After our long and arduous journey from Latacunga, we finally made it to Banos on the evening of the 23rd of October. Banos is a picturesque small city tucked into a valley on the way from the highlands to the Amazon basin. Despite its size, it is becoming increasingly popular with tourists. Even just during the taxi ride from the bus station to our hostel on that first evening, we saw more tourists flooding the streets than we had at any other place in Ecuador up to that point.
Unfortunately, due to our tight schedule and some unforeseen travel issues, we only spent two days in Banos. So whilst we didn’t get to do everything we had wanted, we managed to do a few of the main activities. So if you want to get a brief glimpse into Banos, then please keep on reading:
Contents
Taking the party bus to Pailon del Diablo
Have a massage and visit the hot springs
Walk to La Virgen viewpoint
We first wanted to get our bearings regarding Banos, so the first activity we did was to walk to the ‘Mirador La Virgen’. This is a viewpoint half way up one of the hills towering over the city.
From our hostel on the outskirts of the city we first had to walk through the old city centre. We spent some time admiring the pretty squares and colonial architecture before heading on.
There isn’t just one path leading up to the viewpoint so make sure you have access to the offline map from Maps.me before starting the walk. We ended up skirting past the cemetery before looping round the Luis Martinez road and starting our ascent from there. The walk up was very steep and the path was just a strip of bare earth that wound its way through the plantations on the hillside. After a while we joined up with a set of steps heading up to the viewpoint. This would have been the other option for getting up and I don’t know which one would have been better. The footing on the concrete steps would be better, but there was less shade for the hard ascent.
The statue and viewpoint were just a bit further up the steps from where we joined. Whilst it had looked impressive from a distance, the statue was a bit weird close up but the views across the city more than made up for that. You have an amazing view of the city nestled amongst the green hills all around. It was definitely worth the hard, sweaty climb to get up there. After spending a while getting our breath back and admiring the vista it was time to move on. From here it is possible to carry on up the hill and make your way to the famous swing at the top. But we decided to save that for another time and instead took the path to the left that would circle back down and round to the city. I liked how the walk was a loop rather than going back and forth the same way. The walk down was easier and you got to enjoy further the views as you join up with a basic road and make your way past a couple of cafes before ending up not too far away from the cemetery again.
It only takes a couple of hours or so but I enjoyed this walk. It helped us to see some of the city and the views from the mirador were really nice. So if you have a spare morning or afternoon, I’d definitely recommend giving it a go.
Taking the party bus to Pailon del Diablo
One of the major attractions of Banos is the road leading towards Puyo, which passes by multiple waterfalls culminating in the most famous, Pailon del Diablo. When we enquired about going we were told there were two ways to do so. The first is to get a chiva. This is a like an open-sided truck that has benches for people to sit on. So it’s kind of like a cross between a truck and a bus. These particular chivas were known as party buses as they played music. The second option was to rent bikes and do the journey independently before potentially getting a lift back. We were told the narrow road got quite busy and we weren’t particularly keen on riding bikes on it so we decided to get the chiva. In hind sight, however, we probably made the wrong decision.
It was rather a surreal experience. It was early on a Sunday morning and the other passengers were Ecuadoran families, including grandparents. And yet the dance music was blaring and the lights were constantly flashing. If you were part of a group of friends and maybe had a couple of beers, I could imagine it being quite fun. As we were, it was just weird!
The route through the valley is nice and you pass by a dam and hydroelectric power plant before seeing multiple waterfalls. And yet our first major stop didn’t have a particularly nice view of any of them so we were quite perplexed. All of the buses were stopping and everyone was getting out to take photos of the cliff. Eventually we worked out that the rock face, if seen from a particular angle, supposedly looked like the face of Jesus. Apparently it was good luck to go here and say a prayer. We didn’t say a prayer but did take a photo to remember the rather bizarre experience.
The other stops were more understandable. Banos is known for its adventure activities and at various points in the valley there were places where you could zipline across the river. We didn’t think it was worth the money they were asking so just left the others to it.
We eventually made it to the entrance to Pailon del Diablo. The setting is a beautiful little canyon heading off the main valley. You first walk through the trees, where we saw hummingbirds flitting amongst the flowers, to get to the top. From here the impressive waterfall crashes down in several stages and you go along walkways and steps to follow it down. The waterfall itself is quite a sight and you also get nice views further down the canyon. After viewing it from different angles you need to walk back up the same way to get back to the entrance. From here, it was a quicker journey back to Banos as there were no more stops.
Our overall view of the activity is that Pailon del Diablo is definitely worth a visit. Whilst quite touristy, we enjoyed it and found it impressive. If we were to do it again, however, we would have given the bikes a go. You would have had more freedom to stop where you wanted and it would have been a more pleasant experience.
Have a massage and visit the hot springs
One of the original reasons for Banos becoming famous is the natural hot springs that dot the valley. The city itself has two establishments, one on the outskirts and one a bit further out. To complement these businesses, there are dozens of massage parlours that have sprung up in the streets of Banos. We don’t know how reputable they all are so it’s best to get some recommendations first. Massages aren’t my cup of tea but Radka went to one organised through the hostel and enjoyed it.
For the hot springs we decided to go to Termas de la Virgen, the one on the outskirts of the town and easy walking distance from our hostel. The heat during the day made a trip to a hot springs not at all appealing, so we went to the evening session. One advantage of going during the day, however, would be the views of the waterfall that towers up the hillside near by.
Our hostel had lent us swimming caps, otherwise you would need to purchase one at the entrance. As we walked up the steps to deposit our clothes and bag in the cloak room we noticed that there were almost no tourists. We knew that these hot springs were popular with locals but we hadn’t expected there to be such a discrepancy. If anything, this made it more authentic and enjoyable. The main top floor has several pools of different temperatures that you are supposed to go between in a progressive cycle. The middle one was the most pleasant and it was very relaxing to just sit in the mineral-filled murky water as the last light of the day slowly left.
On the lower floor, where you first enter and pay, there is another small pool that was surrounded by locals. After spending a while upstairs we decided to go and investigate. There was a gap so we went straight in. It took about a second for the pain to register and we sprang straight out again. It was so hot! Our shock and fast retreat was very amusing to the locals nearby and an older couple were laughing before taking pity on us and taking us through the process. You first needed to sit with your legs in very cold water for a while before having a cold shower over the rest of you. Once you are suitably numb, it is easier to enter the main pool. I say easier because it was still quite tough for us. Once you got in and sat still you could bare it for a while but as soon as there was movement around you, either from someone else moving or you getting out of the pool, the pain started again, like needles attacking your skin. We did the three cycles the couple recommended but more to prove that we could rather than because we were particularly enjoying it. It is definitely something that requires practise.
We went back upstairs for a while but by that point a thunder storm had rolled in so we decided enough was enough. We got changed, collected our stuff and headed back to the hostel to get something to eat. It had been a very pleasant couple of hours.
Have a bite to eat
We were not in Banos long enough to properly explore the multitude of restaurants and cafes on offer but we did go to one that was worth mentioning – Blah Blah Cafe.
First thing to note is that Banos has two cafes with almost the same name. The other one is Bla Bla Cafe, and we didn’t go there so can’t comment. But Blah Blah Cafe was a really nice place to go for lunch with a whole host of options. We both had freshly prepared sandwiches, which were huge, before enjoying a home-made dessert. The wifi was also good there so could be a good place to go if you’re a digital nomad looking for somewhere to work. If we had stayed in Banos for longer I’m sure we would have ended up coming back here.
Overview
So there is our brief experience of Banos. We can see why it is firmly on the tourist route. We enjoyed what we managed to do but there is still so much more we could have done with more time; such as volcano hikes, white-water rafting and visiting the famous swing on the hill. The atmosphere of the city seemed to be nice and relaxed and I would definitely consider coming back at some point.
Brit and Czech Abroad 