Ecuador
Visited
At a glance
- Region
- South America
- Capital
- Quito
- Population
- 18.1 million (2024)
- Area
- 276,841 km²
- Languages
- Spanish
- Currency
- United States dollar (USD)
- Drives on the
- right
- Calling code
- +593
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Before you go
Overview
Ecuador sits on the equator, which gives the country its name. Its four regions are the Pacific coast, the Andes, the Amazon and the Galápagos Islands.
History
The area was part of the Inca Empire before Spanish conquest in the 1530s. Ecuador became independent in 1830.
Food & culture
Ceviche, locro de papa (potato soup), encebollado and roast cuy (guinea pig) are traditional.
Wildlife
The Galápagos Islands have giant tortoises, marine iguanas and blue-footed boobies found nowhere else.
Festivals & events
Inti Raymi, the Inca festival of the sun, is celebrated around the June solstice, and Carnival is popular nationwide.
Things to see
The Galápagos Islands, Quito's old town, the Cotopaxi volcano, Baños and the Amazon around Yasuní.
Interesting facts
Because of the Earth's bulge, the summit of Chimborazo is the farthest point from the Earth's centre.
