Hotsprings and Nature: A Winning Formula at Papallacta

Ecuador’s volcanic peaks provide amazing backdrops to the countryside of the highlands around Quito. But Mother Nature has also gifted Ecuador with an amazing byproduct of all this volcanic activity: hotsprings. There are many spots to enjoy these curative and relaxing gifts of nature, but the most famous and best-equipped are the hotsprings of the Papallacta Thermal Spa and Resort, located a mere 40 miles east of the capital, this year celebrating 15 years as a business.

Papallacta Thermal Spa and Resort has proved a remarkably successful business in Ecuador. It has expanded from its beginnings as a humble ‘municipal’ baths to the country’s foremost thermal spring complex, offering a wide range of services, from thermoludic therapies, a hotel, restaurant, convention centre and nature trails.

Located up in the Andean highlands at some 3,300 metres (nearly 11,000 feet) above sea level, the management of the company has been very aware of the fragile ecosystem of their base, and their impact upon it. The large Cayambe-Coca Ecological Reserve (914,270 acres or 3,700 km2), for instance, is adjacent to the complex, and is one of Ecuador’s most biodiverse protected areas (its wetland zone was named as a special Ramsar site in 2006).
For this reason, Papallacta has been at the forefront of implementing best practices, constantly improving not only its services and infrastructure, but also its environmental and social management policies. In 2005, for example, the company became the first in the Quito Metropolitan District to be awarded the Smart Voyager certification (www.smartvoyager.org) for best practices in tourism and has worked closely with the NGO Rainforest Alliance on sustainable tourism initiatives in the Amazon Basin. It will also soon be ISO 9001-2008 certified.


The company created its own non-profit foundation, Fundacion Terra, in 1999, which organizes environmental education initiatives in the surrounding communities and various ecological projects, such as ‘El Exploratorio’ a 250-hectare area dedicated to highlighting the fragility and importance of the high Andean ecosystem. On the medical front, the Ecuadorian Medical Federation certifies that the thermal waters of Termas de Papallacta have medicinal properties with wide-ranging health benefits.

Looking ahead, Papallacta is seeking to become ever-more self-sufficient. It will soon begin building its own micro-hydroelectric installation, and will increase the area dedicated to producing organic vegetables and greens.

The formula at Papallacta of “health, recreation, adventure and rest” has proved popular with both national and international visitors. These can enjoy a day out from Quito, with various massages and therapeutic treatments (body treatments with medicinal Andean mud, baths in the Thermal Cave,  Volcanic hot-stone massages, pressure massages, aromatherapy or therapeutic massages, or face and body treatments, for example), lunch and walks amid the mountain trails. But staying the night at the complex is really an experience not to be missed, with the chance of soaking in the hotsprings while the clouds and stars play hide-and-seek in the night skies above. In fact, any guest who spends a day at the complex soon wishes they had dedicated more time to staying there. Be warned – book your three-night package now!