Quito Travel Forum

We're very interested in going to Volcano Land while we are in Quito, just not sure if we should just do a day trip. We are not hikers, per se, but would enjoy exploring on "easy" hiking trails, and our teenage grandchildren (13,14 and 15 years old) want to try the horseback riding, and possibly the mountain biking.

My questions:
1. Is it worth doing a 2 day, 1 night stay at the hacienda that's advertised on
"volcanoland.com"?
2. Approximately how much would a taxi cost to drive us to Volcanoland and
pick us back up at the end of our stay?
3. Are the taxis large enough to fit 4 very thin people in the back? Or
can you fit 2 of us in the front with the driver and 3 in the back?
and so am I.

Any suggestions or comments on Volcanoland accomodations, food and staff would be appreciated.

Hi there,

Visiting the Cotopaxi will be a great experience, just take in consideration itīs not always full of snow. I believe a taxi will be expensive to take you there. Have you tried calling a tour operator? They usually have packages. It pretty easy to get to El Cotopaxi, how about renting a car? Just an idea. Regarding accomodations I would suggest Hacienda San Agustín www.incahacienda.com, Iīve been there a few times and itīs really nice, itīs also very cold. But all places to stay around Cotopaxi are cold. I think that if your grandchildren want to go horseback rinding itīs a good idea to stay overnight. But just for a day.

Good luck,
Gaby

Last month, I did a daytrip from Quito to Cotopaxi with a tour company. The trip was arranged by the language school that I was attending. It cost $48.00 which included the $10 admission charge to the National Park, a picnic lunch, and a stop at the market in Machachi. We left Quito at 8:00 AM and returned shortly before 6:00 PM.

We drove to the parking lot for the Refuge which is the base camp for the ascent to the summit of Cotopaxi. The parking lot is at 4,600 m / 15,092 ft. We then hiked up a steep trail to the Refuge at 4,800 m / 15,748 ft. Most daytrippers do not go any further than the Refuge. Our tour, however, climbed further until we reached the glaciers. I couldn't see any visible trail, but the guide knew the correct route. We spotted a "lobo" on our hike.

Because of the high altitude, it's not an easy hike, but do-able if you're in good physical condition.

I saw a bunch of people biking down from the "Parqueador del Refugio." I don't know if I'd do it. The road is full of bumps and potholes. It's also narrow. Our vehicle barely avoided a couple of bikers who came screaming around a corner.