Top Cuenca How to Get Around

Add some excitement to your transfer from Cuenca to Vilcabamba - or vice versa - on a private 10-hour tour. Door to door transportation ensures that your experience is a comfortable one. Stop in Saraguro and discover the way of life of a prominent ethnic group. After a locally prepared lunch, continue with a guided visit of Cuenca or Vilcabamba, depending on your end destination.

Visit some of Ecuador’s top natural attractions without having to worry about arranging your activities, accommodation, and transfers on a private 4- or 5-day tour that comes with two different options depending on your budget. You’ll visit renowned sights such as Baños, Cuenca, Cotopaxi National Park, and Quilotoa Lake.

Don’t stress about time-consuming public transport; instead, opt for this private full-day excursion to El Giron Waterfall and Busa Lake from Cuenca. Relax and enjoy the scenery of the Tarqui Valley as you’re driven from point to point, stopping to hike through a cloud forest and lunch at a local restaurant. Ideal for first-time visitors, this tour is an easy way to see places you might otherwise overlook.

Most visitors experience Cuenca through its churches, plazas, and colonial architecture. We'll experience it through its markets, family-run eateries, and the recipes that locals have been passing down for generations. This small-group food tour takes us beyond the guidebooks and into the everyday food culture of Ecuador's Andes. We'll visit two bustling mercados, uncover hidden local institutions, and sample 14+ tastings that showcase the remarkable diversity of Ecuadorian cuisine, from coastal fish fritters and tuna soup to Andean corn dishes, traditional tamales, and regional sweets. Along the way, we'll discover how indigenous traditions, Spanish influences, and regional ingredients combined to create one of Ecuador's most distinctive culinary identities. With a maximum of just 8 guests, we'll enjoy a more personal experience while exploring the flavours, traditions, and local characters that most visitors never encounter.

Cajas National Park, with its 200 glacial lakes and numerous hiking trails, is easily one of the most beautiful places in Ecuador. With this tour, travelers with limited time in Cuenca can still spend a few hours exploring the Andean highlands with two guided hikes through two different forest ecosystems.

This private full-day tour from Cuenca, Ecuador was designed with hikers in mind. Explore trails through primary cloud forest, then continue to Cajas National Park to explore the high altitude paramo landscape and watershed within this UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. A well-earned lunch of trout from local fish farms is included.

Add some adventure to your Ecuadorian vacation on a private bike tour from Cuenca. Comfortable transfer from your hotel takes you for a downhill bike ride along "El Camino Viejo" to the Yunguilla Valley. Starting from an elevation of 9,064 feet (2,760 meters), you’ll enjoy a 25-mile (40-km) ride through native forests, farms, and local communities. Go at your own pace and are free to pause at any time to take photos.

Make the most of your visit to Cuenca with a day trip to three important artisan villages of Ecuador. After pickup from your hotel, take in the Andean landscape on your way to Chordeleg and San Bartolomé. You’ll get an immersive look at the craftsmanship that goes into textiles, guitars, and more.  Let your private guide help you decide on what to eat for your included lunch in Gualaceo.

With this two day tour you can enjoy the most popular places to visit while you are in Cuenca. It is a tour for all tastes, you can enjoy history while walking through the Inca ruins, gastronomy while you are in Gualaceo, shopping on your visit to Chordeleg and for nature lovers there is the Cajas National Park. We have everything for all tastes

Get a comprehensive overview of Cuenca's historical and cultural attractions on a private half-day sightseeing tour. Enjoy immersive commentary as your guide leads you around the UNESCO-listed city center to Barrio de San Sebastián, Parque Calderón, Catedral del Sagrario, Catedral Immaculate Conception, and other landmarks. You'll also visit a Panama straw hat factory and get a postcard-worthy view of the city at Mirador de Turi.

This tour is a combination of a description of the best architectural sites with a description of the history of Cuenca. After the tour, not only you will know more about the city, you will love it more as well.

See some of the best regions of Ecuador on a 4-day private tour from Cuenca to the highlands, Avenue of the Volcanoes, and the Amazon. See Inca ruins, relax in the volcanic hot springs, discover the fauna and flora of the area, and much more. This is a private tour for only you and your group includes all accommodation, transport, national park fees, and most meals.

Embark on an unforgettable journey through the hidden trails of Cajas National Park. Starting at the Toreadora refuge, our certified guide will lead you along a 16-kilometer (10-mile) pristine trail, showcasing stunning Andean grasslands, serene lakes, and sweeping views that few experience. The trail reaches a peak of 13,388 feet, descending to 10,600 feet, making it a moderate hike for those in good physical condition. After a boxed lunch in the peaceful Llaviuco valley, we’ll return you to Cuenca with hotel drop-off included.

The villages of Gualaceo and Chordeleg with their traditions of producing fine local handicrafts lie just east of Cuenca. With this private tour, browse the colorful wares at your leisure while learning about traditional artisan techniques. Watch as guitars, filigree jewelry, Panama hats, and shawls are being made, taste local fruits only found in Ecuador, and sit down for a local lunch. You’ll have plenty of time to shop in each village.

Discover the long history of the Incas in Ecuador on a private tour to the Ingapirca ruins archaeological complex. Complimentary hotel pickup and drop-off ensures that your journey is comfortable and secure from beginning to end. After a private tour of the ruins, enjoy lunch (included) at a traditional Ecuadorian lunch. On the way back to Cuenca, stop in Biblian to visit the hilltop Gothic-style church, the Sanctuary of the Virgen del Rocio.

Cuenca offer an astounding variety of art, culturally rich traditions, monumental architectural gems and exceptional cuisine. A city crossed by four rivers and situated in an Andean valley in the South Ecuadorian mountain region, nature makes its home in the city center. The famous 10 de Agosto Market, is very famous in the city for being a place where it is very interesting to get to the market and walk through the aisles of the fruit and medicinal herbs vendors as well as the large number of local shops selling food also deciding on where to eat isn’t easy.

This tour is specially designed for those who want to enjoy the wonderful landscapes, culture and history of the Ecuadorian highlands.

The Cajas National Park is a popular choice for a day trip from Cuenca, but with limited time to spare, you can still take in the highlights on a private half-day tour. Choose to hike around the Toreadora Lagoon and take in the views from the highlands, or enjoy an easy trek through the lowlands at Llaviucu. Hotel pickup and drop-off is included.

This is a day trip to three important artisan villages of Ecuador located in the outskirts of Cuenca City, that is great if you have an extra day in the City and you look for learning more about culture and heritage. After pickup from your hotel, take in the Andean landscape on your way to Chordeleg and San Bartolomé. You’ll get an immersive look at the craftsmanship that goes into textiles, guitars, and more.

Explore the beautiful city of Cuenca by bike on this 3-hour tour. Pedal along the river and admire the architecture of the El Barranco neighborhood. Visit an old Inca archaeological site, Pumapungo, and learn about this ancient culture at the adjacent museum and finish up with a pedal around the UNESCO-listed historic center of Cuenca.

Discover the best of Cajas National Park without the overwhelming tourist crowds on a private hiking tour from Cuenca. Starting from the park's highest elevation, you'll follow your guide on a leisurely downhill trek through three ecological zones, each offering unique flora and fauna. With very few people on the backcountry trail, you'll enjoy unobstructed views of mountains, rivers, grasslands, and more.

Cajas National Park and the city of Cuenca offer the best of this part of Ecuador and this full-day tour includes both. Enjoy a moderate hike in Cajas National Park to appreciate its unique geography, flora, and fauna, including llamas. In Cuenca, see the architecture, churches, art, and ambiance that make this one of the most beautiful cities in Ecuador. Hotel pickup and drop-off are included for convenience.

Connecting the Andes Mountains to the coast, the Devil’s Nose Train was considered one of the world’s greatest feats of engineering when it was built in 1899. On this private tour, enjoy the convenience of private transportation to Alausi, the starting point for the train. Take in the scenic Andean landscape en route to the coast, then continue along the Pan-American Highway to Ingapirca, Ecuador’s largest pre-Columbian archaeological site.

Discover Ecuador's Andean history and cultural identities on a full-day small-group tour from Cuenca. After convenient pickup from your accommodation, enjoy a relaxing transfer to Alausi. Then, follow your guide on a city tour and visit the Condor Pununa viewpoint. After lunch (optional) at a typical restaurant, travel back in time to the days of the Inca Empire at the Ingapirca del Canar Archeological Complex.