Baños

Understand

The name of Baños, which is Spanish for "Baths (of sacred water)," comes from the famous hydrothermal springs in the area. The streets are lined with hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops and tour agents. Although the city seems a bit touristy and artificial — even to the extent that it's nicknamed "Gringobamba" by some — lots of people love it and it's definitely worth a visit. It's an important hub for outdoor sports and jungle tours, tours to the volcano Tungurahua, and a pilgrimage destination.

Tungurahua throws more than just its shadow on the city — it's also a threat to Baños. During a major eruption in 1999, Baños and surroundings were evacuated as a precaution. The volcano has been continuously erupting since 2000 and intensity temporarily increases several times a year.

Get in

Road is the only way to get in; the closest airport is in Quito and there is no railway.

Get around

Easy, just walk. Nowhere is more than a 15-minute walk from where you start and usually even less. It is relatively flat in the city centre.

Also check out the mountain biking section should you wish to explore further afield.

There are plenty of taxis around should you need one. For most places in town a ride should cost you less than $1.

Motorcycles can be rented for $15/hr for a 250cc off-road style bike. They will not ask for a license but will hold onto your passport. The agency near Hotel Passiflora has good quality Honda bikes maintained just as well. Be sure to take photos of the bike before you drive it away.

See

thumb|right|Parque de la Basilica thumb|200px|View from the end of Bellavista trail

While the town is mostly about activities, there are still places to see.

Do

thumb|200px|Cable car over Manto de la novia falls The Pastaza river valley, which Baños sits in the middle of, is a canyon with several waterfalls and begins immediately east of Baños. In addition to the waterfalls there is a botanical garden, funiculars, bungee jumping and ziplines (up to one kilometer long). Ruta de las Cascadas is a biking route through the Pastaza river valley, and one of Ecuador's most famous biking routes.

There are dozens of travel agencies offering rafting, climbing to Cotopaxi, mountain bike rental, multiple day trekking, jungle tours, etc. Shop around.

Buy

There are a lot of different places to buy handicrafts, there are a lot of small business in front of the church in the middle of the town. In the markets of the city you can find a great selection of fruit. There you can also find cuy (roasted guinea pig), a specialty of the native Andean cuisine.

Eat

thumb|250px|Jugo de Caña thumb|250px|Melcocha In addition to the Ecuadorian traditional specialty cuy (roasted guinea pig, available e.g. in the market), the specialties of Baños are sugar cane, candies made of it, and other colorful sweets, all of which are available at stalls around the city.

Melcocha (sugar cane taffy) is Ecuador's hallmark candy and the majority of it is made in Baños. The abundance of sugar cane in the area makes this version of taffy a local specialty. It is a naturally sweet taffy made from boiled raw cane syrup. In store fronts that sell it you are likely to see it being made by pulling it and beating it against sturdy door frames.

Sugar cane is also popular in a less worked form as chewable cane pulp sticks or squeezed juice (Jugo de Caña).

Drink

thumb|200px|Flaming Bob Marley - Leprechaun Bar Baños has a good selection of nightlife with bars and discos concentrated in the south of the city.

There's a whole street in downtown with salsathecas where you can dance all night. Other than that, in most salsathecas around Baños, they mostly play American pop music. One place to dance salsa is the Leprecaun Bar. Go there early (around 9 o'clock) where the place isn't too busy, ask the staff to put on some salsa music and they are even happy to give you dance lessons.

Sleep

Given its small size, there are a lot of hotels in Baños , and thanks to the competition prices are in general low and standards high. Public computers with Internet access are common.

Go next

Quito — the capital is a couple of hours on the road to the northwest. Puyo — to the northeast, here you can see a spectacular waterfall and it is a gateway to the Amazon. Apparently, there buses leaving every 30 minutes. Riobamba — to the south, this is Ecuador's third largest city and next to it is Chimborazo, whose summit is the point furthest away from the Earth's center. Other bus destinations: Coca (Puerto Francisco de Orellana), Ambato, Cuenca, …