What to Do in Otavalo, Ecuador, Otavalo, Ecuador

Otavalo in northern Ecuador is known throughout the country for its Saturday markets, when people come into town from the surrounding area to sell their wares. Unfortunately, there isn’t much else to do in town the rest of the week, and in general two or three days there is enough.

Waking up in Otavalo on a Saturday morning, the streets are almost unrecognisable from the day before. Plaza de los Ponchos is the epicentre of the main handicraft market in Otavalo, four blocks north of the main square along Sucre street, but several surrounding streets are also closed off and are also good places to find gifts.

The main things on sale are textiles, including rugs, pillow cases, ponchos, scarves, hats, hammocks, but also jewellery, paintings, stone carvings and stuffed toys, and it seems that most of these items are made locally, often by hand. There is also some stuff for sale that you could easily buy anywhere else, like imitation brand shoes, notebooks, CDs as well as some food items. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).