Why you should visit Quito, Eucuador's vibrant capital

Where to stay

With its creamy white stucco façade, the Italianate Casa Gangotena on the corner of Plaza San Francisco is a taste of old-fashioned luxury, featuring 31 bedrooms replete with plush carpets, huge beds and wall-to-wall white marble bathrooms. The best spots to hang out are in the quaint palm court conservatory or the dark clubby cocktail bar. For supper, enjoy a bowl of hearty potato soup with corn, avocado and cheese or spicy green plantain and fish stew, a local speciality, in the elegant ground-floor restaurant. The hotel also boasts fabulous rooftop views. (casagangotena.com)

Where to eat and drink

Start the day with coffee or traditional ‘ponche’ made from milk, egg and cinnamon, and a pastry at Dulceria Colonial on the palm-fringed Plaza Grande beside the cathedral. For a light lunch, try Tianguez café on Plaza San Francisco for a humita — a cornmeal, egg and cheese dumpling-like snack — washed down with a locally brewed pilsner. Tianguez also has one of the best crafts shops for replica pre-Columbian ceramics, jewellery, alpaca woollies and coffee beans. For a glimpse of Quito high life try Zazu, a 20-minute cab ride to the new town, for superb pisco sours, fresh shrimp ceviche and guinea pig empanadas.

What to see

Quito’s magnificent churches are the must-see legacy of its Spanish colonisation. For sheer baroque bling, LA Iglesia de la Compañia de Jesús, begun in 1605, with its twiddling, intricately carved stone façade and gilt-encrusted interior, wins hands down. The choir gallery of the San Franciscan Monastery has wonderful carved and painted wooden saints, while its beautifully tended cloisters are now home to several friendly parakeets, rescued by resident monk Father Wilson. The nearby Casa del Alabado on Cuenca N1-41 has outstanding pre-Columbian art and artefacts, displayed by theme in a restored colonial-era house. Don’t miss the magnificent changing of the guard — in 18th-century replica blue, red and gold uniforms — outside the Palacio de Gobierno, the seat of the President, every Monday at 11am.

Expedition

Take a break from city life and immerse yourself in nature for a couple of nights at Mashpi Lodge, a three-hour drive north of Quito. The modernist glass, wood and concrete eco-haven cum luxury boutique hotel is discreetly nestled in lush, tropical foliage in the Andean cloud forest. Delve deep into misty woods of ferns, moss-covered magnolias and cecropia trees; peddle on a sky bike in thin air above the vast tree canopy 80 metres above ground, and take the most exhilarating dip of your life in the spectacular Magnolia waterfall. Four nights, with two nights each at Mashpi Lodge and Casa Gangotena, from £2,495 including flights, transfers, excursions and B&B accommodation, all with Cox & Kings (coxandkings.co.uk)

Where to shop

The locals shop in the indoor Mercado San Francisco, on the corner of Rocafuerte and Chimborazo. Visit Señora Rosa’s tiny stall, piled high with fresh herbs, potions and lotions. Try her home-made remedies — my favourite was the invigorating nettle, rose petal and bittersweet herb body rub. Go native with a Panama or felt hat from nearby Sombrereria Benalcázar on Benalcázar Street, where Señor César’s family has been making hats and hand-painted masks for two generations. Dip into artisan chocolatier Chez Tiff on Calle La Ronda, a charming cobbled street full of 17th-century houses turned artisan boutiques, and get a taste of how chocolate is made from bean to bar.