Canar - Moving Ecuador - Responsible travel and volunteering in Ecuador

Canar

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Destination details

City

Canar’s main appeal is as anopportunity to visit and experience a completely non-touristy Ecuadorianmountain town – one in which a visitor is not likely to see another gringo andin which locals still stare unabashedly at foreigners, who are far from asteady presence. Despite its lack oftourist services or infrastructure, Canar does make an excellent starting pointfor do-it-yourself tours to Ingapirca, Ecuador’s most important Incan ruins,and offers lots of spectacular hiking in the green patchwork hills surroundingthe town.

On Sunday mornings into earlyafternoon, there is a locals-centric market, which draws many indigenous peoplefrom the nearby villages of Canar province. While you won’t find the scarves and craftworks that exist at other moretourist oriented markets, eating fresh fruit and watching locals haggle overfurniture, sacks of beans, and cookware is nonetheless and interesting way topass a few hours.

Places to stay and eat

Accommodation:

Lodging options are limited inoff-the-beaten-path Canar, but Hostal Ingapirca and Residencial Monica, bothlocated off the town square, have small and simple rooms that are fine for anight or two.

Restaurants:

Canar is not a gastronomic focalpoint and does little to pander to tourists, so don’t expect fancy restaurantsor dressed up menus. However, the towndoes have a plethora of small, cheap restaurants, most serving the traditionalEcuadorian fare or hamburgers and hot dogs.

How to get there

Several busses a day leave Cuencafor Canar; the ride is a less than an hour and a half and costs $1.50. Also, pretty much any bus driving theEcuadorian Panamericana between Quito and Cuenca can pick you up or drop youoff in Canar. To catch busses out oftown South to Cuenca or to points northward (such as Riobamba, Ambato,Latacunga or Quito), simply head out to the Panamericana and flag one down.