Ecuador - The Rough Guide to South America on a Budget - page 566

HEALTH
Vaccinations that are recommended
include typhoid, hepatitis A and yellow
fever. Others to consider are hepatitis B
and rabies. Malaria is present (but rare) in
the Oriente and on the northern coast.
Wear long sleeves, light-coloured clothes
and use repellent to avoid mosquito bites.
Malarone is the best anti-malarial
medication, and must be taken daily.
Dengue fever is spread by day-biting
mosquitoes, mainly during the rainy
season, and is an increasing problem in
urban areas on the coast. There is no
vaccine, so seek medical help immediately
if you show symptoms (high fever, aching
limbs, vomiting and diarrhoea).
The most common problem is
travellers' diarrhoea . Minimize risks of
bacterial and parasitic infections by
avoiding bus vendor/street food; also
try to eat in clean restaurants. Tap water,
ice, salad, ice cream, unpeeled fruit and
seafood are common culprits. Eat plenty
of carbohydrates, drink water and pack
oral rehydration and Imodium.
Another common problem is altitude
sickness , which can be dangerous. When
arriving at altitudes over 2000m (most of
the highlands), don't over-exert yourself,
avoid alcohol and don't attempt to climb
mountains without sufficient time to
adjust to the altitude.
Sunburn and sunstroke are also very
common because the equatorial sun is
fiercely strong. Apply sunblock regularly
and don't be fooled by cool temperatures
in the mountains - because of the
altitude, the sun is stronger.
Note Ecuador's health system is poor
and emergency care particularly bad.
Travelling with valid insurance is essential.
If you have an emergency, try to head for
a private hospital. In Quito, Hospital
Metropolitano is good, and in Guayaquil,
Clínica Kennedy has several branches.
Pharmacies will dish out medicines
without prescription, so you are responsible
for knowing what you're taking.

EMERGENCY NUMBERS
Call T 911 for police, fire and ambulance
services.

and the main tourist centres, supply
maps, lists of hotels, restaurants and
sights. The website is a good source of
information. Quito's tourist office is the
best in Ecuador, with a very good website
( W quito.com). Mid-range hotels often
have leaflets and brochures about
surrounding attractions.
El Instituto Geográfico Militar in
Quito, Senierges, at Paz y Miño,
sells topographical maps for $3 and
a giant map of Quito for $10 (bring your
passport as ID to enter the institute).
The best general map of Ecuador is
the 1:1,000,000 International Travel
Maps Ecuador map ( W itmb.com).
There are also maps of the Galápagos
and Quito available.

6

MONEY AND BANKS
Ecuador replaced the plummeting
sucre with the US dollar as its currency
following an economic crisis in 2000.
here are 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 cent and 1
dollar coins. Notes come in 1, 5, 10 and
20 dollars. Avoid 50 and 100 dollar bills,
and even 20 dollar bills cause problems in
small towns. Dollarization has made
Ecuador more expensive but it's still
cheap; you can get by on $25 per day
staying in budget hotels, eating set menus
and taking buses. For $30-40 per day
you get a higher level of accommodation,
restaurants and taxi rides. The climbing,
birdwatching and jungle-trekking tours
push costs up to $50-100 per day.
Carry enough cash for a few days;
a credit card is recommended as backup.
Visa, MasterCard, Cirrus and Maestro are
commonly accepted at ATMs. In larger
agencies, you can pay for tours with
a credit card but you may be charged
five to ten percent more. Note rates of
exchange for currencies outside South
America (eg British pounds) are often
poor, so bring cash and travellers' cheques
in US dollars wherever possible.

INFORMATION AND MAPS
Ministry of Tourism iTur offices
( W ecuador.travel), in provincial capitals