Flight bookings up until 31 July for departures in the next six months (between August 2019 and January 2020) from the UK indicate that key growth destinations include Ecuador (up 25.1%), Dominican Republic (24.1%), Costa Rica (20.3%) and Chile. (8.3%.)
Here are eight things you should know before you go
As well as wondering why fewer of us are going to the Spanish region of Andalucia, Adrian considers restrictions in the Galapagos and Edinburgh and whether his mobile phone is covered by his travel insurance policy.
Just About Travel lets you in what’s hot (and what’s not) in the travel industry this month
The anniversary of HMS Belfast being launched, snow sculpting in Finland, free travel for local heroes on the Talyllyn Railway and development plans at George Best Belfast City Airport are some of the snippets Adrian has gathered together this week.
Cloud-high in the Andes and hemmed in by the snow-capped peaks of two active volcanoes, Ecuador’s capital Quito is a colonial stunner. JAT shows you the way to go
Andean mountains? Check. Amazonian forest? Check. Life-affirming islands and coastline? Check. Adventure seekers in Ecuador are spoiled for choice…
Ecuadorians have begun to reconsider ancestral medicine
Torturous Brexit negotiations, four terrorist attacks in a month, the Grenfell Tower tragedy, a coalition of chaos… it’s time to escape for the summer, says Kaye Holland
Maybe the idea of winning your own guest house won’t appeal to most people. But when I tell you that this guest house is in Ecuador, you might want to reconsider.
A little quiz to start the day: Where is that “blue-footed-boobies” freely frolic? Need help?… If we add the words “sea iguanas” and “islands” ?… If you are thinking of Komodo Island and its dragons… You are wrong! Another clue? There are “giant turtles“?… No it isn’t Praslin Island in Seychelles. Last hint, “Darwin and his finches“. Yes, it’s the Galapagos Islands. And where are the Galapagos Islands? All those who are thinking of Argentina, Chile or Peru would be wrong! The Galapagos Islands belong
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Stepping out from the opulent marble palace-like Casa Gangotena boutique hotel in Quito, Ecuador, I found myself in a bustling plaza dating from the 1500’s. The ornately decorated San Francisco Church and Convent fronts this enormous cobblestone-paved square. On this sunny, crisp morning, in every direction there were moms with their youngsters in tow, scurrying off to school – some with their breakfast plates in hand! There was a small group of rowdy men in a corner, apparently recovering from the festivities of the night
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Travel presenter and translator, Elisa Rosales, talks travel
Anna Maria Espsäter continues her exploration of Colombia, looking at the Caribbean and Pacific coasts, salsa capital Cali and the south, followed by the Colombian Amazon
To many, the lure of the train is one of life’s mysteries. So the Tren Crucero, a luxury train that starts running from June from Quito to Guayaquil in Ecuador, should quickly become a significant tourist attraction
Express kidnapping is on the rise in South and Central America, according to red24’s Threat Forecast 2013
You won’t see massive promotions about Ecuador as it has decided that it doesn’t want to super-sell its resources just share them. It has adopted a policy called “conscious tourism”
Over the next three days travel bible, Lonely Planet, will be sharing the best street eats across the globe with CD-Traveller readers. Today: Ceviche de Corvina (PACIFIC COAST, PERU)
Not wishing to be rude, if you think of Ecuador at all, you probably think of the Galapagos Islands, giant tortoises and Charles Darwin. About the mainland country we probably know very little about. That might be about to change.
Quito, the capital of Ecuador, is the American Capital of Culture for 2011. But if you start reading some internet background, you come across the fact that Quito was UNESCO’s first world cultural site along with Krakow in Poland. The honour was well deserved but in the original document from 1977 proposing the city, the inspectors said, “Quito forms a harmonious ensemble sui generis, where the actions of man and nature are brought together to create a work unique and transcendant of its kind.” Forget this gobbledegook. What has Quito got that won it this award? Why should you visit?
Think of Ecuador and your first thought might be that it is twinned with Buxton in Derbyshire. That would be my last thought but it is true.
As one goes off another returns.
Last week, in Brasilia, UNESCO met to approve a new list of additions to its World Heritage Register. There were lots of additions and announcements and we’ll have a fuller review after the meeting is over on Tuesday.. There are two announcements though, about places that nearly everyone will know.
Sad to relate that the Florida Everglades have returned to being listed as endangered on the UNESCO list of heritage sites in danger. In addition the tropical forests of Madagascar have been added as well. But the Galapagos Islands and Machu Picchu have been taken off as UNESCO views the efforts by Ecuador and Peru to safeguard them as succeeding.
Got to Dance judge Adam Garcia, has returned to London’s West End stage in Tap Dogs – the internationally acclaimed dance show created by Olivier Award winning choreographer Dein Perry. The Aussie actor took time out from tap dancing to share his holiday experiences with CD Traveller
