Guayaquil, Ecuador Question

On Trip Advisor I have been reading about the Malecon 2000 boardwalk in Guayaquil, Ecuador. We will be arriving on the Rotterdam in Feb 2012 and wondering if this is within walking distance of the cruise ship pier and is it a safe area for tourists to walk. From what I read the Malecon 2000 is well protected - just not sure about getting there from the cruise ship pier. Any information is appreciated.

There is a new cruise port in Guayaquil, but my understanding is that the ships run a shuttle bus into town. The Malecon is quite nice and safe. So is the area around the Catherdral and Iguana Park (a couple of blocks from the Malecon). At the southern end of the Malecon, there is a market designed by Eiffel which is very interesting. However, DO NOT take a taxi!!! Your risk of getting robbed is extremely high. Look up the US Consulate website for full warnings on the taxi situation. Use the ship's transportation and you will be fine.

We visited friends in Guayaquil last year and they will not take taxis. They call them the "kidnap express."

And Guayaquil's weather report is: hot and muggy, always.

There is a new cruise port in Guayaquil, but my understanding is that the ships run a shuttle bus into town. The Malecon is quite nice and safe. So is the area around the Catherdral and Iguana Park (a couple of blocks from the Malecon). At the southern end of the Malecon, there is a market designed by Eiffel which is very interesting. However, DO NOT take a taxi!!! Your risk of getting robbed is extremely high. Look up the US Consulate website for full warnings on the taxi situation. Use the ship's transportation and you will be fine.

 

We visited friends in Guayaquil last year and they will not take taxis. They call them the "kidnap express."

 

And Guayaquil's weather report is: hot and muggy, always.

Just what I need to hear. We are leaving our ship in Lima and rejoining 3 days later in Guayaquil and will need a driver to bring us from the airport to the ship with ideally a short tour first.

We flew home from a Galapagos Island tour on Monday. We stayed two days pre cruise in Gayaquil and overnight on the way back. The Hotel Oro Verde was very nice and had a lovely breakfast in the cafe and we ate lunch from the bakery twice.

My impressions of the city is that they have cleaned up the city and added lots of flowers. There are guards (with guns) everywhere! Even the bakery had a guard. We used a tour guide named Juilio a Dentist and he was absolutely wonderful. The hotel can give you the name of taxi drivers and guides who will give you a wonderful tour. Half day covers it all! Nice place to see ONCE.;)

Just what I need to hear. We are leaving our ship in Lima and rejoining 3 days later in Guayaquil and will need a driver to bring us from the airport to the ship with ideally a short tour first.

I didn't realize those were your plans. Just be glad you heard about it. BowieMeMe may be able to put you in touch with her guide. If not, make arrangements with the ship to be picked up. Another suggestion would be to call the main hotels and ask for a driver. There is a Hilton in the center of town. As Barbara said, the hotels might also recommend a tour guide who will pick you up.

The US Consulate's website might also have recommendations. Just do not pick up a cab at the airport. You might get an honest one, but why would you chance it.

[And Barbara, glad to see you are going to Easter Island!!!!!]

Here is a link to the taxi services listed by the US Consulate in Guayaquil:

http://guayaquil.usconsulate.gov/media/pdf/taxi-services.pdf

And a few safety tips:

http://guayaquil.usconsulate.gov/media/pdf/taxi-services.pdf

While I'm waiting out hurricane Irene, I figured I would look up a few more scary things. Look at the State Department's warnings about the Guayaquil taxis:

http://www.travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1106.html#crime

Click on "crime" and scroll down to "secuestro express" (kidnap express).

Here is a quote:

"Due to the seriousness of the taxi situation in Guayaquil, all personnel working for the U.S. Diplomatic Mission in Ecuador have been prohibited from riding in taxis hailed off the street in Guayaquil, even yellow taxis. In addition, local buses, and other forms of public transportation are also expressly off-limits to U.S. diplomatic personnel in Guayaquil. As an alternative, employees have been told to use their personal vehicles or to call one of the vetted taxi services listed on the U.S. Consulate General’s website. "

We were also told that we should not get taxis off the street. I also saw that you would probably need help in negotiating the parking/driving/watching of the bus/car. Tips flowed freely and a parking space appeared (even in one case a car was picked up by men and moved). I would have a pre-arranged guide before getting to the city.

We will be arriving in Guayaquil on a cruise ship in January. We were thinking about going into Quito for the day. If not are there things to do in Guayaquil that are worth seeing?

We took a day tour of Guayaquil and really enjoyed it

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