The Americas' Best-Preserved Colonial Capital: 7 Tonnes of Gold Leaf, the Equator & Cotopaxi
📍 Quito, Ecuador📅 3-day itinerary
The second-highest capital in the world and the first UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Americas — surrounded by volcanoes at 2,850 metres with a colonial centre where the Jesuits covered every interior surface with an estimated 7 tonnes of gold leaf, the equator line runs 20 km north, and a perfect snow-capped active volcano looms 70 km south.
South America's Oldest Cathedral, A Church Interior Covered in 7 Tonnes of Gold Leaf & A 41-Metre Aluminium Virgin Statue Standing on a Dragon Visible for 20 km
Standing on the Equator Line Where a 1736 French Scientific Mission Measured the Earth & An Aerial Gondola to 4,050 Metres on an Active Volcano in 9 Minutes
A 5,897-Metre Active Ice-Capped Volcano Accessible by 4WD to 4,600 Metres & South America's Largest Indigenous Textile Market Where 1,000-Year-Old Weaving Families Sell to the World