Portoviejo
Ecuador · Americas
About Portoviejo
Portoviejo, also known as San Gregorio de Portoviejo, is a city in Ecuador, and the capital of the Province of Manabí, located about 30 km (19 mi) from the Pacific coast. It is still known as the city of the "Royal Tamarind Trees" due to the former Tamarind plantations in the area.
It serves as the main political and economical centre of the Portoviejo River valley, which also includes the cantons of Santa Ana and Rocafuerte, where about 110 km2 (42 square miles) are cultivated every year.
The city, which was affected by economic crisis in the eighties and nineties, is now recovering but severe budget limitations and a huge unemployment rate present difficulties for local authorities.
Founded on March 12, 1535, it is one of the oldest cities in Ecuador and is the eighth largest of the country.
Portoviejo is important for the cultivation of coffee, cattle and fishing and has a thriving agricultural-processing industry, with good road connections to Quito and Guayaquil.
Founded March 12, 1535, near the coast, by the Spanish captain Francisco Pacheco as "Villa Nueva de San Gregorio de Portoviejo", it was moved inland to its present...
Portoviejo travel guide
Understand
Founded by the Spanish conquistadors in 1535 and the capital of Manabi province, Portoviejo is known for its beautiful royal tamarind trees. The city was badly affected during the 2016 earthquake.
Getting there
There are buses going to Portoviejo from Manta, Quito and Guayaquil.
See
La Rotanda Park, ☏ +593 2-370-0250. (updated May 2018)
Do
1 Crucita Beach. One of Ecuador's best spots for paragliding and kite-surfing. (updated May 2018)
Buy
Portoviejo is famous for kapok mattresses and pillows made from the ceibo seed case and is a good place to buy hammocks. The main street has several stalls selling tagua figures. There is also a large flea market in downtown.
Eat
1 Che Cactus, Avenida Manabi, Sector Los Mangos, ☏ +593 93 999 5954. Rich and meaty Tex-Mex barbecue. (updated May 2018)
Sleep
1 Hotel Ceibo Real, Manabi Avenue and Pio Montufar St, ☏ +593 5 263 22 80, [email protected]. Staff are bilingual in English and Spanish. Single rooms from $65, double rooms from $95. (updated Dec 2018)
Overview adapted from Wikipedia, travel guide fromWikivoyage (CC BY-SA)。Photography via Wikimedia Commons.