Hostal Alternative

Cuenca


Although it’s a bit removed from the action, this impeccably-kept sparkly hostel (with cleaner-than-Clorox rooms, shared kitchen, TV room and excellent rooftop terrace) has a lot going for it. The modern octagon-shaped building offers small- and medium-size dorm rooms with good mattresses and plenty of space.

The streetfront cafe is a good place for a coffee after a visit to Cuenca's key museum, Museo del Banco Central 'Pumapungo', across the way. The only downside is the noisy traffic outside.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Cuenca attractions

2. Archaeological Park

0.11 MILES

Walk through the extensive ruins of buildings believed to be part the old Incan city of Tomebamba. Thanks to the Spanish conquistadors who carted off most…

3. Inca Ruins

0.24 MILES

A patch of Inca ruins lies near the river, between the east end of Larga and Av Todos los Santos. Most of the stonework was destroyed to build colonial…

4. Museo Manuel Agustín Landivar

0.24 MILES

At the east end of Calle Larga, this museum has archaeological exhibits and tours of the Ruinas de Todos Santos, which reveal Cañari, Inca and Spanish…

5. Puente Roto

0.36 MILES

Most of this bridge, above a pretty stretch of Paseo 3 de Noviembre, was washed away during a flood, but its stone arches make a nice venue for an open…

7. Museo de las Culturas Aborígenes

0.46 MILES

This indigenous culture museum has more than 5000 archaeological pieces representing more than 20 pre-Columbian Ecuadorian cultures going back some 15,000…

8. Church of San Blas

0.5 MILES

The only Cuenca church built in the form of a Latin cross, and one of the city's largest, the Church of San Blas sits at the eastern end of the slightly…