The capital of Carchi Province, Tulcan, just six kilometers [four miles] from the Colombian border, is a transit point for travelers going to and from Colombia. The town was a thriving smuggling center until a free trade agreement in 1992. Now it has become a shopping center for Colombians whose stronger currency make goods here less expensive than in their own country. Some drug smuggling goes through the town, giving it a higher than average crime rate and making the streets unsafe at night. It isn't a great town for hotels and restaurants so there's not much point in staying overnight unless you get stuck in transit.

|Article contributed by Dominic Hamilton|||