Huaquillas Warning

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No photos here....just tried to get the heck out of this place as fast as we could, and it wasn´t fast enough. So fellow travelers beware, and be very prepared if you must cross the Peruvian/Ecuadorian border here.

We decided to cross here because we thought it would be the fastest way to get from Peru, to Vilcambamba, Ecuador even though other border crossings aren´t as notorious. Unfortunately, the travel schedules weren´t accurate, and scams and thieves definitely abound here.

We had to spend the night in Tumbes, Peru on November 14th. We arrived at the airport around 6pm, only to be told by a lying, conniving taxi driver that there would be a major strike that would close down all transportation in the city for 5 days. It sounded way too fishy, so we politely but firmly told him to take us to our hostel. Then he proceeded to tell us how our hostel was basically a rent by the hour sex place. Again, we ignored him, because the guy just oozed sleaze. So we asked several people to confirm his stories and were consistently told he was a lying, scheming cheat that had problems with police. It was the start to a lovely evening!

We check into the hostel, Hostel Chicho, which is run by perfectly nice people. However, there was an old fridge in our room that had some nasty stuff in it, and it attracted lots of cockroaches. Thank goodness for the mosquito net that we used to buffer us from the roaches! Needless to say it wasn´t a pleasant night of sleep, so we got up at 5 am to cross the border and make the supposed 8 am bus to Vilcambamba once we crossed into Peru.


After another misadventure with yet another crooked cabi that we quickly figured out and ditched, we found what was apparently the only honest taxi driver in Tumbes to take us to the border (Aguas Verdes on the Peruvian side, Huaquillas on the Ecuadorian side).

The whole immigration process is really screwy here. You have to get out a couple of miles from the Ecuadorian border, go through Peruvian immigration, get back in the cab, drive to the actual border, walk across the bridge, get into another cab, drive several more miles and then go through Ecuadorian immigration. And all the people that live in Huaquillas seem to be shady, whether it is to take advantage of you when your purchase something or to blatantly rob you. Be very, very careful here, and DO NOT cross here at night or by yourself. Seriously, you feel like the road kill that is being circled by buzzards waiting to pick you off.

MAKE SURE YOU BRING LOTS OF SMALL CHANGE IN U.S. DOLLARS, DO NOT WAIT TO CHANGE MONEY IN HUAQUILLAS!! Even though there are atm´s, they didn´t work for us (we think it might work for Cirrus/mastercard users, but aren´t sure....it definitely won´t work for Visa/Plus customers). There are no money exchange houses, just shady street changers with briefcases. The banks won´t change money, and they can´t do cash advances on credit cards.

Basically, the whole black market system is set up to force you to use the illegal street money changers if you´re in a pinch. And we were in a pinch, because we didn´t that extra $100 we thought we had, and the atm´s didn´t work. So we had to take a chance and change our money on the street to get enough money for a bus ticket out of the place. It was only about $30 worth, but we walked away with a valid $10 bill, and a fake $20 bill (a very good fake too!, but not good enough to fool the locals!).

Fortunately, we had enough to buy a bus ticket to Loja (although we didn´t get to leave until 11:30 am), and there is an atm in the bus terminal in Loja, so we were able to get money, food and a bus ticket to Vilcambaba where we are now happily relaxing. More on Vilcambamba later, but it is a great little place if you want some r&r, including cheap massages and comfy hotels.

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