Fodor's Ecuador

Ecuador is the third-largest foreign supplier of crude oil to the western United States. As the source of this oil, the Ecuadorian Amazon has borne the far-reaching social and environmental consequences of a growing U.S. demand for petroleum and the dynamics of economic globalization it necessitates.

Climb the snow-capped peak of Volcán Chimborazo, the most distant point from the center of the Earth. Get up close and personal with capuchin monkeys in the central plaza of Misahuallí. Step back in time at Ingapirca, Ecuador's finest example of Inca architecture. Take in the surf scene on the south coast. Sophisticated cities, glaciated volcanoes, the lush Amazon Basin – our inimitable guide gives you access to all the treasures of exotic Ecuador and the Galápagos Islands.

Since the 1980s, Ecuador has seen five indigenous uprisings, the emergence of the powerful Pachakutik political movement and the strengthening of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador and the Associations of Black Ecuadorians, all of which have contributed substantially to a new constitution proclaiming the country to be "mulitethnic and multicultural". Furthermore, January 2003 saw the inauguration of a new populist president, who immediately appointed two indigenous persons to his cabinet.

Since the 1980s, Ecuador has seen five indigenous uprisings, the emergence of the powerful Pachakutik political movement and the strengthening of the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador and the Associations of Black Ecuadorians, all of which have contributed substantially to a new constitution proclaiming the country to be "mulitethnic and multicultural"…