TelefériQo and Mitad Del Mundo – the centre of the world

Today’s adventure would take us to TelefériQo and Mitad Del Mundo.  If you have been to Quito, you will know this is one if the highest cities in the world meaning that generally most humans entering it will get altitude sickness which is horrid. Safe to say, we both have it, albeit mildly. Our headaches are horrible, and it makes you feel constantly hungover. However, we hate staying in so after a great breaky we hopped in an Uber and headed to TelefériQo Cruz Loma.

I was really excited about this as I love mountains and great views but it is so high. A bit of background about this activity – it’s a gondola lift running from the edge of the city centre up the east side of Pichincha Volcano to lookout Cruz Loma. It is one of the highest aerial lifts in the world, rising from 3,117 m (10,226 ft) to 3,945 m (12,943 ft). The ascent takes about twenty minutes, traveling 2,237 linear metres. WOW – I KNOW RIGHT!
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The accent up was actually quite terrifying for the first 5 minutes as it’s really high but the views of the city are spectacular, so you quickly forget that you are in a small hanging bubble. Once you’re at the top (a mere 4100m), you can hike to the summit of Rucu Pichincha (4680m) – but there was no way in Earth we were doing it. Instead we wanted to go to the swing at the edge of the world and take photos with Llamas! There is also oxygen tanks up the top if you are feeling really ill and want to pay a few dollars for a quick fix – we didn’t but a few people were using them when we got there.

It cost’s $8.50USD pp to ride the cable car and at the top there is a café, various look outs and walking tracks. If you are only in Quito for a few days then we would both recommend it as it’s a great way to view the city from above and see it from a different view.

From there, we decided to do a DIY mission to Mitad Del Mundo – the centre of the world and location of the equator line in Ecuador. There are so many tours that will take you there ranging from $12.50USD - $30USD pp and that’s without the entrance fee $5USD pp to the ‘attraction’ itself. As we are saving cash and on a budget, we opted for neither and winged it.
From the road leading to the TelefériQo we decided to catch a local bus for 40c each which would take us to the town of Mitad Del Mundo. If you can speak Spanish and don’t mind being on a mega cramped bus for over an hour then this is the way to do it! Upon arrival a couple of minutes walk got us there safe and sound.
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Some info about the spot  - La Mitad del Mundo (“the middle of the world”) is 22km north of Quito and was designated the official equator line by 18th Century geographer and mathematician Charles-Marie de La Condamine. After living in New Zealand for so long it was interesting to experience the real ‘Middle Earth’. Overall, it’s very touristy, no one is very patient when it comes to photos so each photo you take will have you and 100 other tourists in it but yet it was great to tick off the list. There are a variety of eateries, gift shops and other tings to do there but essentially it took us 2 hours and that included lunch – a beautiful ‘Alemuerzos’ priced at $5USD pp which was great for a tourist attraction.

​We took plenty of photos, even managed 1 of just the 2 of us from me screaming at Leo ‘ Go now, there’s no one here’ …quite a mission. On the way back, we both felt like shit. There is 2 options, you can either catch the same bus for 40c to the bus station Ofelia and then catch a tram back into the CBD, or go to the tours transport office where we managed to get a private car and driver for $5USD pp. WINNING!
Our day including both activities, transport and food cost us $43USD so much cheaper than a tour and very easily accessible!