The land of beauty and the beasts

Ecuador is often described as South America in miniature. Liz Hoggard is charmed by its colourful markets, epic wildlife ... and Miss Universe
Ecuadorian women at the market. Photo: Corbis

People had promised that a holiday to Ecuador would be momentous. We'd fall in love with the panoramic South American landscape (a lush patchwork of ploughed fields, lakes and mountains), the Spanish colonial architecture and the exotic wildlife of the Galapagos. Quite right, too. But I was even more gripped by the fact that Ecuador was hosting Miss Universe 2004.

I'm ashamed to say I became addicted to Donald Trump's kitsch beauty pageant. As the contestants battled it out each night, we found ourselves in front of the hotel TV rooting for the voluptuous dark-haired beauties such as Miss Puerto Rico and Miss Peru, rather than the whitebread blondes, Miss America and Miss Australia (a Kylie lookalike who inevitably won the contest). And we weren't the only ones. Miss Universe fever gripped the country. Miss Ecuador's decision to appear for the grand finale in a hideous adaptation of the national costume (lacy body suit, rose-trimmed corset and kinky boots) prompted a day of national mourning. 'Why on earth did she do it?" people wailed in the streets.

Trump's decision to bring his pageant to Ecuador shows how the small Andean nation is changing. Ecuador is often overlooked by tourists who make a beeline for the better known attractions of neighbouring Peru, but its mountain-high capital, Quito, is a 21st-century city with designer hotels, restaurants and boutiques. And unlike Peru's capital, Lima, which has bulldozed much of its colo nial architecture, Quito still has the best-preserved Old Town in South America (made a Unesco world heritage site in 1978). 'The good thing about being a Third World country is we know not to make the same mistakes as you,' one Ecuadorian told me bluntly.

Bordered by Colombia, Peru and the Pacific Ocean, Ecuador is South America in miniature. Thanks to its tropical location, the climate is spring-like all year round. Within two hours, you could be on a palm-fringed beach, in the rainforest, cruising the Galapagos, visiting Inca ruins, or mountaineering (the Cotopaxi National Park has the world's highest active volcano). One day we found ourselves riding the historic autoferro from Quito to Cotopaxi (literally a coach on tracks), where you sit on the roof with your legs dangling over the sides, an exhilarating if frankly lunatic experience. The next, we were motoring along the Pan-American Highway to Otavalo and the famous Indian markets.

If you've never been to Latin America, Ecuador is a wonderful place to start. Yes there is poverty and social deprivation if you venture beyond the swanky hotels. In common with many South American countries, Ecuador has a burgeoning middle-class and a disadvantaged indigenous population. Strikes are common and in 2003 Lucio Gutiérrez was elected to the presidency on an anti-corruption platform, the sixth president in seven years. But Ecuador sees tourism as fundamental to economic development. It has dedicated 18 per cent of its entire territory to national parks and ecological reserves. And it is one of the most bio-diverse countries in the world. The colours of the national flag - green, blue, orange, yellow - are the colours you'll see in the landscape. Wherever you go, people are extremely welcoming. And the food is fantastic - organic chicken, fish, corn, delicious soups with cheese and avocado, plantains and fresh fruit.

Ecuador is a multi-ethnic society (the main languages are Spanish and English), with most Indian groups based in small mountain settlements or in the Amazon. We longed to copy their dress style - the gold beads, bowler hats and stunning primary-colour skirts. But sadly these are not clothes for stocky Westerners. We tried on ponchos and hats in the Indian market and, to everyone's amusement, looked more like Window Twankey than Frida Kahlo.

Ecuador, means 'Equator' and a few miles from Quito is the Middle of the World monument - marking the very spot where in 1736, a French expedition established the line of the equator - leading to the discovery that the world is round.

Ecuador was to make its mark on history again in 1809 when Quito was the location for the first uprising in the 19th-century wars for South American independence from the Spanish crown. The Republican forces were violently defeated but the next uprising in 1820, led by Simon Bolivar, achieved independence (you'll find statues to Bolivar, who went on to liberate Bolivia, Panama, Colombia, Peru, and Venezuela, everywhere).

Ecuador's other great national pride is the Galapagos Islands (the Spanish called them Las Encantadas, or the Enchanted isles). An archipelago 600 miles off the mainland, they are rumoured to have inspired both Robinson Crusoe and Moby Dick. In 1835 Charles Darwin sailed on the HMS Beagle to the islands, which helped him to develop his theory of natural selection. More recently they provided the backdrop for Peter Weir's movie, Master and Commander.

The Galapagos contain flora and fauna found nowhere else on earth (the name comes from the islands' giant turtles whose shells resemble galapago, the Spanish for riding saddle). Over the centuries, they have been home to pirates, convicts, shipwrecked mariners, even US marines. They are also the site of recent controversy. Pitched battles have broken out between local fishermen, eager to exploit the islands' waters, rich in shark and sea cucumber, and conservationists.

Today tourism is tightly controlled (only 100,000 visitors a year). So the best way to explore the Galapagos is on an island-hopping cruise. We flew from Quito and spent five nights on the M/V Santa Cruz (where Paul Bettany also stayed during the filming of Master and Commander), which proved a fascinating opportunity for people watching. A reserved group of French doctors soon transformed into party animals - arriving for dinner in snorkel and flippers, and inventing birdie dances. The Japanese took painfully earnest notes during briefings ('What time must we drink the welcome cocktail?'). While the Germans ... well, let's just say they always got to the buffet first.

Each day we headed out to the islands in dinghies with the naturalists - handsome, sensitive young men who made the wildlife come alive (and female hearts beat a little faster). There are rules: stay on the path, don't touch the animals or take anything from the islands. The animals have no fear of humans. It's a humbling experience stepping over flightless cormorants and boobies with their giant blue feet and sad eyes, or watching marine iguanas sunbathe on exposed rocks, like strange sci-fi creatures.

Each of the 13 main islands is subtly different. San Cristobal has an exquisite white coral and shell beach; Isabela is a jagged mass of black lava (like molten cake mix), punctuated by lush rock pools with pink flamingos, straight out of a John Waters movie. I am not an outdoor girl but even I fell in love with the sea lions, the most lovable, playful mammals imaginable. Their dating rituals are worryingly similar to ours. Young males are banished to Batchelor Island, where they clown and bark and fool around, until they can per suade a female mate to take them on. It's a living soap opera.

One word of warning. Having skimmed the cruise itinerary, my friend Geraldine and I packed cocktail dresses and kitten heels - imagining swoony dinners with the captain every night - only to find that, during the day at least, it was more a case of rock climbing and wet landings. My wardrobe proved sadly lacking. At one point, I even had to cut up a pair of opaque tights in layers to create makeshift trousers.

Returning to the mainland things became a little more luxurious. One of the best things about travelling around Ecuador is staying in haciendas. Many of these Latin-style ranches, dating back to the 17th century, have their own chapel and formal gardens.

It's a fascinating insight into Ecuador's recent history. Discovery of oil paved the way for the Agrarian Reform law in 1964, when landowners were forced to turn over plots of land to the peasants who had worked for them. Many Spanish aristocrats had to find a new way of earning a living so they let out the family home to tourists.

We spent one wonderfully surreal evening in the Hosteria Hacienda Pinsaqui, watching the final of Miss Universe on a flickering black and white telly, under the austere gaze of family portraits.

The success of Master and Commander has brought a new wave of visitors to the Galapagos. But of course, the other movie part-filmed in Ecuador is Proof of Life, during the filming of which co-stars Meg Ryan and Russell Crowe famously had an affair in 2000. When the world's media descended on the rainforest, Ryan escaped back to Quito. One night, after a little red wine, our Ecuadorian guide Maria confided that she had actually met Ryan. 'My husband and I went out to dinner with friends at a hotel and we recognised her having supper. Of course we didn't disturb her, but she came over to our table and asked if she could join us because it can be lonely eating alone. We chatted all evening, she's a very bright, interesting woman.' Weren't they even tempted to call the press? 'Of course not. She's a private person.' Ryan chose well. If you're escaping a scandal, Ecuador is the place to go.

Five things you must do in Ecuador

· Breakfast with llamas at the San Augustin de Callo hacienda in Cotopaxi. Built on the site of an Inca palace, the rooms are decorated with Bloomsbury-style murals.

· Have lunch at El Crater, near the Middle of the World. A 1960s modernist building, overlooking a volcanic crater, it houses the owner's wonderful art collection.

· Visit 'La Capilla del Hombre' in Quito. Artist Oswaldo Guayasamín was a friend of Pablo Neruda and Fidel Castro. The museum, which he designed himself, is an architectural marvel.

· Explore Quito's Church La Compañía de Jesús with its trippy 7-tonne gold leaf interior.

· Climb to the 41m winged Virgin of Quito, on Panecillo Hill. Then have supper at the Teatro Nacional Sucre (National Theatre), sumptuously decorated in gold and red velvet.


Journey Latin America (020 8747 8315; organises tailor-made holidays to Ecuador. A 15-night trip taking in the highlands of Ecuador (Quito, Otavalo and Cotopaxi) and the Galapagos Islands (seven nights on the Santa Cruz) starts at £2,995 per person (based on two people sharing). The price includes all flights, transfers, guided excursions and accommodation in hotels and haciendas with most meals.