Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador

picture by Sam B.

Welcome to Cuenca, Azuay Province, and its beautiful Historic centre declared UNESCO World Heritage Site, but also the World famous Cajas National Park. We will tell you the Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador. Cuenca is a must see in the South of Ecuador as Otavalo in the North, see our post about Otavalo Market.

1. Cuenca and its Historic Centre

Did you know that Cuenca in Ecuador is one of the most visited cities of Ecuador? It’s called the Athens of Ecuador for its majestic architecture, its cultural diversity, its contribution to the arts, sciences and Ecuadorian letters and being the birthplace of many famous people of the Ecuadorian society.

Cuenca was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO on December 1, 1999. In the centre of the city are located important historical remains : museums and old churches (such as the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, one of the largest of America, and others dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries). But also cobblestone streets and houses with facades of Republican-style show, especially Spanish and French European architectural influences.

Cuenca is a welcoming city, full of traditions, cradle of sportsmen, politicians and academics.

Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador

Why travel to Cuenca, Ecuador? Here are the best things to do in Cuenca!

2. Cajas National Park

One of the “must see’s” for any visitor to Cuenca should be Cajas National Park, located 40 minutes from Cuenca on the way to Guayaquil. You can find beautiful landscapes and a lot of lakes like Lagartococha. The park stretches a whopping 70,000 acres includes approximately 768 lakes – a truly staggering number!

The most popular hike starts at the Information Centre and it takes you northeast past Lake Toreadora, through a polylepis forest and down past Lake Totoras and Lake Patoquinuas. If you decide to camp by one of the lakes, we recommend you a 3-4 season tent and to take plenty of blankets and layers of clothing as temperatures at the Park range between -2 to 18 °C. The weather can quickly change and you can find yourself in the middle of frosts, drizzle, fog and even intense sunny days.

3. Baños de Cuenca

A great thing about Ecuador is that you can find thermal baths everywhere in the Andes. Baños de Cuenca is a little town only 9km from Cuenca Centre and almost as its namesake Baños de Agua Santa, it’s a paradise to relax.

You have different centres but we highly recommend you Piedra de Agua, a high-quality thermal bath with several options from US$ 12 per adult, US$ 6 per child for the use of the Pools and the Turkish baths. But also the Spa Circuit that includes a Turkish bath, red and blue mud hot spring, underground contrast pools, Steam Box and the Pools for US$ 35 per person.

There are more than the Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador but we will write another post about all the things to do near Cuenca and Azuay Province.

4. Chordeleg the silver paradise

A great one-day tour destination from Cuenca is Chordeleg, a little town known for its silver and the jewellery stores lining the streets surrounding the main park. We highly recommend you to get there and enjoy the good prices of silver. We recommend you not buying gold jewels that are not 100% gold, with silver no problem it’s silver 925.

5. Cuenca and its Museums

The Straw Museum “The Magic of the Hat” explains the history of the “Panama Hat”, handmade in Ecuador. The straw hats (Carludovica palmata) also known as Panama Hat is a typical element of Cuenca, which is among the leading manufacturers of this type of hat.
The Central Bank Museum. Also known as the Ministry of Culture Museum. It dates from the early 80s is located in the ruins of Pumapungo and has a variety of exhibits and documents.

6. The gastronomy of Cuenca

Celebrations and gastronomy in Cuenca go together. The presence of corn is important in the preparation of many foods such as the tamal, mote pata, mote pilla and beverages such as chicha and morocho.

You can find a variety of Ecuadorian Gourmet Cuisine like the highly recommended La Caleta Restaurant. But if you prefer to drink a beer, give a try to the Belgian Artisanal Beers at Jodoco.

7. The churches of Cuenca

You can also discover the churches of Cuenca. The best known are the New Cathedral or Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception Church and the Old Cathedral and El Sagrario. One of the best points of view of the city is Turi viewpoint and the Turi Church. Beautiful, especially at night with its lighting and with a good Canelazo (hot traditional beverage with puro).

8. Explore the Ancient Inca Ruins of Ingapirca

Only 2 hours from Cuenca, there is the most important, best preserved, and the largest Inca ruin site in Ecuador. A short guided tour of Ingapirca is required upon a visit and both English and Spanish are available. There’s time after the tour to walk down a portion of an Inca trail, visit the onsite museum, and eat lunch.

9. Cuenca Flower Market

Ecuador is the third largest flower exporter in the world and is particularly known for its roses. But not all of Ecuador’s flowers leave the country, as evidence by Cuenca’s beautiful flower market. Even if you’re just there to have a quick look, a visit to the flower market is a very worthwhile thing to do in Cuenca.

We could speak more about Cuenca but we ended with the Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador

Top 9 Things to Do and See in Cuenca Ecuador