Tag Archives: Guayaquil

Guayaquil To San Cristobal, Galapagos

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You may be surprised to see a check in time of 3 hours prior to a Galapagos and think “They must be kidding!”  It’s a domestic flight, the planes are relatively small and security doesn’t take THAT long!  They aren’t kidding.

It’s not the check in or the security.  It’s the quarantine inspection.  You have to have your bags inspected and pay the $20 INGALA Tourist Control Card fee before they will check you in.  This isn’t mentioned and most of us got caught out and sent back to the quarantine counter.  This is where the queues get built up.  They type out the INGALA card individually, there are usually 3 planes departing roughly the same time and everyone has to do this procedure.  Allow at least an hour as the line moves slowly.  Once you have your INGALA card and your bag has passed quarantine, THEN your airline will check you in.

If you don’t have cash USD, there are several ATMs in the airport.  Make sure you have the $100 cash per person to enter the Galapagos once you land (and yes, there will be another long line!

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After you pass security, you then pass through a gift shop before entering the departure area.  I was tempted by a coffee table book with a Guayaquil Macaw on it but the book was heavy and pricey-2 no-nos for budget travelers.DSCN0828 DSCN0829

Annoyingly, gates are only announced about 40 minutes before departure so we had to hang around the departure board waiting to know what gate we had to go to.  Luckily it’s a fairly small airport.DSCN0830 DSCN0831 DSCN0832

This plane only had economy class for the 2 hour flight.DSCN0833

Goodbye Guayaquil…………………..DSCN0834 DSCN0835

…………………….Hello Galapagos!DSCN0837

The plane disembarks from both doors so don’t take a seat in the middle of the plane or you will be last off the plane and last in line to pay the Galapagos entry fee.  This line moves very slowly, even more so if two planes arrive close together.  DSCN0841 DSCN0842 DSCN0843

Once you finally get through, you can either take a taxi or walk to the town.  We chose to walk as the distance was short and all downhill but it was pretty hot.

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Some nice graffiti art to admire while walking.DSCN0845 DSCN0846

Walk about 10 minutes to the main part of town.  Our hotel, Mar Azul is on the left, the blue awning.DSCN0847 DSCN0848

Hotel Review: Hotel Palace Guayaquil

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After returning from a very successful birding adventure in southern Ecuador, we had one night in Guayaquil before our flight to San Cristobal in the Galapagos.  We both had over $100 in our Orbitz accounts from a summer photo competition so we used some of them to get a night at the Hotel Palace Guayaquil for free.

We arrived shortly after sunset so we didn’t get much time to explore the area.  Guayaquil isn’t the safest part of Ecuador and I was kind of wary about walking around at night.  I would have been ok in the daytime.

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The room was a good size and very comfortable and the wifi worked well which was good as I hadn’t been online since Loja.  We were given welcome drink vouchers to use in the bar and the breakfast buffet was included in the rate and had a great selection.  We were very happy with this hotel and apparently we aren’t alone as they got an award on Trip Advisor as one of the Top 25 Hotels in Ecuador!DSCN0812 DSCN0813 DSCN0814 DSCN0815 DSCN0816 DSCN0817 DSCN0818

The hotel is in a shopping area and like I said, I would have been fine to walk around in the daytime.  I am not a night person and do tend to be very cautious in large cities.  There are a few fast food places within a block of the hotel if you want to eat out.  The hotel has its own taxi service and charges the same $5 to the airport as a regular yellow taxi and is safe.DSCN0819 DSCN0820

Getting From Buenaventura To Guayaquil

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This is a very easy trip to do on public transport.  After lunch at the Umbrellabird Lodge, we had the guide drop us at the main road between Pinas and Machala.  We only had to wait about 15 minutes until a bus passed heading to Machala.

It was pretty cheap, around $5 for the two of us and the bus wasn’t full so we could spread out.

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The scenery wasn’t that exciting, lots of banana plantations.DSCN0793

Ecuadorian buses are pretty comfortable but for some reason they keep the bathrooms locked.  They wouldn’t let me use it even after asking the driver but they did pull into a petrol station and let me off to use that bathroom.  I tried to get the wifi working but couldn’t find the signal and no one on the bus seemed to know how to use it.DSCN0794 DSCN0795

This is the bus from Machala to Guayaquil.  It took around 3 hours.  Coming from Pinas, you don’t have to go all the way into Machala.  There is a turn off to Guayaquil and about half the bus got off and switched buses here, including us.  This bus was full but still no wifi or toilet usage.DSCN0797

Here we are entering Guayaquil just before sunset.  The whole trip was around 5 hours, we left just after lunch so 12:30ish and got to Guayauil by 5:30pm-ish.  IIRC it was $16 for us both.DSCN0801 DSCN0802 DSCN0803

There are plenty of taxis at the Guayaquil bus terminal and you should only use official taxis for your safety.  It cost about $5 to go to the hotel which was downtown near the Malecon.DSCN0804 DSCN0805 DSCN0806 DSCN0807

If you are in Guayaquil wanting to go to Buenaventura, simply do the whole thing in reverse.  Get a bus to Machala and tell them you want to transfer to Pinas so they drop you at that little transit office at the turn off.DSCN0808

I have no idea what this big statue is but it was pretty cool looking!

Domestic Flights In Ecuador With TAME

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TAME is not part of any airline alliance so you have to buy these tickets online with a credit card.  Luckily, they are not expensive!   TAME flies to certain destinations like Loja (closest airport to Podocarpus & Buenaventura) and other eco-tourism hotspots like Coca for the Amazon and the Galapagos.

Keep an eye out for sale fares like this one.  Would you rather take a one hour flight or a 10 hour bus ride with prices like this?

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It’s a pretty user-friendly airline.  I printed our boarding passes the night before at the Holiday Inn in Guayaquil and the flight actually left on time!  The planes are small but I prefer smaller planes with 2×2 rows rather than larger planes with 3×3 rows where a couple has to sit with a stranger.

When you buy your ticket, you may see a notice that you have to show the original credit card you use to purchase the ticket.  On our flight, no one asked us.  We didn’t have checked bags and they just compared our passports to the printed boarding pass.  It’s probably a good idea to bring the credit card along just in case though!

The overheads were a tight squeeze for our backpacks which are normal carry-on sized but we managed to squish them in as they weren’t full anyways.

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Conserving Ecuador’s Great Green Macaw

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A few years ago, I saw the Great-Green Macaw in Costa Rica and was aware that a smaller subspecies existed in Ecuador.  I was hoping to see them at Cerro Blanco but this didn’t happen, they are just too rare and the populations are very fragmented.  The Ecuadorians are very keen to protect this bird and proudly display their image when entering the country at Guayaquil airport.

DSCN0319 They are the emblem of Bosque Cerro Blanco shown on the logo and in artwork around the park.  Conservation efforts have been increased to save the bird in both Cerro Blanco and Rio Canande. DSCN0337 DSCN0366

Here are some videos showing conservation efforts in Cerro Blanco (Spanish).

 

Lilacine Amazon (Amazona lilacina)

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The Lilacine Amazon (Amazona lilacina), also known as the Ecuadorian Red-lored amazon, is an amazon parrot native to Ecuador in South America.

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I was lucky enough to see a small flock fly by but couldn’t get a decent close up so I have included Wikipedia’s photo.

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This species was recently split from the larger taxa Amazona autumnalis so it is now considered as an Ecuadorian endemic.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco just 20 minutes out of Guayaquil.  Other possibilities exist between Mindo and the Pacific Ocean but are harder logistcally to reach.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT LILACINE PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

BBC

VIDEO

I couldn’t find any videos of wild Lilacine Parrots or Red-lored Amazons filmed in Ecuador so I have to go with a captive bird clip to show the sounds of the bird.

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Pacific Parrotlet (Forpus coelestis)

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The Pacific Parrotlet (Forpus coelestis), also known as Lesson’s Parrotlet or the Celestial Parrotlet, is a species of small parrot in the Psittacidae family, native to Ecuador and Peru. Its natural habitats are subtropical or tropical dry forests, subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests, subtropical or tropical dry shrubland, and heavily degraded former forest.

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This loving couple was photographed at Bosque Cerro Blanco near Guayaqil, Ecuador.  Pacific Parrotlets have a fairly large range throughout Ecuador and northern Peru.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT PACIFIC PARROTLETS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Neotropical Birds

VIDEO

It was really hard to find a non-captive bird video.  Most of them are on IBN but I did find ONE clip on YouTube.

Yeah I know, these are captive birds but if you are over 18, scroll down!

Guayaquil – Gateway To Southern Ecuador & The Galapagos

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Guayaquil is one of two main gateway/airport cities in Ecuador and is the best option if your trip includes the spectacular reserves in southern Ecuador and/or the Galapagos as all the Quito flights stop in Guayaquil so you might as well save the time.

GETTING TO GUAYAQUIL WITH AIRLINE MILES

Guayaquil has service with members of all three major alliances so it is pretty easy to get there with miles.

STAR ALLIANCE – Avianca & Copa

ONEWORLD – American & the LATAM Group, Iberia

SKYTEAM – Aerolineas Argentinas

NON-ALLIANCE – TAME (good for smaller airports and Galapagos)

WHERE TO STAY USING HOTEL POINTS

IHG REWARDS – Holiday Inn Guayaquil Airport is normally 20,000 points but often goes on Pointbreaks.  We stayed there our first night in Guayaquil, you can see my review.

STARWOOD – Sheraton Guayaquil Airport is a Cat 3 for 7000 points.

HILTON – Hilton Colon Guayaquil is 30,000 points & the Hampton Inn is 20,000 points.

WYNDHAM – Wyndham Guayaquil is 15,000 points.

If these options don’t suit you, you could try earning airline miles by booking with Rocketmiles or Pointshound.

WHAT TO DO IN GUAYAQUIL

We only spent a night here on arrival and an evening here upon returning from our southern Ecuador loop before flying to the Galapagos so I can’t really get into city sight-seeing.  Just don’t miss out on Bosque Cerro Blanco, it’s amazing!

Guayaquil was the jumping off point for a loop through southern Ecuador to visit 2 major birding hotspots (reviews to come) – Podocarpus and Buenaventura.  I had been checking the TAME website daily for specials and finally got one in January for around $35 per person plus tax to Loja airport which is actually about an hour out of Loja proper.  From there we took a taxi to Zamora for a visit to Podocarpus, then went by bus back to Loja, then to Pinas for Buenaventura and back to Guayaquil.  Finally we flew to San Cristobal in the Galapagos.

Guayaquil trip

 

White-tailed Jay (Cyanocorax mystacalis)

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The White-tailed Jay (Cyanocorax mystacalis) is a very attractive species of bird in the family Corvidae.

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They have a fair-sized range in Ecuador and northern Peru.  The easiest place to see them is Cerro Blanco since it is only a 20 minute drive from Guayaquil.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT WHITE-TAILED JAYS

Wikipedia

Birdlife

Neotropical Birds

VIDEO

A quick smooch and they’re off!

There’s a few clips at IBC but they don’t embed here.

 

 

 

Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera)

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The delightful little Grey-cheeked Parakeet (Brotogeris pyrrhoptera) is almost endemic to Ecuador but can also be found in far northern Peru.  They vocalize quite loudly despite their size. The sound could be described as a quick, sharp screech, and vocalizations may involve many monotone screeches in succession.

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We were lucky enough to see them fairly close-up in Cerro Blanco which is just a short drive from Guayaquil (red dot).  This would be the easiest place to find them.  Most airlines will put Ecuador in northern South America (same as Peru) for their award charts and bargain can often be found from the USA to Ecuador on LATAM & Avianca.

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LEARN MORE ABOUT GREY-CHEEKED PARROTS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

HBW

VIDEOS

Some one was brave enough to walk along the Malecon of Guayaquil with camera gear!  You can see them in the city but check with your hotel to see if it’s safe.

You can also see them further south in the Jorupe Reserve.