Bridging Cultures: The Role of Indigenous Populations in our Travel Experiences

At Cuenca Bestours, we believe in the importance of implementing sustainable practices both in our tours and behind the scenes. Thus far, we have focused our efforts on collaborating and building relationships with local and indigenous people from the Ecuadorian Andes and Amazon regions. We are firmly convinced that this benefits both of the communities and the visitors.  Our aim is to increase awareness on the diverse indigenous populations in our country and provide opportunities for those people to share their traditions, customs, beliefs and more.

Traditionally dressed Indigenous woman near Quilotoa walking in the mountains with her baby

How do we engage with them?

The manner in which we engage with communities during the tours varies per community, however, it is most common for the indigenous and local people to showcase their traditional art and provide workshops. Our tours therefore include among others workshops given by the Tigua painters in the Quilotoa Region and workshops given by local artists of the artisan villages of Gualaceo and Chordeleg. We strongly believe that every population in Ecuador has something unique and distinctive, which is why we aim to provide a platform for these communities to express their identity and share their artistry, which they’ve passed on from many generations.

Our Experiences engaging with Indigenous Populations

Tours engaging with indigenous and local cultures