Stopover in Guayaquil

Guayaquil is the largest city in Ecuador and became our home for a night before heading to the Galapagos Islands. We had not planned on going to Guayaquil but, when cheap flights to the Galapagos became available, we took up the opportunity. It meant making a stopover in Guayaquil for the night, which we were more than willing to do for the discounted tickets. However, after we purchased our flights from an Australian online travel website, we started to read and hear horror stories about foreigners purchasing tickets that were valid only for Ecuadorian citizens. Online forums reported foreigners arriving at the airport and being whacked with a fee for travelling on the incorrect fare. Immediately, we sought clarification from the travel agency only to be provided with a generic response that failed to answer our query. And still we wait for a competent person to respond to our query. Fingers crossed we aren't fined and we get to our next destination.

Next stop: Galapagos Islands.Read more