COTOPAXI NATIONAL
PARK AND INCA HACIENDA

Heading south from Quito, the view from the train or the Pan-American Highway is striking, especially on a clear day, when over 25 volcanoes in the Eastern and Western Cordilleras stretch across the horizon. Cotopaxi National Park, named after the iconic cone-shaped volcano rising 19,470 feet above sea level, is home to endangered species like the Andean Condor and Spectacled Bear.

After exploring the park’s moorlands and lakes, we continue to San Agustin Hacienda, a colonial estate built atop an Inca palace. Many original Inca walls remain, including those forming the dining room and some guest rooms. This site is one of the most significant archaeological Inca locations in Ecuador and the northernmost point of Imperial Inca construction, far from Cuzco.