La Tolita is a small community surrounding a harbour in the riverdelta of Rio Santiago. The habitants of La Tolita make their living by fishing and agriculture and are strongly influenced by the African culture. This is easy to recognize, not only becuase of their appearance, but also by their music, traditional clothing and religion.

The national park Cotocachi-Cayapas is te Chachis, who are trying to preserve their traditional lifestyle and haven’t integrated with the black community. La Tolita has a school and a museum and electicity is available in the village. Up to the moment of writing, running water remains unavailable.
The village has been built close to the location where a 2000 year old civilization found its origin. There are still some remainders left of this civilzation. The tempels show what the old culture used to be like. The museum of La Tolita wons a large collection of pottery that was found on near La Tolita.

La Tolita is an interesting place to visit, mainly because of the culture and history.
The little community also has an interesting natural environment. You can visit the nearby mangroves by canoe. Mangroves are trees that have developed the remarkable ability to live in saltwater. The mangroves attract different types of animals, and offer a look at an interesting biological. Seabirds (ie pelicans) have made the mangroves into their home, while fishes use the roots of the trees to hide. You can hire a local guide in La Tolita to show you around the mangroves.