Puerto Lopez is a pleasant small fishing village set in a arched bay, with some 16,000 inhabitants. Towards the north of the beach is very nice and clean, away from the fleet of fishing boats. Unfortunately Puerto Lopez has not yet been fully developed for tourists.
Places to visit.
This is the nearest town from where you can visit the
Machalilla National Park and
Isla de la Plata [US$30
* per person plus park's fee].
Note: most tour operators offer whale-watching tours, snorkeling excursions. There are several other operators "cheaters" on this business, so make sure you deal with the ones recommended by other tourists. And also, never pay everything upfront and always ask for a receipt.
More information about
Machalilla National Park is found at Eloy Alfaro and Garcia Moreno streets.
Things to do. Many tourists come to Puerto Lopez between June and September for whale
watching tours, though this is not the nearest location to do so. But, is a cheap option to the
Galapagos islands. There is
snorkeling and many other things to do in the
Machalilla National Park.
Note: Whales can be seen from many other locations in Ecuador in shorter trips and with much better conditions.
Places to eat. The specialty of the region is "Corviche caliente" [
dough made of flour and banana, stuffed with salty fish], a local delicacy served hot.
Getting there. There is a frequent
bus service to and from
Quito [
US$12*, 11 hours]. To
Guayaquil [
31/2 hours, US$3*] with
Coactur,
Reina del Camino and
Rutas Portovejenses. To
Manta with
CITM [
2 hours, US$2*]. To
Portoviejo [
1 hour]. To
Manglaralto [
11/2 hours, US$2*].
*The prices are approximately
