Quito

Guayaquil

Cuenca

Machala

Portoviejo

Otavalo

Cuenca history

Indians relayed stories to the Spanish chroniclers of golden temples and other such wonders but by the time the Spaniards found the legendary city all that remained were ruins, leaving everyone to wonder what happened to the fabled splendor and riches of the second Inca capital. After being abandoned by the Cañari and then the Inca, Cuenca was sparsely populated until the 1550's.

Foundation of Cuenca

The Cuenca that exists today was founded in 1557, late considering southern Ecuador's other major city, Loja, was founded in 1548.
 

Cuenca's population and importance grew steadily during the colonial era and reached the peak of its importance in the first years of Ecuador's independence; it became the capital of one of the three provinces that made up the nascent republic. The other two capitals were Guayaquil and Quito.

In 1998 the Galapagos Islands were rated among the top ten diving destinations

Ecuador travel tours