The Secret Garden in Cotopaxi Ecuador
the secret garden @ cotopaxi
HANDS DOWN
the coolest
MOST charming
and most unique
hostel I stayed at
in ALL
of Latin America
This place is so much more than a hostel... it is a whole experience.
All I wanted to do when I got to Ecuador was to be at peace high in the Andes Mountains. The Secret Garden provided me with all I had hoped for and more...
The views
The hostel is located in the Cotopaxi region of Ecuador, with a direct view of the active Cotopaxi volcano. Snow capped mountains, miles of green, wild horses, llamas, colorful flowers and an active volcano were all visible at every turn. Seriously these views could not be beat! Waking up here everyday, sipping on my coffee and taking this all in.. was heaven.
The Hostel Included in your stay is delicious breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and unlimited coffee or tea. As well as two hikes, one to a waterfall and one to a summit with another killer view. There are a mixture of accommodations to choose from. Including dorm rooms, tents, and private accommodations such as a hobbit house and this cute little yellow house named 'The Playhouse.'
The play house is where Denise and I called home for the three days we spent here. It lived up to its name!
By design, there is not a lot of free space in the rooms and NO wifi. This causes everyone to gather in the common space in the main house to socialize. The wood burning fireplace, comfy couches and constant supply of hot tea make this place feel like home. It is seriously so cozy.
You eat all of your meals with the other guests and there is a continuous supply of DANGEROUSLY DELICIOUS banana bread. I have 0 self-control and 100% spoiled all of my appetite for lunch and dinner with this banana bread. But it's not my fault. It was irresistible.
The Activities As I mentioned above, included in your three-day/two night stay is two guided hikes. On the afternoon you arrive one of the employees takes you on a short but lovely hike through the forest to a waterfall. The second being a full day hike to summit Pasochoa. I could not stop staring at our guide, feeling like I definitely had seen him somewhere before. I mentioned this to him and we were able to piece together that we went to the same Spanish school in Guatemala and even got paired to dance with each other during a salsa dancing lesson. Hahaa! It continues to amaze me how small the world proved to be. If you are feeling a bit more adventurous you can opt to hike the Cotopaxi volcano, or spend the day horse back riding through the mountains. These activities cost extra, but I chose to overcome my slightly irrational fear of horses...
THE HORSES I had only ridden a horse once before, at age 11. All I remember is the horse getting spooked and trying to buck me off. Since then I had never had the desire or real opportunity to get back on a horse. I came to the secret garden with Denise, but my friends Miles and Ricky were able to meet up with us here too and they were down to ride horses with me for the day!
Miles and Ricky are from Australia, and one of the most entertaining duos. They are absolutely ridiculous and SO much fun to be around. I met and spent a few weeks with them in Guatemala at Spanish school. While there I went on a crazy weekend road trip with them out to the coast of Guatemala and I swore to them I would blog about it and never did... one days guys I promise!
Back to the horses...
I DID IT.
And yes it was still scary. But it was so worth it. The scenery was beautiful. We came across hundreds of wild horses along the way and they were absolutely majestic in every way. Towards the end the guide let us go as fast as we wanted... Holy shit, my horse took off so fast! I had my go pro video going and the camera immediately flipped upside down as the horse took off. I cannot even watch the video it's so jumpy it would make anyone nauseous. Luckily Miles and Ricky were great on horses and able to walk me through all of it. For real would not have been comfortable without them, thanks guys!
The relaxation
Okay one thing that has taken me far to long to mention...
THE JACUZZI!!
At the top of the hill the secret garden has a little glass lodge built with a steaming hot jacuzzi.
Its paradise and was a fabulous way to wind down each day with a beer or wine in hand. Or be like Denise.. :)
OVERALL
This place was freaking awesome. I would return here in a heart beat. The staff was fabulous, the food was delicious, the ambiance was perfect and the scenery could not be beat. ALSO...
The front yard of the Secret Garden property was full of all sorts of characters just paroozing around...
The only mistake Denise and I made... was booking the cute little play house. It didn't have the fireplaces the other rooms had, leaving us pretttty cold at night. We both left with colds..
Sooo.. pro tip: book the dorm room Second pro tip: When in Quito stay in the sister hostel of the same name. The hostel provides a free shuttle from Secret Garden Quito to Secret Garden Cotopaxi.
In true Denise and I fashion, we had to find our own way out to this little slice of heaven.
Some of the most memorable times on this whole adventure have been with Denise. First we chicken bussed our way through El Salvador before meeting up again in Ecuador. Marking the second country Denise and I have taken by storm, and spoiler alert... it isn't the last!
Our first stop in Ecuador was the Quilotoa Loop, then here in Cotopaxi.
Now, on to Denise and I's next Ecuadorian adventure..
Swinging to the end of the world in Baños !
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