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Why Historical Center?

Plaza grande street Panecillo & La Ronda La Basilica Santo Domingo Church Central Bank

The Historical Center contains Quito´s greatest attractions - old Spanish colonial houses, beautiful streets

and plazas, museums, churches and monuments. There are also many cheap restaurants, cafes and markets.

Parts of the historical centre is like stepping back in time. Declared a world heritage city by UNESCO,

Historical Quito has been revigorated since being under restoration for the last several years. As part of

the makeover, many buildings and streets have been restored, tourist infrastructure improved, police

presence increased and crime reduced, and the area has much more to offer the visitor and locals alike.

The restoration process is still underway with new projects being completed all the time.

The New town district is where most of the big business is headquartered. Since the New Town Quito was

built, the old town started to fall in disrepair, with many moving to the new town. Mariscal Sucre, in the new

town, is where traditionally tourists have decided to stay, now there are many hostels, tourist restaurants,

bars and travel agencies. There are so many foreign tourists in the area that it is nicknamed ¨gringo-land¨.

Gringo Land is a great place to go if you want to compare travel agencies, go out dancing and drinking , and

eat international food. But it does not have any tourist attractions like the old town, or the beautiful colonial

atmosphere.

We believe it is better to stay in the old town because the attractions are right by, we are very close to parks,

transport and Mariscal Sucre in walking, bus and cab time. So we have the best of both worlds, and as well as

having the location we have some great facilities to make your stay enjoyable!

Hotel Plaza Grande typical Courtyard Alameda Park president palace plaza grande San Blas Plaza

Since we have been here we have watched:

- Parque Alameda and the Observatory being restored. Friday nights you can hear classical music being played

from the park, there is often fireworks and an impressive light display in tune to the new water display.

- Parque Itchimbia constantly being improved for tourist information, bbq areas, regular events and activities.

- A few blocks away the old Eugenio Espejo Hospital has been restored and made into a convention center.

- From our roof Terrace the old Alameda theatre has been gutted and is being restored to its former glory.

- Old houses are being restored, the streets and walkways up to Itchimbia Park have been repaired and are being

cleaned more regularly.

- The enormous old military hospital has been restored and turned into a museum (you can see the impressive

building from our balcony)

- In fact improvements to the the Historical Center of Quito are taking place so fast that guidebooks are not up to

date to how attractive the center has become!

Frequently asked Question - Is the Old Town more dangerous than the New Town "gringo-land"?

No, this is a myth! Police reports and word from tourists prove that there is more crime commited against

tourists in the New Town. The Mariscal New Town area is where most of the stories of muggings

(especially at night) take place. That is not to say crime does not happen in the Old Town, it does, like in any

capital city. But most people have no problems so long as the usual precautions are followed.

Alameda Park procession August 10 2008 (1 Block from the hostel) Itchimbia Park Palace and view from Park (10 min walk from HR)

Los Rios N13-11 y Julio Castro,San Blas Quito, Ecuador.

Ph (593-2) 2546458