A Complete Guide To Hiking The Quilotoa Loop In Ecuador
The Quilotoa loop is now one of the most famous trekking spots in Ecuador, and after spending a few days making my way through the remote villages that rest up high in the Andes, I fully understand why. The bustling cities in Ecuador are noisy, vivid and exciting (and may I add a little chaotic?), but moving through the country’s rural land was something entirely different and utterly special.
In this guide we’ll discuss how to hike the loop, where to start, what to bring, safety factors to consider, what to do in the face of altitude sickness, and more. First, I have some great news for you: The Quilotoa loop can be done without a guide or porter, and many inexperienced backpackers enjoy this loop daily. I myself am not the most experienced hiking backpacker, but this loop made me more confident in my own abilites and was well worth any struggle that I experienced on the trail.
Is The Quilotoa Loop Safe?
Before we dive into some more technical parts of the hike, let’s hash out the subject of safety. This is something that I wanted to know about before I even planned my route. We all experience and live with different levels of privilege, so queer and female travelers in general are usually aware that there is a risk posed to us daily, regardless of which country we’re in.
I won’t tell you that the loop is 100% safe for anyone, but I will tell you that I met a young solo female hiker on the trail who had no problems at all, and that there were many women hiking the trail in small groups that felt very safe. I personally felt safe the whole time when it came to interacting with locals and other hikers. All of the locals that I encountered on the trail wished us well as we passed by, gave us directions if we were lost, and sent huge smiles our way despite our encounters being brief.
Safety Concerns On The Quilotoa Loop
The biggest safety concerns that I had while hiking the Quilotoa Loop had nothing to do with other humans. The most dangerous thing that I encountered during the whole experience was getting altitude sickness in a really remote area with nowhere to go but up, during a lightning storm at that. We’ll discuss how to prepare for this and what to do if this happens to you later in this post.
My second concern that I had on the trail was about bulls and dogs. You’ll be hiking through rural areas where farmed animals are sometimes blocking the path and stray dogs roam. The best thing that you can do is carry a few stones in your pocket in case you need to scare a dog away, and pick up a walking stick so that you can safely navigate around cows in the road by gently pushing/guiding them off the trail.
Can I Hike The Quilotoa Loop Solo?
The cool thing about the Quilotoa loop is that you often have the option to spend little time alone (even if you do this as a solo hiker) because other people will be hiking the trail as well. It’s easy to start your day hiking with strangers that you just met on the trail and then close the day out as pals and comrades, swapping stories around the fire at night. We hiked the loop in the slower season (the rainy season in January) and ran into three hikers the first day, then many hiking groups the second and third day as we all left the hostels around the same time.
Planning Your Trip: Consider The 2 Main Options For Hiking The Quilotoa Loop
Now that you’ve heard about the safety concerns on the trail and my struggle story, let’s start at the beginning of the planning process and get technical. Many people aren’t sure where to actually begin hiking the loop, but this is something that you’ll want to figure out first so that you can plan your route, where to stay at night, and figure out how to get where you need to go.
Where To Begin The Quilotoa Loop
You can hike the route two different ways and each have different benefits. Either way, you’re going to want to stay in Latacunga the night before your hike. You’ll want to set off as early as you can on the first day of your loop adventure, and this is the closest jump-off town where travelers do just that. We’ll talk about directions to Latacunga later on in this post.
You can either begin your hike in Sigchos, where you’re starting at a lower attitude and steadily climbing up; or you can begin at Quilotoa where you’re starting at the highest point (the Quilotoa crater lake) and hiking the other direction, which will be more downhill.
It’s important to know that regardless of the route that you choose, you will be climbing and descending, wearily (or hopefully eagerly?) hiking down just to go straight back up for most of the time on the trail, so don’t assume that starting in Quilotoa at the lake means that the whole experience will be a breeze.
The Advantage To Starting In Isinlivi
We began our three day trek in Isinlivi for two different reasons: First of all, if you begin your hike at the crater lake you’ve already seen one of the most stunning vistas with no build-up. It was fun to slowly make our way to the crater, which is the main highlight of trail, knowing that each day we were getting closer.
Secondly, due to the altitude sickness, it was better to let my body slowly acclimate every single day as we got higher and higher in altitude. If you suffer from altitude sickness problems and start at the high point in Quilotoa, you may assume that it’ll be OK because you’re going down in elevation, but you must remember that you are in the mountains and you will be going up and down constantly like I mentioned before. So no matter where you start, you will have to climb up, and starting at a lower point and steadily gaining height can be easier on the body.
The advantage to beginning your trek in Sigchos is obvious: you’ll be descending more than you have to ascend, making the hike easier for you overall if you don’t suffer from altitude sickness.
Using Latacunga As A Starting Point
Due to the hike growing in popularity, it’s easy to access the trail from Quito, where the bus leaves from the south terminal (Quitumbe) every 30 minutes to Latacunga. The bus ride takes about 2 hours and the cost is $2.30 USD. Whenever you’re on a bus in Ecuador, be sure to have your possessions close by and keep and eye out to prevent theft.
If you’re somewhere else in the country, you’ll need to make your way to Latacunga to start the loop. From Latacunga you can catch the bus to Sigchos or Isinlivi, depending on where you decide to start. You’ll want to head to the same terminal where you arrived to Latacunga, and there the buses to those destinations depart about every hour starting at 6:00 AM. It is not necessary to buy a bus ticket ahead of time. Simply show up to the terminal, look for a storefront that displays your destination, and buy your ticket with cash. You can also skip the counter and just pay for your ticket on the bus.
The bus ride from Latacunga to Sigchos costs $2.30 USD and takes around 2 hours. Remember to catch the bus as early as possible on the first day of your hike so that you can start your hike at a decent hour and beat the rain in the afternoon.
Storing Your Luggage In Latacunga
If you’re like me you might not want to hike the loop with all of your possessions. In this case, you’ll want to store your luggage at a hotel or hostel in Latacunga. This city is really only known for being a jump-off point for travelers, so most places should offer luggage storage for around $1 per bag a day. The hostel that I stayed at had a room dedicated to storing bags while people hiked the loop that was well locked, video surveillance, and provided lockers where you could lock your personal belongings away if you brought your own lock and key with you.
Where To Stay On The Quiltotoa Loop
If you bring your own camping supplies with you you’ll be able to set up in a few dedicated camping spots in towns along the way or outside of hostels/inns along the loop. But if you’re wanting to pack lighter and have a more comfortable experience, you’ll find incredible accommodations along the way.
Every place that we stayed at offered comfortable beds, warm showers, wifi connection, and a heater to dry any clothes that got drenched during the day’s trek. Most importantly, breakfast and dinner was included at all of them and they made excellent vegan meals by request. They also offered simple packed lunches that you could purchase and take with you on your journey the following day (they were easily able to make these plant-based, too!).
We found our stays through Booking.com. It seemed to be the easiest way to reserve and manage bookings as we traveled. I usually use HostelWorld, but for some of these smaller towns HostelWorld doesn’t have any listings.
My Favorite Hostels Along The Way
Along the way we stayed at Hotel Café Tiana in Latacunga, Hostal Taita Cristobal in Isinlivi, and Hostal Cloud Forest in Chugchilan. Hostel Cloud Forest was my favorite because they had a cool game room, delicious meals, and the owner of the place had a hand in creating the trail in the first place.
For those who hike the loop in the same direction as we did, there is an option to stay in Quilotoa overnight on your last day. Instead of doing that we took the bus back to Latacunga so that we could move along the next morning to our next destination in Ecuador. Quilotoa is pretty touristy (not to mention more expensive than the other stops along the way) and I feel like we made the right choice by not spending the night there.
How To Get Back To Latacunga From Quilotoa
Once you’ve bade it to Quilotaoa, congrats. Rejoice! It’s quite a journey. From Quilotoa it’s pretty easy to get back to Latacunga. You’ll walk off the trail into town and walk straight through it. When we were there the last bust to Latacunga left around 5:00 PM, so we arrived a couple hours ahead of time just to be sure that we would make it back. If it’s before 5:00 PM and local drivers are telling you that there are no more busses, they’re lying.
The owner of the Cloud Forest warned us that this would happen. He told us that the drivers in Quilotoa often tell hikers this so that they have to take private transportation back to Latacunga. Don’t be fooled and walk to the other side of town to catch the bus. You’ll eventually see a big bus sign on your left and a little gift shop with benches where you can wait to catch a bus for a couple of bucks back to Latacunga.
Quilotoa Loop Complete Packing List
The weather that you’ll experience along the loop changes quickly but can be a bit predictable. The mornings usually start off clear and sunny, and then the rain tends to move in during the afternoon from 1:30-3:00 PM. To avoid getting stuck in the rain like we did, try and start your hiking days as early as possible.
We did the hike in January and felt that the weather was ideal. The mornings were warm enough to wear shorts (but not deadly hot) and the afternoons had a nice breeze. Another benefit to hiking the Quilotoa loop during the rainy season like we did is that when you reach the sandy parts of the hike you won’t have to deal with sand blowing in your face, and you get more bang out of each step that you take. If you hike the loop during June and September (during the dry season) you will most likely have to fight against the sand around lagoon when you reach that part.
No matter what season you decide to hike in, it’s important to note that it’s much colder around the lagoon than it is on the rest of the loop. For the first two days of hiking I wore light pants, hiking boots, and a short sleeved shirt with a long sleeve shirt close by in case I got a little chilly. But when we reached Quilotoa I was happy to have a hat, heavier coat, and gloves for the last few hours of the hike. Check out this packing list before you begin your adventure:
- Rain jacket
- Rain poncho
- Water
- Reusable water bottle/bladder to fill up along the way
- Reusable to-go container to pack a lunch or snacks
- Hiking boots
- Lightweight backpack and clothing — the lighter you pack, the more willing you’ll be to complete the hike and overall have a more pleasurable experience. Some of my go-to items are the Barrage Technical Shell and the Trailhead Pants by CoalaTree. The Typhoon 25 backpack is waterproof and easy on the shoulders, making it my most favorite travel and hiking backpack.
- Multiple layers (t-shirt, long sleeve shirt, hoodie/jacket)
- Download Google Maps or Maps.me for free offline maps
- For those who want to use internet for maps and navigation, I highly recommend purchasing an eSim over roaming with your regular provider. It’s easy to use and a big money saver.
- Travel insurance if you don’t want to risk hospital bills in another country. Compare travel insurance plans before your hike via InsureMyTrip.
- Credit card with no international fees — I used this credit card while traveling (sign up for a $100 bonus!), dodging withdrawal and foreign transaction fees.
- Cash
- Sandals (optional to use in the evenings, they are provided at the Cloud Forest hostel)
- Bug repellent (weather depending)
- Hat and gloves (weather depending)
- Sunglasses
Commonly Asked Questions About the Quilotoa Loop
How Many Days Is The Quilotoa Loop Hike?
As I mentioned before, we spent three days and two nights on the loop. This offered us enough time to hike calmly, stop and take pictures, talk to pigs and their chicken neighbors, and get turned around a time or two while still making it to our hostels each night at a decent hour. But there is no set number of days that it “should” take you to hike the loop. If you’re interested in/need to go slower on the trail, you can plan for more days on the loop. If you’re super speedy, you may plan for less.
Hiking The Quilotoa Trail In 2 Days
There are people who only have two days to spend on the trail, and those who would rather hike it all in two days. If you have enough stamina and will power to do the whole trail and two days, rock on! There’s no way that I was going to do the whole loop in two days, but it can be done. If you’re just spending two days on the loop (not because you’re a super-human and will cover the whole trek in a small amount of time, but because it’s all the time that you have), I highly suggest skipping the first day’s hike from Sigchos to Isinlivi and just begin in Isinlivi, hiking from there to Chugchilan, and then from Chugchilan to Quilotoa. Those two days on the trail were the most beautiful, naturally diverse, and had stunning vistas that you don’t want to miss.
After completing the three day loop I came to the conclusion that it was pretty well mark, but that I was happy to have maps and apps to help along the way. The first day in Isinlivi was a little bit confusing and missing some markers. Thankfully, a local elderly woman was heading in the same direction as us and guided us along the way.
If you get lost, take a deep breath and remain calm. The locals are used to hikers and will most likely be happy to help you get back on the right path. Everyone seems to get turned around a time or two on the Quilotoa loop, so just chalk it up to part of the experience.
Why I Almost Gave Up On The Quilotoa Lake Hike
During our first day on the hike altitude sickness slammed me and I ended up having to go extremely slow. It just so happened that this intense feeling of wanting to vomit and pass out (while struggling to breathe) was happening just as a huge thunderstorm rolled in. We were slowly (and I mean at a snail’s pace) inching our way up the mountain while getting completely drenched, and I started feeling bad about myself as other people passed us and seemed to not be struggling at all. I questioned why I thought that I could do it in the first place and even plotted how I would quit when I made it town. But alas I pushed on, and was so glad that I did so in the end.
If you start the loop and find that it is not worth the struggle for you to continue, know that you can always catch a bus from one main town to another where the hostels are located (or even hitch a ride). If you decided to take this route, ask your hostel for directions on how to catch a bus and make it to the next destination.
Managing Altitude Sickness
I haven’t always been prone to altitude sickness, but lately it has been hitting me hard during elevated adventures. It first struck me while I was hiking the famous Acatenango volcano in Guatemala, and after that I knew that I had to be proactive when it came to taking on hikes at high altitudes.
So how can you avoid altitude sickness? It can be impossible to completely avoid for some, but there are some precautions you can take to try to prevent becoming ill. I am no doctor, but the best thing that I’ve found is to get and take altitude sickness pills before and during an elevated adventure. In the United States you must have a prescription for high grade altitude sickness pills, so be sure to visit a doctor where you can get a prescription at least a few days before your trip. It is recommended to take 2 altitude sickness pills a day 24 hours before you reach a high altitude, and then continue taking them while you’re there. So before I flew into Quito, Ecuador I was taking the pills and continued to do so while the Quilotoa loop. To prevent/help with altitude sickness you must also drink a lot of water and stay hydrated.
Climatize Yourself Before Hiking The Quilotoa Loop
Additionally, you don’t want to hike this loop as soon as you fly into Ecuador. Be sure to climatize yourself for a few days at a high altitude location like Quito before heading to a high elevation and hiking. The Quilotoa loop starts in Sigchos at 9,350 feet and eventually climbs up to Quilatoa at 12,467 feet. There are many decedents and climbs along the way, no matter which way you hike the loop and you want your body to be ready for the changes in altitude.
If you do find yourself struggling with the altitude remember to take your time, listen to your body, and take breaks when you need them. Panicking only makes it worse, so try to breathe calmly and take it one step at a time.
Travel Insurance For Epic Adventures
I used to skip out on travel insurance, but there are so many unknowns we face while traveling these days. I never let that stop me from pursuing my bucket list, but with epic adventures on the horizon I feel more comfortable in my wanderings knowing that I’m covered when it comes to travel health insurance. There are always unexpected (and a little strange?) risks that pop up along our travels weather it be altitude sickness, mad bulls, or wild dogs. That’s why I use InsureMyTrip to compare plans find the best price.
Other Worthwhile Experiences In Ecuador
Ecuador is an incredible country with diverse landscapes, fresh foods, and memorable adventures around every corner. Be sure to read all of my guides to Ecuador to plan your route (like this awesome guide to Baños) and check out the “Ecudaor” highlight on my Instagram page for more inspiration. Happy travels!
