Art Williams - Introduction - Arrive Quito in October

Arrival advice, you say.

Maybe, Art, you already know that the new Quito airport is in the sticks .. Tababela, Ecuador, to be more precise.

Arriving with luggage, you don't want to mess with the extra connections involved in trying to beat the usual $25 taxi fare.

The strategy I used when I arrived for my move to Quito was to enlist another traveler while on a line waiting for taxis to the city .. and we split the fare.

Was this the arrival advice you wanted?  If you would like to be more specific, we have all kinds of other arrival info.  (Although I personally am not into the salsa scene.)

cccmedia in Quito

Hi Elvis:

No...that wasn't exactly the advice I got. I bought an ebook by a guy named Frank, from Cuenca. It was called the DIY Landing Guide To Quito. He has one for Cuenca too.

What he basically said was that I could catch a 'green bus' (I think that was the color. Maybe it was blue..but it was in the book...along with videos too) that took me to a place in town...maybe it was 'Eco...something'...and from there I could take a take to whichever of the 3 main areas of town I wanted to go to.

He listed severl hostels in each area.

So I'm going to re-read that part of it, pick one, then get settled in as a 'base', then look for something more permanent (if one considers 2-3 months permanent).

And of course I'm already starting to do as much networking as I can. It's a long-shot but I know two pastors who might have some connections in Quito and then I think I know a Bachata teacher in Sydney (Australia) who perhaps told me once he was actually from Ecuador.

And then I have a former roomie from back in Houston who is from Ecuador (Manta) and I think he has some friends or friends of friends in Quito. I know he told me he had some in other cities in the country. But....I'll be getting back to him about that soon.

That's about as far as it goes so far. Actually I don't want to leave here but I have to. I've already overstayed my visa so I know I'll have to pay a fine (and be humiliated :-) but....... I probably will want to come back next year.

I'm actually qualified for the retirement visa here but I suspect I'll have to leave anyway...even though maybe they'll let me come back earlier. I'll have to ask.

Anyway...I'm going to be scoping out all the other info on the site here. I used it sometimes back in Manila too.

If you have any ideas on someplace I maybe could 'bunk' while I'm there, I'd appreciate it.

Regards
Art

wanderingsalsero wrote:

I bought an ebook by a guy named Frank from Cuenca. It was called the DIY Landing Guide To Quito....What he basically said was that I could catch a 'green bus' that took me to a place in town...and from there I could take a take to whichever of the 3 main areas of town...

I've already overstayed my visa so I know I'll have to pay a fine (and be humiliated :-)

I have that ebook too.  Nards, our Cuenca leader, calls the author's family The Frugals.

Anyway, those buses may stop running after some time at night, so you may want to plan your inter-country South American trip for early in the day.

Those buses typically take you to the site of the old Quito airport, which is now Bicentenario park and the site of a planned Quito convention center.

From the old airport, taxis are available.

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There should be no shame in it if a country allows you to pay an overstay fine.

Sure, an immigration officer may take you to a back room to pay it.  Just enjoy the fact that you're well-heeled enough to do so and can aprovechar the system.

cccmedia in Quito

wanderingsalsero wrote:

If you have any ideas on someplace I maybe could 'bunk' while I'm there, I'd appreciate it.

Back when I used to visit Quito, I usually stayed at the Hotel Ambassador, 9 de Octubre y Avenida Colón.

Easy walk to Gringo-friendly Mariscal sector, plenty of transportation, a restaurant, Wi-Fi in the lobby, good security.

The last time I stayed there (2013) I paid about $25 a night for three nights.  However, in previous trips I paid $115 per week for longer-term stays.

cccmedia in Quito