Peaks of Ecuador

In Ecuador, expect to try a whole host of exotic foods and spices as we travel through various different regions. From the traditional foods of toasted corn and stuffed meats, to the more trendy spicy empanadas and citrus-infused cerviche the cuisine here is delicious! The guesthouses and smaller hotels we stay in will provide hearty, generous meals and in the larger cities you will have the choice of local restaurants or hotel favourites. Drinks are not included with dinner, so please make sure you have some cash with you for any drinks you may want. Please also be aware that hotels in small villages and town may not accept card payments.

In the smaller hotels, breakfasts will generally consist of a selection of fruit, bread, eggs, spreads and yoghurt. Packed lunches will be provided by the hotel or guesthouse and will range from rice and beans to sandwiches, fruit and pastries. You will carry your lunch items with you in your daysack. Remember to bring your favourite snacks (cereal or energy bars, dried fruits, chocolate) with you to keep you going through the day.

Water in Ecuador isn't necessarily safe to drink. We provide water bottle refills every morning and evening from a filtered water source, if you think you will need to refill your bottle during the day, we suggest you bring a water purification system. We do not encourage the purchase of single use plastic bottles so we would recommend either a charcoal filter or purification tablets to make your water safe to drink.

Your full day by day itinerary shows what is included in terms of accommodation and meal basis. All of our pre- and post- climb accommodation is based in Quito. Where your hotel basis is B&B, you can usually purchase snacks or meals at the hotel, which can be paid in US Dollars. When you arrive at the hotel, take a moment to familiarise yourself with the layout and the procedures in the event of a fire, especially your escape routes and fire exits.

On this trip we will stay in a range of accommodation. For some of the nights in the valleys between mountain days we will be staying in family run guesthouses or Hosteria. These are small, simple hotels with basic twin or double rooms. Most of the guesthouses we use have en-suite rooms however, dependant on the location, some have shared bathrooms.

Whilst on the volcanoes, we spend nights in mountains refuges and camping. Mountain refuges are basic mixed gender dormitory style rooms, with shared amenities such as dining area and toilet facilities. These are not designed to be luxury quarters band we recommend bringing ear plugs particularly for these nights. The beds all have thick mattresses and we will provide you with a warm, 4 season Husky sleeping bag as temperatures can reach -15 in the huts. For your night camping at "El Castillo" on Chimborazo, you will be staying in high altitude mountain tents, to ensure you stay warm, dry and comfortable. Please bear in mind, these are proper mountain tents, designed to cope with extreme conditions so don’t expect to be able to stand up and walk around inside! We will provide you with a sleeping mat and sleeping bag for your night camping. You will take your meals in a group dining tent.

You will have an English speaking local guide with you for the duration of your trip to Ecuador. They will be joined by qualified, experienced mountain guides for your summit attempts. On summit nights, you will have a 1:2 guide to client ratio.

On this trip you have a maximum luggage allowance of 2 x 23kg bags. We recommend using soft 80-100L duffel bags.

Your bags will be transported by vehicle between locations, and you will carry a smaller 30-40L daysack on your treks each day.

On your Chimborazo climb, you will leave your main bag in the vehicle, which will stay at the refuge. For your climb to Castle Camp, on to the summit, then descending back to the refuge, you will be carrying all your personal equipment in your daysack - this will include some warm layers, snacks, camera, basic toiletries and water. Everything else will be provided for you at Castle Camp.

Please do not book your international flight until you have confirmation from Kandoo staff that your booking is guaranteed.

You will need to fly into Mariscal Sucre International Airport (UIO) in Quito on Day 1 of your trip.

For US travellers, there are direct flights to Mariscal Sucre airport with American Airlines, LATAM and Delta from Miami and Atlanta. They also offer services from other main hubs such as New York, San Francisco and Dallas, via Miami. Copa Airlines also offer a service to Quito via Panama from San Francisco and Los Angeles.

From the UK, Delta offer flights from London Heathrow via Atlanta (ATL) and Iberia and British Airways have flights via Madrid (MAD) from all London airports. For UK guests who live further north, KLM have flights via Amsterdam (AMS) from Manchester, Glasgow, Birmingham and other main hubs.

Upon arrival at the airport, once you have exited the Arrivals area, keep an eye out for our driver who will be waiting to meet you. Our hotel is a 50 minute drive from the airport.

Travelling Responsibly

Here at Kandoo, we like to support our guests to make their travel more sustainable. As of 2025, we are offsetting the carbon on all of our trips from arrival in destination to dropping you back off at the airport. As we don't include flight travel in our trips these aren't included in our offsetting calculations, so we are providing you with the calculator below for you to do this yourselves.

eC02 Flights Calculator

It is a requirement of joining any of our trips that you attend a pre-trek briefing the evening before the trip begins. This gives our guide team the opportunity to review the plans for the trip with you, make sure you have all the right gear and answer any questions you may have. The briefing in Quito is held the at 6pm the evening before the trip begins in the hotel lobby. Should you arrive on a late flight, you will have your briefing on the morning of Day 2.

The main currency in Ecuador is the US Dollar (USD). These can be easily exchanged before travelling. It is very important that US bills be new (no more than 10 years old), crisp and untorn. You will also be able to exchange money upon arrival in Quito. Most hotels, banks and exchange bureaus will exchange money for you and our guides are happy to assist you to do this. Please note that whilst you are out of the big cities there won't be anywhere for you to exchange money, so we would recommend doing this before leaving Quito. Credit cards are accepted in most restaurants and shops in the cities however in the smaller towns and villages they will be useless, so please make sure to have some cash on you as well. If you are relying on a credit or debit card for emergency funds, make sure you tell your card issuer that you will be using it abroad, or you may find that it won't work when you really need it.

Depending on how many souvenirs you want to buy, we would suggest a recommended budget of US$300 to $350.

Tipping is typically not expected in Ecuador, but is appreciated. The amount you tip should be based on the level of service you feel you have received and is completely voluntary. In restaurants and bars there is an official 10% service tax. For your trip crew, the decision on how much to tip should be determined by how well they serve you whilst you are on your adventure but the amounts below are a recommendation:

Guides: US$10 – 20 per trekker per day

Drivers: US$5 – 10 per trekker per day

Specialist mountain guides: US$50 per person per climb

Specialist mountain guides will join you for the climbs. Any tip made to them should be made after your climb as you will leave them after the climb has ended.

Tips should be made in US Dollars and bills should be crisp, untorn and less than 10 years old.

Most travellers require a passport that is valid for at least six months after the return date. It is your responsibility to confirm your specific passport requirements and please be aware that proof of onwards travel may be required. You can check your requirements on the website provided by the Ecuadorian government.

United States and UK passport holders do not require a visa to enter Ecuador. On arrival you will be granted a maximum 90 day stay in the country. This information may be subject to change, without notice, by the local authorities. It is your responsibility to check the latest travel requirements and information before departure.

The World Health Organisation recommend the following vaccinations for travel to Ecuador:

Tetanus

Hepatitis A

Hepatitis B

Diphtheria

Typhoid

Rabies

Yellow Fever - This is necessary for all citizens of Peru, Bolivia, Columbia and Brazil and for any guests who have spent 10+ days in these countries prior to their Ecuador trip. It is also necessary if travelling from a country with Yellow Fever or transiting through one for 12+ hours.

If you are joining our Yasuni and Waorani extension in the Amazon rainforest, it is strongly recommended that you are vaccinated against Yellow Fever.

It is your responsibility to check the latest health information before travelling.

Before you can join any Kandoo Adventures trek, you will need to insure yourself against accident, injury, and illness. Your insurance must cover the cost of rescue and repatriation if necessary. Make sure your insurer knows of your travel plans, and verify that your policy fully covers your trek and any other activities you will participate in. Specifically, for our Peaks of Ecuador trip, you need to be covered for trekking up to 6500m and for our Volcanic Adventures trip you need to be covered for trekking up to 6000m. It is your responsibility to ensure that you are fully and adequately insured for the duration of your trip. Please ensure that all activities, excursions and destinations in your itinerary are included in your travel insurance policy, in addition to your regular cover for cancellation and medical expenses.

We ask that you keep a copy of your policy summary (containing policy number and the emergency contact number for your insurer) in your day sack at all times, so that we can access this information should we need to contact the insurer on your behalf. You will also need to bring details of your insurance cover to the pre-trek briefing.

Malaria

There is low to no risk of malaria in any of the regions we operate in Ecuador. When the risk is low to none, antimalarials are not normally advised.

Your guide will carry a group first aid kit, however you will also need a personal first aid kit to include - tape, antiseptic wipes, assorted plasters, wound dressings, lip balm, re-hydration sachets, blister dressings, antihistamines, pain killers, Vaseline.

For this trip you will need specialist climbing equipment. We provide the following equipment as part of your trip package. This equipment is regularly checked and updated to meet regulations.

Ropes

Ice Axe

Crampons

Helmet

Harness

2 x locking carabiners

Please note: we do not provide stiff boots (B2 or B3) for this trip so you will need to bring your own

As well as climbing kit, we also provide you with:

Husky sleeping bag - rated to -20 degrees

Black Diamond trekking poles

HEADGEAR

Warm beanie style hat – knitted or fleece

Neck gaiter or scarf. It can get very cold in the upper reaches of the volcanoes. A scarf or balaclava comes in useful as a warm layer for your neck and face!

Sun hat – preferably wide-brimmed for protection

Sunglasses – high UV protection

Headlamp (plus extra batteries)

Ski goggles - to protect against spindrift in high winds

UPPER BODY

Thermal or fleece base layer

Long sleeve shirt/tshirts – light or medium weight, sun shirts work well

Short sleeved shirt/tshirts – lightweight, moisture wicking

Fleece or soft shell jacket

Thin insulated jacket/midlayer

Thick insulated jacket – down or primaloft

Water/windproof hard shell outer jacket

Gloves – lightweight, fleece or quick drying fabric

Gloves – heavyweight, insulated, preferably water resistant

Over mittens – with safety straps

Swimming costume - for use in hot springs

LEGS

Leggings – thermal or fleece base layer

Trekking trousers – light or medium weight – convertible trousers work well

Waterproof hard shell trousers

Gaiters

FEET

Climbing boot – insulated, stiff-soled (B2 or B3)

Trekking boots – with good ankle support

Training shoe or similar – to wear in the evenings

Mid-weight trekking socks

Breathable, high-wicking liner socks

Thermal trekking socks for upper reaches of your climbs

TREKKING GEAR

Small Rucksack or Daypack (30-40 litres) to carry water and personal items

Water bottle or hydration bag – must be able to carry 1.5-2L of water

Water purification system - a charcoal filter or chlorine tablets will work well

CLIMBING GEAR

B2 or B3 Boots

OTHER ACCESSORIES

Sleeping bag liner

Sunscreen and lip balm - high SPF

Toiletries, including toilet paper, wet wipes and hand sanitiser

Camera and spare batteries

Plug adapter, for charging devices in hotels

Personal medication and first aid kit

Personal snacks and energy bars – dried fruit and nuts are a good option

Isotonic drink powder / energy drink powder to mix in with your water

Microfibre towel for wiping hands and face each day