Ecuador, Living, Working, Eating Out and General Safety (best, life, country)

[dianaandtony]

Does anybody have any knowledge of this country?


Especially with reference to the title

[Pueblofuerte]

Yes, it's a great country, generally safe although Quito has a petty theft problem although nothing out of the norm with other LatAm capitals/biggish cities. More expensive than other countries due to dollarisation but overall a great, diverse and compact country with a lot to see and do.

Main hotspots are: Quito, Montañita, Baños, Cuenca and of course Galapagos. Although I prefer the less traversed Loja/Zamora area to the south as well as Otavalo in the north for its culture.

[aab7855]

I felt much safer in Ecuador than most places in Colombia.

Cuenca is an absolutely gorgeous city, but it´s gotten very popular with retirees and other expats so maybe it´s getting expensive, I don´t know. Loja is also in that southern highlands region and is supposed to also be a lovely place.

Montañita is a surfing town where young people from all over the world come to party, nearby Olon has a better beach but is much more relaxed.

Quito has more culture and architecture than Guayaquil, but they´re both great cities...it depends on what you´re looking for. Guayaquil is hot and humid and basically on the coast, not far from good beaches. The food in both cities is on point, but I give the nod to Guaya since I prefer seafood to red meat. Quito is a high elevation, cool weather city, more like Bogotá.

[dianaandtony]

Originally Posted by Pueblofuerte

Yes, it's a great country, generally safe although Quito has a petty theft problem although nothing out of the norm with other LatAm capitals/biggish cities. More expensive than other countries due to dollarisation but overall a great, diverse and compact country with a lot to see and do.

Main hotspots are: Quito, Montañita, Baños, Cuenca and of course Galapagos. Although I prefer the less traversed Loja/Zamora area to the south as well as Otavalo in the north for its culture.

Hi there
Many thanks for your valued contribution.
You have said many places that we have not heard of
* Montañita
* Baños
* Loja/Zamora
* Otavalo


We both have technical backgrounds so Diana would be seeking "Data Analysis" part time, working from home ideally and I Tony would be seeking part time work repairing laptops.
I understand that there is a large "Ex-Pat population in country.
Diana speaks Spanish fluently and I can get by but not as fluent.

[dianaandtony]

Originally Posted by aab7855

I felt much safer in Ecuador than most places in Colombia.

Cuenca is an absolutely gorgeous city, but it´s gotten very popular with retirees and other expats so maybe it´s getting expensive, I don´t know. Loja is also in that southern highlands region and is supposed to also be a lovely place.

Montañita is a surfing town where young people from all over the world come to party, nearby Olon has a better beach but is much more relaxed.

Quito has more culture and architecture than Guayaquil, but they´re both great cities...it depends on what you´re looking for. Guayaquil is hot and humid and basically on the coast, not far from good beaches. The food in both cities is on point, but I give the nod to Guaya since I prefer seafood to red meat. Quito is a high elevation, cool weather city, more like Bogotá.

Hi there
Many thanks for your valued contribution.
We have already started researching on Cuenca but from what I can gather prices are on the way up, thereby negating the whole thought process of moving.
As quoted by "Pueblofuerte" Loja we have not heard of but seeing as two Senior member mention it, this deserves a coat of looking at.
In relation to your quote of "what we are looking for";
As stated to "Pueblofuerte" We both have technical backgrounds so Diana would be seeking "Data Analysis" part time, working from home ideally and I Tony would be seeking part time work repairing laptops.
Added to this I have a Senior construction background so any properties we go to view, I will be looking at rather closer than the normal person etc.
We want to be near the coast but not on the waters edge if you know what I mean, ideally 10 - 15 minutes away OR 15 plus miles.
One of the concerns that I have is the "Pacific Rim of Fire" and any "Tsunami"
Tsunamis can travel as far as 10 miles inland, depending on the shape and slope of the shoreline, hence my distance reference.
I have found a diagram of the "Fibre Optic" infrastructure so I will overlay that with the places mentioned.

[Chava61]

Guayaquil is Ecuador's largest city and it has improved over the years. People in Guayaquil tend to be quite friendly. But there are still some neighborhoods which aren't that safe to venture into.

[aab7855]

Originally Posted by dianaandtony

We want to be near the coast but not on the waters edge if you know what I mean, ideally 10 - 15 minutes away OR 15 plus miles.
One of the concerns that I have is the "Pacific Rim of Fire" and any "Tsunami"
Tsunamis can travel as far as 10 miles inland, depending on the shape and slope of the shoreline, hence my distance reference.

Yeah, I think a place like Olon (if you can handle a sleepy, retiree-friendly beach TOWN) may fit the bill. I have friends who live down there (American-Ecuadorian couple), so if you get to the final stages of excuting this, message me and I´ll try to link you up with them.

Earthquakes are a concern there...a big one shook Guayaquil a couple years back, and unlike more notorious zones like parts of my adoptive country Colombia, people haven´t exactly built preparing for this...earthquakes sometimes update building codes for society, and certainly is a "baptism by fire" for which structures are up to code and which aren´t. Generally speaking, the newer the better...anything built before the 1990s may not have been designed to withstand 6.0+ quakes. Many buildings were (my house here in the fairly seismically active Coffee Triangle is 50+ years old) and there´s no problem, but new buildings, assuming they´re legally erected and they´ve got their permits, have to abide by new codes.

Good luck! Pick your ideal climate (hot and beachy, hot and jungle, cold and highland) and you´ll know what place in Ecuador suits you best. I´m sure you´ll love it there...I know I do.

[ladulce]

We love Ecuador and are particularly in love with Cuenca. We have stayed there for months at a time and nearly always felt safe.

However, don't trust anywhere completely. I was kidnapped in Guayaquil and sexually assaulted. The assault took hours, and, they nearly killed the man with me (he had shards of glass in his eye for year, broken ribs, knee, etc). The 'leader' ordered them to kill us. The man driving my truck had promised me early in the kidnapping that I'd live. I told him I couldn't trust him, he said he swore on his mother's life. So, when the order came to kill us, I begged him and said he had sworn on his mother's life.... HE fold me that the guy that had the gun to me on my side was going to throw me from the moving car and to run and not look back, or theyd kill me. The gunman argued with driver, but, apparently the driver was his superior, and, around the next corner, the door flew open and He rolled me out and I ran down a mountain in flipflops as I heard gunshots ringing behind me. I was dropped in an area where an old lady helped me, but, also explained if anyone saw me, I would be kidnapped again. We eased our way back- hiding in shadows- until we could get someone to take me back to my hotel.

We eventually found out that the police have a lot of knowledge about this particular group of kidnappers. It is suspected that they are working with them, and, that my life was only spared because of fear of an investigation from the states.... They had killed several people before, and after, and regularly dumped their bodies less than a mile from where I was thrown....

Anyway, point being; I live in Guatemala now, which is statistically much less safe, but, I have never had so much as a pickpocket.

I think that just being wrong place, wrong time can determine your life. Don't trust anywhere as safe, or dangerous. Everywhere is both.

Best wishes.