I’m painting the amazing Galápagos wildlife – from my sitting room
Can a virtual four-day art class come anywhere close to visiting the famous archipelago? Maybe not, but for our writer it turns out to offer something far more valuable
December 2016
Top 10 places to visit on the Ecuador coast
Air Europa’s new flights from Madrid to Guayaquil start on 16 December, making an Ecuador trip much easier. Here, we highlight a coastline of great resorts, as well as tropical forest and wonderful wildlife
October 2016
Ecuador’s Yasuni park: where oil vies with tourism for the rainforest
The Sani people face a choice between encouraging ecotourism to their rainforest – one of the world’s most biodiverse – and allowing in the oil companies
September 2016
The foodie traveller
Stay on the Ecuador farm that produces the world’s most expensive chocolate
A bar of To’ak chocolate sells for a tooth-splintering $345 – but a stay in a treehouse in the Ecuador rainforest where it originates costs just $15 a night
January 2016
Chimborazo peak, Ecuador: the closest place to space on Earth
Climbing the world’s ‘highest’ mountain – not Everest, the one in Ecuador – pushes Kevin Rushby to his limits. Plus more mountains for amateur climbers
November 2015
Ecuador eco-tour shows positive effects of mangrove replanting in face of El Niño
Holiday guides
Camping around South America
March 2015
Resilient cities
The insider's cultural guide to Quito: 'Sun, fog, corn, stone, cars …'
From alternative radio stations to contemporary art and digital cumbia beats, musician and researcher Ata Wallpa introduces Ecuador’s vibrant capital
December 2013
Alternative New Year's Eve festivals around the world
From flaming balls to burning barrels, a drag queen drop to an all-night Junkanoo – we see in 2014 with some of the world's quirkiest celebrations
March 2013
Ecuador's great train line reopens this summer – in pictures
New luxury steam trains will take passengers from Quito to the coast - on one of the most spectacular rail journeys in the world - following a multi-million pound project to restore Ecuador's historic railway
February 2013
No volcanos, fewer tower blocks - Ecuador lands a 'safer' airport for Quito
Food in Ecuador: a lesson in diversity
September 2012
Ecuador says freed foreign tourists are 'in good spirits'
Experts' and readers' tips
Hotels and hostels in South America: readers' tips
Experts' and readers' tips
Backpacker diaries: travellers' tales from South America
Colonial charm: five characterful South American towns
South America holiday tips and ideas – what's new?
The world's best beach hotels and accommodation on a budget
Ecuador and Peru's top 10 beach hotels on a budget
August 2012
Escape to Ecuador: top 10 holiday guide
If Julian Assange makes it to Ecuador, he won't be short of travel options. This country packs an astonishing array of landscapes, wildlife and indigenous cultures into an area the size of Britain, writes Ben Westwood
June 2012
An eco lodge in the cloud forests of Ecuador
A new biodiversity reserve in the Mindo cloud forests of Ecuador is home to spectacular flora and fauna – and a cool, minimalist eco lodge, says Aaron Millar
