We’ll Always Have Cuenca (Ecuador)

We had high hopes for Cuenca as we left Quito airport for the final time. The prior couple of weeks in the Galapagos and Amazon had been amazing, but tiring. As a result, our Cuenca wish list included laundry facilities, good internet, our own space to relax, a kitchen to cook for ourselves, a nice supermarket, a walkable town and a park for the boys to run around in. We’re pleased to say that Cuenca checked all our boxes and more.

Our love for Cuenca started on our flight from Quito. Only in the air for about 35 minutes, it was basically a sightseeing flight over the Andes.

Cuenca was just the town we needed at the right time. Without to much on the list of “must-see, must-do”, we were able to spend lots of time just wandering around the town.

Our Airbnb in Cuenca was perfect. A washing machine and dryer, three bedrooms, a nice kitchen and good internet. It was also right around the corner from Parque de la Madre. The park had plenty of play equipment for kids; a basketball court, a running track, a zipline, an outdoor workout facilities and even a free planetarium. Cuenca for the win!

It’s easy to see why Cuenca is home to quite a few expats (estimated to be 15 – 20% of the total population). Many of them are American and we reaped the benefits that brought in the form of pancakes and French toast for breakfast one morning. Mostly, however, we cooked in or took advantage of the thousands of restaurants offering Almuerzos – a cheap set menu lunch that usually includes a soup course, a meat, rice, vegetables and potatoes course and a drink or dessert all for around $2.50.

Besides doing laundry, playing at the park and walking around town, we visited the archaeological museum (Pumapango) and walked around some pre-Incan ruins and a bird sanctuary…and all for free!

We also took a trip to the Cuenca zoo, which is perched high on a hill offering superb views of the city.

The zoo was not like any other we’d been to. We followed a one way path, which was about a 3km (hilly) loop, and ensured that we saw every animal.

All the animals were local or rainforest creatures, except right at the end where there was an African lion enclosure. The lions had just been fed and were very active.

The boys declared it their favorite zoo ever!

After one week in Cuenca, we managed to get all our laundry done, catch up on our work and home school and completely recharge our batteries. Cuenca was a great stop for us and a lovely town. We could have easily stayed longer, but Peru beckoned…