Philadelphia to Guayaquil, Ecuador from $369

🌍 About Guayaquil, Ecuador

Guayaquil's odd, wonderful surprise is Parque Seminario downtown, where dozens of wild land iguanas — some over a metre long — lounge on the lawns and paths beside the cathedral, unbothered by the people photographing them. From there it's a short walk to Cerro Santa Ana: 444 painted steps past bars and houses up to a lighthouse with the best view over the Guayas River. Eat encebollado, the tuna-and-yuca soup with pickled red onion and plantain chips that Ecuadorians swear by as a hangover cure; it's a breakfast dish here, not a fancy one. Most travellers pass through on the way to the Galápagos, but a day or two is worth it. Come in the dry season, June to November — warm, low humidity, little rain. December to May is hotter and sticky with heavy afternoon downpours.