without the train, consider the Cara del Inca walk if site access, weather and time allow; duration to be confirmed with the guide

   Free time: Free evening in Cuenca

   Activity: Conditional rail day. Without the train, the day runs as a road day with a slower Alausi morning, so no start-day restriction comes from the train. Ingapirca is listed as open Wednesday to Sunday (closed 1 January, 1 May and 25 December), so Day 3 should still avoid Monday and Tuesday; hours differ between sources and must be confirmed. Only the 08:00 train leaves time for Ingapirca the same day.

   

4. Day 4: Cuenca's colonial centre and the Panama hat

   Cuenca on foot, hat workshop

   • Breakfast and dinner
   • Stay in Cuenca
   Day 4 details

   A day to explore Cuenca, a UNESCO World Heritage city at about 2,550 m, with colonial streets, the blue-domed New Cathedral on the main plaza, a flower market and a river lined with old houses. Despite the name, the so-called Panama hat is woven in Ecuador from toquilla straw, and Cuenca is a centre of its making, so we visit a workshop where hats are woven, blocked and finished; the workshop is not appointed and any hat purchase is at your own cost. The day is walkable, at a pace that is easy after the road days, with free time for lunch and a museum or a cafe. A dinner is proposed in the evening. Cuenca is lower than Quito and the air is mild, so this is a good place to catch up on sleep before the high-altitude walk in the Cajas tomorrow.

   Included

   • Guided walk through Cuenca's historic centre
   • Panama hat workshop visit, to be confirmed
   • Group dinner

   Free time: Free afternoon in Cuenca

   

5. Day 5: The lakes of Cajas National Park

   Cuenca to Cajas National Park and back

   • Breakfast and lunch
   • Stay in Cuenca
   Day 5 details

   We drive to Cajas National Park, a high-altitude landscape of lakes, paramo grasslands and polylepis trees west of Cuenca; the park's access road is the same Cuenca to Molleturo road that leads to the coast. We walk a loop among the lakes at about 4,000 m, with the guide setting the length on the day, perhaps two to three hours at an easy pace, with stops. The air is thin, the weather changes quickly and the wind is cold, so warm and waterproof layers are essential. Lunch is proposed in the park or at a restaurant on the way back. In the afternoon we return to Cuenca. Altitude can cause headaches and breathlessness, and we turn back if anyone is unwell. We do not promise views or wildlife; low cloud and rain are common, though the dry season, June to September, is better.

   Included

   • Vehicle and driver to Cajas National Park
   • Guided lake walk at about 4,000 m
   • Lunch

   Easier option: Take a shorter walk of about 2 to 3 km by the nearest lake

   More active option: Add a longer loop if conditions and the group allow

   Free time: Free evening in Cuenca

   Activity: Altitude about 4,000 m. Park entry fees and trail conditions are unconfirmed.

   

6. Day 6: Over the Cajas to Guayaquil

   Cuenca to Guayaquil by the Cajas road

   • Breakfast and dinner
   • Stay in Guayaquil
   Day 6 details

   We cross the Andes on the Cuenca to Molleturo to Naranjal road through the Cajas, climbing to the high pass and then dropping to the coastal plain, so the day begins in cold paramo and ends in tropical heat. The driving time is long, roughly three and a half to four hours by our estimate, and the road is exposed to landslides, with partial-closure reports at several points as recently as 3 November 2026. If the road is closed, a safe, open alternative must be checked with the road authority and local driver; a detour can add hours and change the day's visits. Alternative routes through Giron and Pasaje have also had restrictions, so none is a guaranteed fallback. Arrival time in Guayaquil depends on the open route, and we walk the Malecon 2000 river promenade and the old Las Penas district only if time allows. Dinner is a farewell dinner.

   Included

   • Vehicle and driver, Cuenca to Guayaquil
   • Malecon 2000 and Las Penas walk, if time allows
   • Farewell dinner

   Easier option: Skip the Las Penas stair climb

   Free time: Free time on the Malecon only if the road-day schedule allows

   Activity: Road status must be checked on the day; closures can add hours. Drive time is an estimate.

   

7. Day 7: Depart from Guayaquil

   Guayaquil hotel to Jose Joaquin de Olmedo airport (GYE)

   • Breakfast
   Day 7 details

   After breakfast a driver takes guests to Guayaquil's airport, with the transfer length depending on the hotel and traffic, so we do not quote a time. Because we have not checked flights from Guayaquil and the plan has not been confirmed with a supplier, we do not set an earliest flight time yet, and we ask guests not to book onward flights until we confirm one. Extra days, the Galapagos or more of mainland Ecuador are not part of this proposal and have not been priced; see our mainland Ecuador trip from Quito through Cotopaxi, Banos and the Amazon, and the trip combining Quito, Cotopaxi and the Galapagos, as related routes. These are suggestions, not confirmed products. The trip ends in Guayaquil with no overnight on this last day.

   Included

   • Transfer to Guayaquil airport (GYE), proposed

   Activity: Earliest flight time to be confirmed.

Wildlife and weather: Mountain weather changes quickly, with cold, wind and rain possible in Cajas and the paramo in any month; June to September is the driest period. The coast is hot and humid. This is general information, not a forecast.

• Quito1 night
• Alausi1 night
• Cuenca3 nights
• Guayaquil1 night