After a few years and reading as much as I could I'm finally visiting Cuenca for 2 weeks 13-26 June with my university student son. As my son is planning his new future in Hospitality management when he graduates I would like to see if Cuenca might be a great place to finish my retirement and relocate. Rather than rely on 2d hand experiences, etc. I decided I needed to judge for myself if even for such a short time.
With that said, I wanted to ask the forum a few questions regarding our arrival in June. We're staying at 'Hotel Casa San Rafael'. They (hotel) mentioned that a taxi fare from the airport to the hotel is about $2.00. How do I know what kind of taxi to take and if I'm being ripped off for the trip if the price is not 'around' the cost the hotel referenced? Also, regarding money demoninations. Is it more wise to bring big bills ($100) or smaller denominations or does it matter. I wasn't sure what the process was for breaking bills to smaller amounts as needed. Thanks for any response or suggestions to my questions and of course any other suggestions/recommendations re: our trip.
BTW, I do not speak Spanish which I realize will be a problem but my son studied 4 years of Spanish so I hope that will get us through.
Finally coming to Cuenca
Just tell the taxi driver the name of the hotel and ask how much. There will probably be a line of taxis. If they quote you too much you can offer lower, or simply walk to the next taxi in the line. More than likely the next taxi will see you rejected the offer from the front taxi and may think twice before trying to overcharge you. After your in an area a while you will get to know the normal price from experience. One of the hardest places to get a good taxi fare is the airport.
Don't bring $100 bills. No one will have change except a bank. Taxis often grumble about $20s. Bring a wad of smaller bills. $1, $5 and $10. You will find the $1 coin very popular in Ecuador.
Excellent. I thought my question about $$$ might sound crazy for someone like myself who has traveled to 25 counties but you proved me wrong. Glad I asked. Thanks.
I'll second that about small denominations. Anything over a $10 is a hassle for most tiendas or taxi drivers. I try to just carry about $40 in $5 bills and $1 coins.
Cuenca is pretty compact. Only use yellow taxis in Cuenca, they are the only legal ones. In Quito or Guayaquil, Uber is a fine option but Uber isn't operating in Cuenca.
The Cuenca taxi drivers almost always use a meter which moves in nickel increments, starting at $1. From one side of the central part of town to the other is usually under $2. They will ask a surcharge about 25 cents at night or in the rain, and surcharges from the airport or bus station. But $2 sounds about right.
The new tranvia (electric streetcar) will be fully operating when you arrive, so that's a new transport option inside the city.
Why not start studying Spanish before your trip? Using an app like LingQ you'll be surprised how much you can pick up with just an hour per day of study.
Thanks a lot for your advise and suggestions. As for learning Spanish I'll give it a try. I don't use a cell anymore so it looks like the app wouldn't work for me but I'll try something else with my laptop. My memory is shot. LOL
There's a web version of LingQ you can use, from their website lingq.com
Cool. I'm definitely going to give it a try this weekend. Thanks again.
I installed the app and will get started tomorrow. Thanks again.
An FYI about taxis. In Quito taxis use meters before 10 PM. So, don't even get in a taxi if the driver refuses to use one because that would be an exception. Also, at Quito's airport the fares are fixed and vary by zones passengers go to. It's unfortunate some parts of Ecuador are not this way, but that's how it is in the capital (and Cuenca according to Lebowski888)
Thanks for the tip. Flying directly to Cuenca.
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