Should You Go to Quito?, Quito, Ecuador (B)

‘What? Why?’ I demanded in frustration. After a long day of travel, I felt hungry enough to eat my fingers.

Minutes earlier, as my taxi pulled up in front of the hotel, I had noticed that the street was empty. Now, looking at the selection of snacks in the glass cabinet beside the reception desk, I had to accept a harsh reality. My food choices were some packets of nuts, a few bars of chocolate and mineral water. It was going to be a long and hungry night. My trip to Ecuador was clearly getting off to a flying start (not!).

Pick-pocketing, robbery, and hotel room theft are the most common crimes. Tourists have been robbed at gunpoint on beaches and along hiking trails. Passengers arriving at the Quito and Guayaquil airports have also been targets of armed robberies.

The advice then goes on to mention a few more minor issues such as theft on public transport, express kidnappings at ATMs, carjackings, sexual assault, violent assault, and the use of ‘incapacitating drugs’. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).