Cuenca is a beautiful city that has a protected city center as a UNESCO World Heritage site. It has an interesting blend between indigenous culture and colonial/post-colonial influence that makes it a gem within the Andes Mountains.
Is Cuenca, Ecuador Safe
The short answer is yes. Cuenca, especially the touristy areas, is safe. It is always important to be aware of and careful with your belongings. It’s best to not wear ostentatious or flashy clothing/jewelry to not bring too much attention to yourself. It is also best to stay in the main touristy neighborhoods including the historical center and El Vergel. Finally, you will find that many restaurants do not stay open too late in the city.
This article will give you more background information about safety in Ecuador
How to Know If Ecuador Is Safe to Travel to (It Is)
Yes, Ecuador is safe to visit! This article explains the areas within the country that are safe for visitors and how to know where to avoid.
Transportation in Cuenca
To get around the city, you will be able to walk to most destinations. For places outside of the historical center, you can look into taking the tram line that runs through the city. Your final option is to take a taxi (they do not have Uber in Cuenca). To ensure that you are taking an official taxi, you can use the application Azutaxi (on Android and iOS) to call for a cab to pick you up at your location. You are assigned a taxi and can track the cab and verify the license plate when they arrive. Only official taxis are on this application.
Where to Stay in Cuenca, Ecuador
The Historical Center
The historical center of Cuenca is a UNESCO heritage site due to the preservation of colonial buildings here. The buildings are preserved in their Spanish style, often with courtyards in the center of them. The city is anchored around the central square of Parque Calderon which contains two of the most famous churches of this city. However, don’t worry about being near the park and the churches. The city has no church bells because of the architectural integrity of the buildings and the impact of earthquakes on those buildings. In this region of the city, you can find hostels and hotels that could meet your needs based on the way you travel and your budget.
El Vergel
South of the city center is the neighborhood of El Vergel. This area is near the university of Cuenca and is more residential and local in nature. It is also walking distance from the historical center, although you will have to climb stairs to get to the center because it is located below the rest of the city. If you are looking for an Airbnb or a short term rental, then this is the area that you will want to stay in.
Day 1: Touring the Historical Center of Cuenca, Ecuador
Walking Tour Through The Historical Center
You will want to start your time in Cuenca with a walking guided tour of the historical center. Some of these tours are tip-based and some have a price attached to them. This is a good place to start to find a Cuenca walking tour that works with your schedule. The tours last around 3 hours and take you through the history of the town, including some of the different churches, the Catedral de la Inmaculada Concepcion, Parque Calderon (the colonial central square of Cuenca), the Plaza San Francisco, the Mercado 10 de Agosto (the central market of Cuenca), the Plaza de las Flores (flower market plaza), and more. You will learn about the indigenous culture that continues to prevail in the city, why the city has no working bells, and about the interesting political and economic situations of the country.
After your walk, you will be hungry for a little lunch. We recommend you return to the Mercado 10 de Agosto (the central market of Cuenca) to get a traditional lunch. On the second floor of the market, there are many lunch vendors with a variety of food options, all of which have traditional Ecuadorian cuisine. It can be a little overwhelming so make sure to walk through the space with purpose and ignore any people vying for your attention until you have determined what you want to eat. The food here is incredibly affordable and is a great place to continue dining at throughout your time in Cuenca if you are on a budget.
Museo Pumapungo
After lunch, you will want to finish out this day of learning at the Museo Pumapungo, which celebrates the many indigenous cultures that are located within the country. This free museum has three sections. The first is outside and constitutes an ancient Incan archaeological site. There are plaques around the site that help explain what you are looking at. The second is the temporary exhibit on the first floor which typically celebrates a piece of the indigenous cultures of Ecuador.
The final section is on the second floor of the museum and is where the permanent collection lies. Here, the museum describes each of the different indigenous ethnic groups that continue to exist in Ecuador, explaining some of their lifestyles, religious practices, and economic opportunities. While this is all in Spanish, you can still walk around this area and take in some of the different recreations and exhibitions that the museum has displayed to show clothing, artifacts, and replicas of homes that different cultures use.
There is one dedicated part to the Shuar people, an indigenous ethnic group from the Ecuadorian Amazonia region. They are known for their practice of collecting Tsantsa, shrunken heads, from their enemies. They would decapitate their enemies and go through a process of preserving and shrinking these heads to carry their souls with them. While today, they do not continue to practice this with human heads, they do collect Tsantsa from different animals that they kill in the Amazon Rainforest. You can learn more about this and other parts of their culture in the museum, with information provided in both English and Spanish.
Day 2: Taking in All the Views
Getting Out in Nature: Cajas National Park
One of the attractions of Cuenca, besides the beautiful historical center, is Cajas National Park. This park is in the Andes mountains and can be characterized by the large number of lakes within the protected area. Because of this and the location near the equator, there are many migratory birds that pass through this area, making it a great place for bird and nature lovers. In addition to nature, there are traces of Inca and Cañari activity within the park, including some Incan roads and about 28 different pre-Incan and Incan archaeological sites.
Many of the trails within the park are located right off the main road, the road that the bus takes to go from Cuenca to Guayaquil. You can see the variety of trails within Cajas National Park here. One loop that gives a great introduction to the park, is not very challenging, and is within the beautiful nature of the park is the Laguna Toreadora Loop. This trail is only 2 miles long (3.2 kilometers) and is relatively flat, making it a great way to visit the park if you are not an avid hiker or have not had the chance to adjust to the elevation.
Note: Cuenca is at a high elevation of 8400 feet (2,560 meters) and Cajas National Park is even higher, ranging between 10,370-14,600 feet (3,160-4,450 meters) in elevation. Here are some tips to best acclimate to the altitude of the region:
- Eat smaller meals when first at elevation. This will help you feel better throughout the day.
- Avoid alcohol. It will decrease your oxygen level and you need as much oxygen as possible at a higher elevation.
- Drink as much water as possible! This will also help with the headaches that may appear due to the altitude.
- If things truly get worse, find a way to get to a lower elevation, and, in the meantime, you can try to get to a clinic or hospital to get some additional oxygen. Cuenca is at a lower altitude than Cajas National Park so you can see if your symptoms alleviate themselves when you are in the city if they arise while you are hiking in the national park.
- When walking, take smaller and slower steps with deep breaths.
How to Get to Cajas National Park
The easiest way to get to the national park is by renting a car but this is definitely not necessary. There are two ways to get to the park that allow you to avoid driving yourself.
Taking a Bus to Cajas National Park
The first is by taking a bus that is going from Cuenca to Guayaquil. There are a few bus companies that make the route and they all start from Terminal Terrestre so you can go to the bus station in the morning or the prior day and find a bus making that route. Make sure to keep cash on you to pay for the bus in both directions. Each bus ride should be less than $5.
When getting on the bus, make sure to tell the bus driver that you are getting off at Cajas National Park and they will take you to the right location. In fact, this bus stop is near the Laguna Toreadora Loop trail that we mentioned above. To return to Cuenca, you can wait for a bus where the bus driver dropped you off (on the other side of the road where a bus shelter is located) and hail a bus as it passes. There are many buses that make the route and one will stop to take you back to Cuenca.
If you have a particular hike in mind and are prepared for the elevation of Cajas National Park, then this could be the option for you.
Taking a Tour (Group or Private) to Cajas National Park
The second option is to take a tour to Cajas National Park. In a group tour, the tour company will pick you up from your accommodations and take you to do two hikes within the National Park. If the weather permits, you will also visit a viewpoint overlooking the landscape of Cajas National Park. These tours also include lunch at a local eatery (typically a trout dish). The advantage of this option is that you do not have to coordinate transportation to and from the national park. If you have a particular hike in mind, you can coordinate a private tour with a guide to take you on that hike.
We recommend the tour to Cajas National Park with Cuenca BesTours for approachable prices for these tours with great local guides.
Seeing Cuenca from Above: Mirador de Turi
After your hike in Cajas National Park, make your way to the Turi Viewpoint (Mirador de Turi). This viewpoint allows you to see the city below you along with the surrounding mountains. There are a few things that you can do here. First, there is a glass overhang at that you can visit to get a larger panoramic view of the city at Cuenca View 360 – Puente de Cristal. Second, there are a few restaurants and bars around this vista where you can grab a snack or drink while taking in the views.
To return to your accommodations (assuming you are staying in the historic center or El Vergel), you can walk about 45 minutes to an hour if it is still daylight out. Otherwise, grab a cab to head back to your accommodations.
This is a great activity to do on the weekend. You can exchange this activity with visiting Homero Ortega Hats on Day 3 depending on the day of the week that you are in Cuenca.
Day 3: Visiting Some Incan Ruins
The Ingapirca Ruins
Just 1.5 hours outside of Cuenca are the largest and best preserved Incan ruins in Ecuador. The other thing that is special about this particular site is that there is proof that the Incan and Cañari people coexisted together. Not only are both of their temples located on their site; they are integrated in their design. (Often, when civilizations conquer another culture, they build their religious and power sites on top of the conquered one. This was not the case at this site).
With a tour to the Ingapirca Ruins, you will first stop at the Sanctuary of The Virgin of the Morning Dew, which is impressively constructed into the rock mountainside. You will drive through small communities of the Andes.
If you visit the ruins on a Sunday (which we recommend), you will get to stop at the local Cañar Market where the indigenous Cañari people continue to buy and sell their local goods and produce. Here, you can learn more about the indigenous culture that continues to prevail today.
Finally, you will arrive at the Ingapirca Ruins where you will get a tour of the ruins. The guides will explain how much of the site is actually excavated (a lot of the archaeological site is actually located under private farmland), how the Incan and Cañari people lived together, and about the religion and lifestyle of each culture.
Homero Ortega Hats
The famous Panama Hat is actually from Ecuador. (Legend says, the only reason it is called a Panama hat is because Theodore Roosevelt noticed the hats when visiting the Panama Canal construction and mistakenly called them “Panama hats”.) You can visit a factory where they continue to make the famous hats with the traditional artisanal techniques. Today, the weaving is done by artisans in the countryside around Cuenca and the shaping of the hats is completed at the Homero Ortega factory.
When you visit the factory, you get the chance to walk through a museum that explains the history and production of the hats. Then, you can walk around the factory space where you can see the machinery and workers complete the production of the hats, from the shaping to the detailing of each hat. At the end of your time in the factory, you can go to a shop where they sell their hats. The prices range from $40 to $3,000 depending on the quality of the materials used and the detail on the hats. This is the best place to purchase your souvenir of an authentic and high-quality Panama Hat!
While you can do this activity on the weekend, we recommend doing it during the week when you will have a chance to see the Panama Hats get made. You can exchange this activity with visiting the Mirador de Turi on Day 2 depending on the day of the week that you are in Cuenca.
