Otavalo Marketplace
- Address:Otavalo
- Hours:Open daily
- Admission:Free
Otavalo Marketplace Reviews
We've found 26 Otavalo Marketplace reviews from Viator.com travelers and members: what they loved, what they liked and what they think could be improved. It's all here to help you make the most of your next trip.
The guide was very knowledgable and helpful. Also, the bus was air conditioned and comfortable. The trip was on a day with heavy traffic and we spent over 4 hours getting back. We spent more time on the bus than at the actual markets. I felt rushed at the markets, which was the whole point of the trip. If I were to go on a normal day, without so much traffic, I think I would have enjoyed the tour more. One more thing...buying the package with the lunch is more expensive than just buying it once you get to the resturant.
This tour was quite disappointing compared to our other Viator experiences.
Firstly, our scheduled 8 hour tour took over 10 hours and we almost missed an evening engagement with the rest of our travel group. Too much time allowed at shopping sites - the Otavalo Market (1.5 hours to visit too many similar stalls selling not so artisan goods and 1.75 hours checking out a street with leather stores as well as allowing time for lunch - which was quite good albeit in a tourist oriented restaurant). The food section of the market was very traditional, interesting and tasty!
Washroom breaks on the bus ride were well spaced and appreciated.
Our tour group consisted of 20 passengers and Roberto, our guide, had half English and half Spanish speaking clients. I do understand a bit of Spanish and understand enough that when there is a 3 minutes explanation about a site or bit of history in Spanish and the English version takes but 30 seconds - the Anglophone version was missing some interesting points. In some cases he would not offer an English version unless asked - a specific example being his explanation of typical foods of a region in Spanish and only when asked did the English version come forward.
As noted previously, my wife and I have enjoyed 2 previous Viator tours - I would not recommend this tour as a one day venture to 'experience' Equadorian culture outside of Quito.
The central market in Quito has all the same items and could be accessed more readily PLUS there were many stores that specialize had much higher quality and variety of clothing and handicraft goods including items from many South American countries.
This was a well orgainized trip with frequent stops and enough time for shopping at several places. a great way to see the country side as well as Otavalo.
totally enjoyed this trip. Roberto was an excellent guide - very informative. We were given plenty of time to enjoy shopping in Otavalo. I would definately recommend this trip to anyone.
Salome was our guide and she was excellent. There were several interesting stops along the way which enhanced our visit to Otavalo. More time in Otavalo would be a good idea. We had 1.5 hours - maybe should be 2. We wondered why there was no stop when we crossed the equator. all in all a good trip and recommended.
While the drive was pleasant your photograph of the market was totally misleading. We expected to go to a fresh produce market and instead we were taken to a craft market for tourists. We didn't want lunch so we were left to look after ourselves for three hours in a town with very little to look at.
Our guide was poor and gave little information of value for the day and his time keeping was poor. In summary the day was a complete waste of time..leaving the hotel at 8.20am and not getting back until 7.10pm
"Horrible Service! Almost an Hour Late Picking Up! BEWARE!!"
My boyfriend and I booked the Saturday Otavalo Market tour through viator.com nearly a week before the actual tour date. When we booked the tour we were informed that we had to contact the tour operator to arrange the exact time for hotel pickup. On the Sunday before travel we began emailing the company to arrange hotel pickup. We received no response. We followed up again on Wednesday to arrange for hotel pickup. It wasn't until Thursday evening that the company emailed us back saying that they would let us know by Friday at 6:00 pm of the pickup time. Guess what? Friday at 6:00 pm we still hadn't received a response. In fact, it wasn't until well after midnight that we received a pickup time from the company (note, we didn't see the email until after we had awakened Saturday morning). The email indicated that hotel pickup was supposed to be at 7:40 that morning. We quickly got ready, and headed to the lobby to wait on the driver and guide.
Long story short, the guide didn't arrive at the hotel until 8:36 am - 56 MINUTES LATE!!! We emailed the tour operator numerous times that morning to determine the status, and only once did they respond. I think they told us the guide was in a "car accident." However, by the end of the day we had heard three different explanations: car accident, traffic, and flat tire. Not sure what story or combination of stories was true.
Because the guide was so late we, of course, didn't have time to complete the entire itinerary. We completely skipped Peguche, which left me extremely disappointed.
I would not recommend booking this tour. The Tour Operator is extremely unprofessional and their representatives/guides lack necessary customer service skills.
Very good. Lots to see en route also. Market great fun, wish we had more time there instead of Cotaccachi leather area. Perhaps Peguche water falls could be a trip addition?
This tour was one of the highlights of our trip to Ecuador! The pick up was right on time, the bus was clean and well maintained. We got to stop off at a few spots along the way and see the beautiful mountains which were breathtaking!! The trip to Otavalo included a woman from Otavalo who sang for us and explained her native costume to us. We had plenty of time to shop around at the market and purchased a lot of really nice items.
Despite the fantastic places to the itinerary, this was a very disappointing experience due to the poor conception and logistics of the tour. We were put in a very large bus with over 120 people (this is just unacceptable considering the location, logistics and number of places to visit). We lost several hours just hotel pick ups. With so many people, there were a group of guests who were constantly and significantly late (up to 40 minutes in each stop), translating into at least a quarter of the time just waiting in the bus for others. The guide was rather unfriendly and stressed, helpful only when pressed. This is a pity because he was obviously knowledgeable and experienced. The first two stops in Quito (particularly Calderon) are only mildly interesting and they take away critical time from the true interesting stops in Otavalo. We barely had about an hour in the most important and most interesting stop (the Otavalo market) out of an exhausting, frustrating and poorly organized 12 hour marathon. This is rarely outrageous. If I had known this, I would not have taken this tour at all and would have paid a bit more for a private arrangement. Bottom line: This was a stressful and sadly disappointing 12-hour tourist shopping tour in appalling conditions that provides a ridiculous amount of time for the truly interesting and supposedly primary objective of the tour (The Otavalo indigenous market).
It was OK. If you only want to go to experience the market, there is a similar market containing items from all of the areas around Quito including Otavalo in Quito at La Mariscal. I would skip Otavalo and just go there. There is a nice scenic stop on the way and a little stop at town that specializes in leather. I would have preferred to spend more time enjoying the Andes along the way and then spend time in the Otavalo village itself and end it with a stop at the market instead of what it was, a chance to get tourist to shop
Fantastic marketplace, the best place for souvenirs of Ecuador. I got really cool carved gourds and traditional Ecuadorian animal masks as well as some woven jewelry. I wasn't brave enough to eat some of the street food, but my husband had some great grilled corn. It takes hours to see the whole market at Otavalo, but well worth it for mixing with the mestizo people and selecting some great crafts.
Could have stayed all day!
Very knowledgeable guide. Thank you Roberto.
excellent tour. knowlegable & personable tour guide. Roberto was the greatest!
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