Roaming South America

Catamayo: Why Ecuador’s Sunniest Valley is My Top Pick

February 15, 2026

Catamayo, Ecuador, home to about 35,000, or 18,000, or 27,000, depending on where you find the data, and probably whether they include the nearby farmland in the valley. So, my guess is the first, around 35,000. This was my 4th visit to Catamayo, so yeah, I like this town. Catamayo is located about 18 kilometres (11 mi) west of Loja. Now, Loja is cold. Catamayo sits much lower and has a much better, ie warmer, climate. The entire country has an elevation range of 500 to 1700 meters (1640 to 5577 feet). Where I'm sitting, in a hotel at the main central park of Catamayo, the elevation is 1279 meters (4196 feet).

I've written a couple of other blogs about Catamayo, they include the history and so on, so I won't go into that in this blog.
Previous blogs:
On August 12, 2025 I wrote this blog.
September 2, 2023, this blog.
January 8, 2023, this blog.

I've read other blogs about Catamayo, and just about every one of them gives you information that is not about Catamayo, but rather - Loja. For example: Botanical Gardens - in Loja, not Cata; Jipiro Park is in Loja, not Catamayo; Rio Catamayo for a relaxing walk is not close to the town, it's far enough away that you'll need a taxi to get to it. So, what will you find in town? The market (mercado) and the streets around it are loaded with vendors on weekends, which is always interesting to visit. The plaza/central park is nice, quiet, and relaxing. Around it are: the cathedral, and on two sides are two bus terminals (small, not obtrusive). One has buses going north, the other has buses going west. There are buses going to other directions, but they generally stop alongside the road and also at the park. There are several small bakeries/coffee shops, a couple of ice cream shops, a couple of hotels, and a couple of banks. There's no shortage of ATMs here. Just be aware that they give bills of $20, so you'll need to go into a bank and have them changed down to 5s and 10s.

Hot water or not

Note: finding a hotel with hot water in this part of Ecuador is almost impossible. Oh, when you ask if they have hot water, they'll say Yes, of course. But what they have is a large water tank on the roof that gets warm on sunny days. If there are a few cloudy days, the water is quite cold. They do not have actual heaters, not electric, not gas, not solar. So, don't get upset if you don't have hot water and they said they do, they do have - occasionally.

Gastronomy

Restaurants. There are many, and most of them have one particular item on their menu - cecina. Cecina is a thin slice of pork that is marinated in seasoning and grilled. It was invented by Doña Tarcila Bejarano about 50 years ago. And I can tell you - it is delicious! There is one street in particular where almost every business is a restaurant specializing in cecin. The street is Av. Catamayo between Av. Isidro Ayoro and Calle Mercadillo. This block is at the central park. If you visit Catamayo, you have to order the Cecina. I ate at Cecinas Mary, the owners speak English. There's also Cecina Mary's, I don't know if they are related. But they're both on that same block.

There's also a new "patio de comidas" - a place with several restaurants and a bar in one open patio. There's a restaurant that serves Mexican food (of a sort), another with food of Beirut (and the guys working there are from that part of the world), and a milkshake shop (delicious shakes, I stopped there twice). And if you're with a friend, a sunken foosball table. The Ecuador photo album.

My Impressions

I like this town. It's quiet, has pretty much everything you need, and, if necessary, Loja is just a short bus ride up the hill, about an hour. With one more town to visit (which I haven't visited yet), Catamayo is my favorite town in Ecuador. If I were to choose to live in Ecuador, it would be here in Catamayo.