TRAVEL AND TOURS

Baņos is four hours from the capital city of Quito; it is a serene little city on the slopes of Tungurahua Volcano at 1,820 meters above sea level. This Andean village is bordered by snowcapped volcanoes and has fantastic thermal springs. The imposing snowcapped volcanic peaks that surround Baņos are four: TUNGURAHUA (5,061m), CHIMBORAZO (6,310m), ALTAR (5,320m) and CARIHUAIRAZO (5,020m).

Baņos is in a valley forming a "biological corridor" between two parks: "Sangay National Park", facing northward on the right side, named a World Heritage and a kind of continental "Galapagos"; and, on the left, "Llanganates National Park".

Sited in a valley of waterfalls and hot winds in the province of Tungurahua, Baņos has become an interesting place to visit for international travelers seeking a pleasant climate all year round. It has a small-town atmosphere, and is the starting point for exploring Ecuador in the open air. Four hours by bus from Quito, Baņos offers adventure sports such as canoeing, trekking, horse-trekking, mountain bike and mountain climbing. It also offers easy access to the nearby capital of the Province of Chimborazo, Riobamba. Likewise, it is the starting point of an exciting train trip that will take us either to the coast or to Puyo, one of the entry points to the Amazon River. Baņos is also an excellent place to learn Spanish, as its population is famous for good pronunciation.

During the week, Baņos is a quiet haven of peace. The important events here are the occasional traditional Andes produce fair and the English-spoken film shown nightly in the movie theater or the town chapel; however, on weekends and feast days Baņos becomes a "carnival town".

This "mountain-spa" has 13,000 inhabitants, is on the right bank of the Pastaza river, and is one of the few places on Earth where the four primordial elements come together: the fire of the volcanoes, the water of the waterfalls and rivers, the wind and the soil; this creates a kind of envigorating center that is ideal for enjoying nature and renewing one's vigor.

From the farthest times this place attracts many visitors. It is a fact that Indian chieftains used to come to Baņos with their wives to recuperate their health after battles. Currently, travelers from all over the world come here seeking adventure; and some, deeply impressed by its beauty, have even stayed to live here.

One of its main attractions is seeing the smoke and ashes spewed forth by the Tungurahua crater form ghostly shapes and present incandescent shows on the horizon, overawing viewers with this really unspeakably grand display of nature's might.

Baņos is a valley surrounded by 57 waterfalls. The "Virgin's Fall" is a unique case of a waterfall within city limits. Another especially beautiful fall is "El Manto de la Novia" (Bride's Veil), with its 80 meter elevation. However, the most striking one is "Pailon del Diablo" or "Rio Verde", considered to be one of the ten major falls in the world with its 100 or so meter height. Here water falls sheerly over a enormous wall of rock, shaking the ground with its force. In this beautiful mountain spa, the Andean forest blends with the high Amazonian forest, generating an inconceivable biodiversity, and producing 165 recognized native species : the same number that exist on the Galapagos Islands.

Baņos is an example of the growth of the Ecuador tourist industry, and has also recently been nominated as part of "World Heritage" by the UNESCO.

For further information get in touch with:
Oficina de Turismo de Baņos (Baņos Tourism Agency)