Soaring more than 2,800 metres above sea level, Ecuador’s capital is a city of superlatives, crowned by misty volcanic calderas, touting one of the world’s oldest UNESCO-titles and butting up neatly to the equator at the ‘Middle of the World’ (the monument here that marks 0 latitude).

Ask any Quito tour guide and they’ll tell you to start your visit with a trip to the old town centre, where winding cobbled lanes rub shoulders with grand colonial homes and the aromatic smells of South American coffees issue forth from the multitudes of cafés and bars. Then, it’s off to the museums; from the sprawling galleries of the Casa de la Cultura, to the Museo del Banco Central—the El Dorado of pre-Columbian artworks.

Also, don’t miss a jaunt up the Teleferico cable car, which transports passengers up to the peak of Pichincha to look down on the handsome faces of the Iglesia de la Compania de Jesus, the elegant Plaza Grande and the rugged surrounding hills, where more intrepid types will find hiking trails, biking routes and wildlife spotting galore.