Quito, Ecuador’s capital, is set only a few miles from the equator, at just a notch under 10,000 feet, a combination that gives it one of the most salubrious climates on earth. Its highlands, north and south of Quito, are beguilingly beautiful: almost flourescently green forests and farmlands punctuated by massive volcanoes whose glaciated slopes shine in the high, clear air. Cotopaxi (19,388 feet) is often billed as the world’s highest active volcano, and while that designation is slightly dubious, it is unquestionably one of the most perfect volcanic cones on the planet. (And the summit of 20,555-foot Chimborazo, the country’s gargantuan highpoint, has the distinction of being, due to the earth’s equatorial bulge, the point on earth furthest from the center of the earth.)

The charming villages and towns that bask in the shadows of these great peaks are inhabited by Andean folk whose fascinating cultures and history and present-day welcoming spirit, make travel in Ecuador a delight.