Quito Historic Center

Quito Historic Center is the biggest patrimonial set of Latin America, contains around 130 monumental buildings and more than 5.000 buildings registered as historical patrimony; for this reason, it was declared Cultural Patrimony of the Humanity by UNESCO in 1978. "The nomination was based on the ensemble of the Quiteño Historical Center, considered sui generis and harmonic for the time, where the actions of man and nature came together to create a transcendental work.

Quito Historic Center Activities

Quito Historic Center has around 17 museums and 24 churches, convents and monasteries.

• How to get to the Historic Center of Quito? You can get there by taxi, bus, trolley or car.
• By trolleybus you must take Circuit C1.
• In Ecovía you must take the E1 Circuit.
• Address of the Historical Center of Quito: South Center of the city of Quito, García Moreno.

Quito Historic Center Tourism

The best tourist places in Quito to visit in the Historical Center of Quito, you will be able to enjoy from a delicious gastronomy to cultural acts of the Quiteños.

• El Panecillo
• La Ronda
• Calle de las siete cruces (Street of the Seven Crosses)

Historic Center Churches

Quito historic center churches are architectural jewels, many of them were built more than a hundred years ago and therefore are important because they have survived the changes over time, besides being a great delight to the eye, if you decide to enter each of the churches you can see large images captured in their ceilings and walls, cement figures that adorn their facades, every detail that covers each of the churches is very valuable.

• The Basilica of the National Vote
• The Metropolitan Cathedral of Quito
• El Sagrario Church
• Company of Jesus Church
• Church of San Francisco
• Church of Santo Domingo
• Church and Convent of La Merced
• Church and Monastery of La Concepción
• Santa Barbara Church
• San Roque Church
• The Robbery Chapel
• El Tejar Church, Convent and Cemetery
• Church of San Agustín
• Good Shepherd Church
• San Sebastián Church
• Santa Catalina Church and Monastery
• Santa Clara Church and Monastery
• San Juan Church and Monastery
• Carmen Bajo Church and Monastery

Quito Historic Center Museums

Most of Quito's museums are located in the Historic Center, here you can have a culture-filled experience where you can learn from the oldest currency to the most important character in Ecuador, beautiful and wonderful works of art, is really a lot to know.

• City Museum
• Wax Museum
• Benalcázar House Museum
• Casa de Sucre Museum
• Camilo Egas Museum of the Central Bank
• National Museum of History of Medicine
• María Augusta Urrutia House Museum
• Museo Miguel de Santiago del Convento de San Agustín (Miguel de Santiago Museum of the Convent of San Agustín)

Squares of Quito Historic Center

The squares of the historical center are outdoors and are places where you can go to appreciate the architecture, culture and traditions of Quito, for example if in an afternoon you decide to go for a walk by the big square you will be able to see acts with puppets or people realizing monologues, people who play and sing folkloric music, articles of sale own of Quito, delicious popular gastronomy in our city like the espumillas, empanas, colaciones, etc. Also the squares are known because it is possible to be observed groups of old people taking the sun and giving crumbs of bread to the pigeons, animals that are part of the attraction since they are in great quantity.

• Sucre Square and Theatre
• Santo Domingo Square and Convent
• Plaza Grande and Independence Monument
• San Francisco Square
• San Marcos Square and Church
• San Blas Square
• Plazoleta La Marín
• San Diego Square and Convent

Historic Center Architecture

In the colonial quarter there is still architectural infrastructure from the colonial period, which is included in the city's heritage inventories.

• Carondelet Palace or Government Palace
• Arzobispal Passage and Palace
• The Queen's Arch
• Metropolitan Cultural Center
• Casa de las Tres Manuelas (House of the Three Manuelas)