We are considering Totoracocha?

Hello Denise,

How are you?

I don't think Totoracocha is a good area, is a lower class neighborhood, not very safe. The part is close to Huayna Capac and Downtown has many stores and is very busy, on the other side limits with the airport and many car dealers, and again is quite busy and noisy.
On the other side limits with Tomebamba river and there you can find some nice houses and the view but nothing much.

Vinny

we are also looking for a "town". We are from the mountains and Cuenca is HUGE....very scary. Too many people. Are all towns in Ecuador so big?
Denise, what did you end up doing?

Cuenca -- population 350,000 -- is the third largest city in Ecuador.

Many folks in the two largest cities, Guayaquil and Quito, where the populations are in the millions, consider Cuenca as a place that offers the equivalent of small-town living.

That said, there are hundreds of smaller cities and "pueblos" in Ecuador.

Among Gringos, Cotacachi and Vilcabamba are popular in the highlands.

The smaller coastal towns, including backwater fishing villages, are widely reported as having minimal infrastructure.  The Pacific Coast cities of Salinas and Bahia de Caraques, among others, are smaller than Cuenca and have the advantage of advanced infrastructure.

The coast is popular among Expats who have trouble with living above, say, 8,000 feet altitude (Cuenca and Quito*) but who like the cooling breeses at sea level off the Pacific Ocean.  One Expat.com poster reported he's living on a cliff overlooking the ocean and it's cool enough there to go without air conditioning year-round.

cccmedia in Quito

*Quito is over 9,200 feet above sea level.