Measured by square mile, Ecuador is the most biodiverse country on the planet. Few other countries can pack its ecological punch, which results from the huge range of habitats created by its mountainous Andean geography and its location on the Equatorial Line.

Nature-based activities and lodging have been Ecuador’s most successful tourism product.  They have experienced extraordinary growth over the last decade. As a consequence, the country has been at the forefront of ecotourism and community-tourism development in Latin America. The Ministry of Tourism’s “Plandetur 2020” is set to build on this experience and know-how, with a firm emphasis on sustainable tourism in all its multifarious forms.

Ecuador’s Amazon lodges are among the most famous in the Basin, garnering various awards over the last decade, including British Airways’ Tourism for Tomorrow Awards, while operators in the famed Galápagos Islands six hundred miles offshore in the Pacific – regarded as the archetypal ‘nature tourism’ destination – have won plaudits for their eco-conscious operations.

“Ecuador has taken the initiative in sustainable tourism in Latin America. There are dozens of interesting examples of model private and community projects across the country’s four regions,” says Patricio Gaybor of the Ecuadorian Ecotourism Association (ASEC). “Business and communities are every day more aware that an inclusively- and responsibly-managed tourism industry will bring benefits, whether economic, social or in conservation, in the long term.”

The most successful and widespread scheme to date in the Galápagos is the “SmartVoyager” Certification, established in 2000 by the Ecuadorian NGO Conservación y Desarollo in partnership with the New York-based Rainforest Alliance. The certification aims to implement ‘best practices’ in the tourism industry.

Best practices ensure that the least possible impact is caused, that tourist product quality and image are improved, that business development becomes more efficient, and therefore, social and economic development does as well. The projects are set to improve the quality of life for local residents, reduce the ecological impacts of tourism, give tour operators a means to contribute directly to the local economy and to the environment, as well as giving travellers a chance to help people and wildlife while visiting natural treasures.

Due to the success of the SmartVoyager scheme, the Rainforest Alliance and Conservación y Desarrollo expanded it to include the Ecuadorian mainland as well as Latin America and the Caribbean. In partnership with ASEC, which helps businesses with technical expertise and management practices on their road to certification, the program is set to certify some 90 businesses in Ecuador in the coming years.

In the Quito region, the Termas de Papallacta thermal spring complex, located just over an hour’s drive east of Quito, was the first establishment to receive the coveted SmartVoyager title, in 2007. “We decided to get certification because we are very conscious of the fragility of the area in which our hot springs operate. Our business is founded on a natural resource, so we have to protect it,” said Jaime Pallares, General Operations Manager.

“We were also keen to ensure the long-term sustainability of our business and the jobs we have created in the area. The SmartVoyager certification has set us firmly on a cycle of continuous improvement, as well as bringing down our operating costs, in water and energy use, for example, but also in warehousing. Our business is more profitable now, and we feel our ‘certified’ image is a reflection of the high quality of services we provide our guests, and will continue to do so into future.”

To date, fifty other businesses – ranging from Galapagos yachts, hacienda-hotels, urban hotels, cloudforest lodges to highland inns – have achieved certification.

These include, in the Quito Metropolitan District, the Hotel Patio Andaluz and Hotel Real Audencia in the Old Town, and the Hotel Le Parc in the financial district.

In the Mindo-Nambillo region to the northwest of the capital you have Bellavista Cloudforest Reserve, El Encanto, Santa Lucía, Septimo Paraiso, Kaony Lodge, and Sachatamia.

In the Otavalo and Ibarra area to the north of Quito, you find Hacienda Cusín, Las Palmeras Inn, Hostería Pantaví, Hacienda Zuleta, and Polylepis Lodge.

To the south of Quito, around the Cotopaxi volcano, establishments include Tierra del Volcán and Tambopaxi.
The capital and its surrounding countryside is well on the way to improving the quality of the services it offers, while assuring environmental and social responsibility for the future.

Find out more about the SmartVoyager certification scheme at www.ccd.org.ec
Ecuadorian Ecotourism Association (ASEC) www.ecoturismo.org.ec

Links to certified or on-course establishments:

QUITO M.D.
Termas de Papallacta Thermal Spa & Resort www.termaspapallacta.com
Patio Andaluz www.patioandaluz.com
Real Audiencia  www.realaudiencia.com
Le Parc www.leparc.com.ec 

EASTERN area:
Termas de Papallacta www.papallacta.com.ec

OTAVALO area:
Hacienda Cusin and Las Palmeras Inn www.haciendacusin.com
Hacienda Zuleta www.zuleta.com
Hostería Pantaví www.hosteriapantavi.com

COTOPAXI area:
Tierra del Volcan www.tierradelvolcan.com
Hacienda Hato Verde www.haciendahatoverde.com
Quilotoa Crater Lodge www.quilotoalodge.com    
Black Sheep Inn www.blacksheepinn.com
Tambopaxi www.tambopaxi.com

MINDO/CLOUDFOREST area:
La Rinconada (Pululahua crater) crateraventura@yahoo.com
Bellavista www.bellavistacloudforest.com