BANOS DE AGUA SANTA
The activity town of Banos is surrounded by beautiful mountains, jungle, and waterfalls. It's not just for adrenaline junkies. There's thermal baths, and SPA's for those wanting to relax. The full name is Banos de Agua Santa not to be mistaken for the town of Banos near Cuenca, it’s easy to get to and a place you may well get stuck.
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getting there
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From Cuenca | If you are coming from Cuenca the bus journey is 7 hours long with a cost of around $11.50 (£9.40) with Amazonas. Purchase your ticket from the Terminal Terrestre either on the morning or the day before. There are 3 buses a day, 08:45, 15:30 and 23:00.
From Quito | If you are travelling south and coming from Quito the journey takes around 4 hours and costs $4 (£3.30). You will have to get the bus from the Southern Terminal so if you are in the North you need to take a taxi or the trolley to the terminal. The buses will pass through Latacunga so if you’ve been hiking the Quilotoa Loop you can hop on the bus which will take around 1 and half hours.
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To Stay
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Great Hostels | If you like to socialise then Great Hostels is the place for you. Despite that the rooms are quiet at night and it’s got a few outdoor areas to relax. The bar area has board games, books and a TV area. The owner Sebastián is super helpful, the staff are really knowledgable of tours and will book them for you if needed; seemingly without much of a hostel markup. There’s laundry, bike rentals and everything you could need in one place to make your stay easy. Dorm rooms and private rooms are available and a good breakfast is included. We had an Emperor bed in a private room, although we only booked a double. In low season is £25 a night, dorms are £6.50 a night.
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To do
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Soak in the Hot Springs | A five minute walk from Great Hostels are the hot springs. They're a great place to spend a couple of hours relaxing, soaking your muscles after a fun filled activity day. It costs $4 (£3.30) and an additional $0.50 (£0.40) for swim cap rental which is mandatory if you have't got your own. There are changing rooms, baskets for you gear and secure storage, which is free. There are three hot pools and one cold pool. Ensure you acclimatise before hitting the hottest of the hot pools near the waterfall, or it will sting. It's limited to a five minute dip so you don't pass out. The middle pool is the perfect temperature to chill out until you're wrinkled. After, you will feel refreshed, relaxed and a little bit sparkly. We went in around 11am and it wasn’t too busy. The evening is the best time to go so you can marvel at the stars, just everyone else will be there too.
White Water Rafting | White Water Rafting was the scariest but most fun thing we did. No beginner level white water here. We booked through our hostel for $25 (£20.50). It’s a 9am pickup, a stop at the office to pick your wetsuit, shoes and helmet and then a half hour drive to the lower river. After you’re all geared up you will have your safety briefing and because there were so many of us (36, the most the owner said has ever been on the river at one time) we got split into groups of 7/8. The rapids are level 3 - 4 and having never done it before I had no idea what to expect. Little did we know the first two rapids were the most difficult and strongest and on the second one we got stuck in an eddy. Paul and his buddy Adam were at the front and getting bombarded with water over their heads. Everyone was trying to paddle but to no avail and our instructor who happened to be the owner was shouting ‘fuck fuck fuck’. Luckily another boat pushed us out the way. After that we were all petrified, and began to take it far more seriously, regretting our hangovers. Things got better and I promise it’s not always like that, it’s definitely a lot of fun and a 'real' white water experience. There are safety kayakers following you and in-front and these double up as the photographers and they do an amazing job. After an hour or so on the river you get changed and head for a quick lunch and then back to the hostel at around 3pm.
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It is absolutely worth the splurge, a must do while in Banos.
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Rent a Pedal Bike | A cheap day trip option is renting a bike and cycling the Ruta De La Cascades. The whole route goes to Puyo about 60km but most do around 17/20km to finish at Cascade Del Pailón or Machay. We rented a bike from our hostel for $8 (£6.50) which included helmet, locks and if anything happened we could ring and they will come out and fix it or swap bikes. You can rent for cheaper in the town for $5 (£4). Take your swimwear and a towel because there are swimming options.
The route itself is mainly on the main road which isn’t that pretty, and busy with traffic. We also missed a couple of waterfalls because we had no idea how to get to them but we could see them from the road. So try and get a good map or get someone to explain it to you. Most waterfalls are free apart from Pailón and Machay. You will come to Pailón first and I recommend taking the second entrance. There are two ways and both cost $2 (£1.60). We went into the first one not knowing there was a second entrance and you can get really close to the waterfall but the other route looked a lot cooler and longer so probably more worth while.
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Next stop and probably the last waterfall on your list is Machay. It costs $1.50 (£1.20) to enter and again I recommend taking the second entrance which is a community run one. The route down both ways is steep steps which you have to climb back up but boy is it worth it. It’s a beautiful spot to swim and relax.
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Top Tip: Cross the stream when you come off the footpath and climb behind the rock formation towards the falls.
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Once you’ve made your trek back up the steps you can catch the shuttle buses for $3 (£2.40) which will take you and your bike back into town.
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