When I first started planning my South America trip, one of the first recommended places I came across was Laguna Quilotoa. I remember seeing the photo of the deep blue crater lake online and thinking “I definitely need to go there”. When I found out I could take a three-day hike between villages to the lake it became a bucket-list item for my Ecuador adventure.
Laguna Quilotoa is a lake formed in the crater of one of the volcanoes in Ecuador. It is easily reachable from Latacunga by bus, but a more interesting way to tour it is to hike to the lake. The route is very clear and not too challenging. Plus, since there are villages along the trail, there’s no need to carry camping gear.
I spent the night in Latacunga before starting the hike. This turned out to be a good plan, both so I could leave my big bag behind at the hostel there, and also to meet other travelers who were starting the hike at the same time. The typical route starts in Sigchos, a couple of hours from Latacunga. I headed there in the morning with a group of other people from my hostel and we started the trail to Quilotoa! The first day, the trail heads down from Sigchos through a pretty valley and up to Isinlivi. It’s a relatively easy hike, only taking about 4 hours – perfect for the first day.
In Isinlivi, I stayed at my favorite hostel in all of Ecuador – Llullu Llama. It was an absolutely incredible experience. Included in the dorm bed price is dinner (3 courses, all freshly prepared), a full breakfast buffet, free yoga classes, and a hot tub to relax in after hiking. This was wonderful enough but it was also just a really nice environment since nearly everyone there was hiking the loop as well, so it was great for socializing. The view of the valley from the hill above the hostel is magnificent too – definitely take a walk up there!
The second day of the trail leads from Isinlivi to Chugchuyan. This is a slightly longer day of hiking but not too bad – a little over five hours in total. The trail winds around one of the hillsides and down into a different valley. The final portion is a rather steep climb up out of the valley before heading up along the road to reach Chugchuyan. I thought the scenery on this second day was more impressive than the first day, but both were very enjoyable.
The third and final day was the long one, but so worth it to finally reach Quilotoa! It is about three hours hiking from Chugchuyan to Laguna Quilotoa. It is fairly difficult, as the path goes steeply downhill to cross the river in the valley, then climbs back up the other side. The views are gorgeous though. After the steep climb up the valley, then the climb up the side of the former volcano, I arrived at the rim of Laguna Quilotoa. It was breathtaking (literally since it was so windy there). The water is a deep, pure blue and the jagged rim of the crater contrasts beautifully with the lake. I decided to eat my lunch in this spot to drink in the view of the lake.
The trail splits in two on either side of the lake to reach the village of Quilotoa. The longer options takes an extra 3-4 hours to hike but takes you across the highest point of the trail at 3,980 meters. The shorter option takes only about 1.5 hours to reach the village. This is the option I took as I was rather tired at this point. I still got amazing views of the lake the whole time as I circled around the rim of it on the trail. Not only were the views of the lake gorgeous, I could see the valley on the other side and beautiful wildflowers along the trail.
Eventually I reached the village of Quilotoa, where I was able to catch a bus back to Latacunga that night, ending my Quilotoa adventure. Hiking the Quilotoa loop was one of my favorite experiences in Ecuador. I got to enjoy beautiful scenery, great hiking, and make some new friends along the way! It is definitely worth taking a few days to experience.
There are buses running nearly every hour from the bus terminal in Latacunga to Sigchos. The bus takes about 2.5 hours to reach Sigchos so it is best to start in the morning.
There are also buses directly from Latacunga to Isinlivi if you are starting the hike there. They do not run as regularly so make sure you check at the station the day before your departure.
- I’d recommend leaving your big bag behind in Latacunga. You only need a couple of days worth of clothes and toiletries for the trail and it’s much more enjoyable to hike with just a small daypack.
- Bring plenty of layers! The weather was quite warm and sunny when I was hiking (in early July) but at the lake it gets really windy and chilly. It helps to have multiple layers to adjust as necessary.
- If you haven’t been at high altitudes, take some time to acclimatize before the hike. Starting in Sigchos (as opposed to hiking in reverse from Quilotoa) is a good idea as the elevation is lower in Sigchos and climbs more gradually up (the lake is at the highest elevation of the trail at 3,900 meters).
- If you’re short on time, it’s possible to start the hike in Isinlivi directly, cutting out the day from Sigchos to Isinlivi. You miss some of the scenery this way but I felt that the second two days were the prettiest part of the hike anyway.
