Date of Travel:  November, December, January, February 2014/2015

Date of Writing: November 27th 2015

All figures in Canadian Dollars unless otherwise noted.

Ecuador looks small on the map, how much could there possibly be to see right?  Wrong.  I spent 89 days of the 90 I was allowed there and still had lots left to see.  Famous for the Galapagos Island and often the cost of Living in Ecuador can get confused.  In the Galapagos things can be quite expensive, (though less than the internet would have you believe)  But back on the mainland you’re dollar can go a long way and Ecuador to me seemed comparable to Peru in travel costs.

That said, Ecuador uses the U.S. Dollar and I went before the death of the Canadian dollar, so Canadians travelling now should expect to spend a little more than I did. Still Ecuador is worth it, incredible mountains, pristine and empty coastlines, incredibly bio diverse jungle, and shy but incredibly friendly people make this country a home run.  It’s got a good tourist infrastructure, though you can still easily enough get off the Gringo Trail for true solo adventures, and the wildlife all over is truly incredible.  Quito is also one of my favourite big cities I’ve ever visited.  So check out Ecuador, and check out the figures below to see if you’ve got the money to do it. (Below are two photos of one table, screenshots can only go so big after all, but line up the bottom with the top and everything becomes easy)

Totals:

These totals are thrown off a little by the fact that I counted my Galapagos Cruise (1480.98)  as well as flights (357.20)and Park entry (110) as a separate expense in the totals page of my second year on the road. So I will calculate both figures for you, with and without those Galapagos costs.  In my 89 days in Ecuador I spent 3745.11 without the extra Galapagos Expenses, or 5693.29.  This translates to a daily expenditure of either 42.08 CAD (31.47 USD)   or 63.97 CAD. (47.83 USD).   (Conversions above based on current exchange rate not rate at time of Travel) Now as you can see the Galapagos is very expensive, though you can do it much cheaper than I did, but it’s been number 1 on my travel hit list for as long as I can remember and I wanted to do it right.  And honestly, I don’t regret a dime of it, only wishing I’d allowed for more time on the islands.

Lodging:

Lodging is always a significant part of your travel budget.  I stayed exclusively in hostels in Ecuador, with the exception of one night at a hotel near some amazing waterfalls.  I spent a total of 1410.38 on Accommodation in Ecuador giving me a daily average of  15.85 CAD per day.  In general Accommodation cost a little more in Ecuador than in Peru or Bolivia, but this can be easily subsidized by couch surfing or staying in hostels a little less nice than I chose to stay at.  It should also be noted this figure includes the entire cost of my Amazon trip to Cuyabeno National Park.

Food and Drink:

In Ecuador my food budget was a little more reasonable than in Peru or Bolivia. I ate more local food and also traveled with my brother and his girlfriend for a few weeks which led to a little more self catering.  In 89 days I spent 1628.31  CAD which means that I averaged 18.30 CAD a day. I still ate too much and very well well in Ecuador. Again, no alcohol helps costs stay somewhat reasonable in this category, but Beer is cheap in Ecuador, and I still think an average backpacker could easily live on 12-15 CAD a day for food and drink.

Transportation:

Buses in Ecuador are dirt cheap in part because gasoline is subsidized by the government,  just over 1USD per hour travelled is a good estimate for most of the country.  Outside of Quito Taxis are pretty cheap too.  This category includes every transport cost I incurred except for my flights to the Galapagos and my cruise.  In 89 day in Ecuador I spent 336.93 on transportation which gives me an average of 3.79 per day.  This is one category where Ecuador is usually cheaper than Peru or Bolivia.  I moved around a decent amount but also spent a good chunk of time staying put in Quito so I’d say this transport budget will be about right for the average traveller.

Activities and Entertainment:

On Activities and Entertainment, not including my costs for the Galapagos Cruise and Amazon trip (built into lodging costs) but including all day trips in the Galapagos and the mainland as well as any entrance fees and tour costs I spent 183.63 or 2.06 CAD per day.  A lot of this was the day trips in the Galapagos and I’d say is a reasonable if somewhat low Activities budget for mainland Ecuador considering the exclusions.  to be safe you might want to a lot a little more money than I used, since I do like doing most things independently.

Miscellaneous

this includes all small purchases to replace broken items, small items I pick up along the way (like my wig for new years)  as well as the cost of my two weeks of fairly intensive one on one Spanish lessons in Quito.  My teacher was absolutely fantastic and any one looking to learn can arrange lessons with her through Minka Hostel at around 5 -6 USD an hour.  The lessons are worth that and more.  In 89 days in Quito all these things ran me 185.87  CAD or 2.09 CAD per day.   This is inflated by the Spanish lessons, but for those looking to do the same this is a reasonable budget.

Flights to Ecuador:

When I was looking flights from North America to Ecuador were not very cheap.  Although now I’m finding some reasonable fares about 6 weeks ahead of time. Toronto to Quito with a brief stop in El Salvador costs 639 CAD return trip with Avianca.  New York to Quito runs about 750 CAD R/T with various airlines.  If you can afford the time go through Jet blue or Spirit and fly to Colombia.  Spend some time there because it’s amazing and then bus to Ecuador.  Flights to Colombia from New York State can drop as low as 150 USD one way, and while that fare is rare between 180 and 200 each way is not that hard to find.  Seriously I met New Yorkers in Colombia who’d come down for a long weekend.

Conclusions:

Ecuador is in the mid range priced country group for most people travelling in South America.  The big question here is Galapagos Cruise or no Cruise/visit to the islands Darwin made famous.  Personally if you can afford it in anyway at all, go.  You won’t regret it, it’s amazing and the cruises get you to islands you just can’t reach on day trips.  That said if you can’t afford it mainland Ecuador is still amazing.  To recap I spent 42.08 CAD (31.47 USD) without the Galapagos  or 63.97 CAD. (47.83 USD) with the amazing Islands.  I think you could easily knock some money off my budget just by eating less and maybe doing a little couch surfing or volunteering with the amazing Ecuadorian People, that said I don’t think my budget was far out of line from the norm here.

Recommended Daily Budget for Comfortable Backpacking:    No Galapagos: 40 CAD (30 USD)  With Galapagos:  60 CAD  (45 USD)

Recommended Daily Budget for Shoestring Backpacking:   No Galapagos:  25-30 CAD  (18-24 USD)  With Galapagos  (No cruise):  45 CAD (30-35 USD)

***If you would like to download a blank copy of the budgeting template I use visit the link here.  All credit for this fantastic document goes to the people at www.alittleadrift.com another very useful travel website.