At a first glance, Quito’s bus terminals and public transportation can feel overwhelming. There’s three bus terminals and several options to move across the city.
In this guide, I’ll cover how to travel to reach of Quito’s bus terminals and give you some more insight on how to effectively use public transportation within the city.
An Overview of Quito Public Transportation
Before we talk about Quito’s bus terminals, I think it’s important to discuss the various public transportation options within Quito. These are what you’ll use to reach the bus terminals.
Metro
Quito has a metro and it’s very handy when you can use it. The problem with the metro is that it currently does not run the entire length of the city. Plans are underway to expand it all the way to the northern point of the city, but so far, the metro only runs between Terminal Quitumbre in the south to the middle of the city.
The metro costs 45 cents per ride. Tickets can be bought at machines in the station, but you must have exact change. If you try to insert 50 cents for a 45 cent ticket, the coin will reject. If you don’t have exact change, you can join the line to purchase a ticket from the ticket office. These lines can get long, so be prepared.
Trolebus
The trolebus is an express bus in Quito. These buses have dedicated bus lanes and only stop at designated areas. The lanes run in the middle of the street so it’s pretty obvious which bus is a trolebus and which is a traditional public bus.
With the trolebuses, you’ll wait on a platform. To get to the platform, you’ll buy your ticket from a worker who will give you a ticket that allows you to enter the platform. From there, just wait until your bus arrives.
The trolebus costs 35 cents and you can get change when you purchase your ticket.
Public Buses
Public buses crisscross the city of Quito and drivers will let you get on and off virtually anywhere along the route. The good news is that these buses are cheap. The bad news is that unlike the trolebus, these buses don’t have their own bus lanes and can get stuck in traffic.
Buses cost 35 cents per ride and it’s not uncommon to have a separate worker on the bus whose job it is is to collect money from the passengers. If there isn’t a worker, just pay the driver. While it’s appreciated if you have exact change, it’s not a necessity. Just don’t try to pay with big bills and try to have coins instead.
Taxis/Ubers
For longer journeys, a taxi or Uber will be the best choice. This is particularly true when you’re traveling with a lot of luggage. While I brought my luggage on the metro (technically large luggage is not allowed), I decided that I didn’t want to deal with all of my luggage on the bus.
Taxis roam the city and you can use them, but for convenience, I chose to use Uber. Note that if you’re taking longer journeys, you may have to wait for a driver. On my journey from the historic center to Terminal Ofelia and my journey from Terminal Ofelia to my airport hotel, I had my first driver cancel on me. I was eventually reconnected to another driver, but I had to wait a bit longer than the app first anticipated. For those longer journeys, try to call an Uber a bit earlier than you think.
Quito Bus Terminals
In my opinion, one of the most annoying things was trying to figure out how to navigate to the bus terminals around Quito. Of course you could just take a taxi, but for those on a budget, you’ll want to rely on public transportation. I never found a great online resource outlining how best to reach these bus terminals, so I decided to put one together myself.
Quitumbre/Quito South
You’ll use Quitumbre Bus Station for all destinations heading south of Quito, making it a popular station since it serves so many destinations.
Of all of the bus stations in Quito, Terminal Quitumbre is the easiest bus terminal to reach because it’s connected to Quito’s metro line. It’s the southern most stop on the metro, so all you need to do is get on the metro and you’ll make it to the station.
For those arriving in Quito from another city in Ecuador by bus, you can go straight from your bus to the metro. The San Francisco and Alameada stations are right near the historical center.
Ofelia/Quito North
Terminal Ofelia is one of Quito’s north terminals. While there are more destinations, the most popular destinations served by Terminal Ofelia is Mindo and Mitad del Mundo.
To reach Terminal Ofelia, I’d first suggest taking the metro to the northern most station. This will get you part of the way. Then at Estacion El Labrador, walk a few blocks and board a Trolebus bound for Terminal Ofelia. I walked to the La Concepcion stop. This bus costs 35 cents and is more economical than a taxi.
For those arriving at Terminal Ofelia, look for signs listed above the platforms to know where to wait. When it doubt, ask a local since it isn’t always completely obvious. Just ask for “metro” and someone should point you in the right direction.
Note that when my friend and I returned from Mitad del Mundo, we only had to pay for the bus once. We paid for a bus at Mitad del Mundo to come to Terminal Ofelia and then were able to transfer directly to our next bus without paying an additional fare. We were assured that everything was fine, but since it was all in Spanish, we didn’t understand all of the details as to why.
Carcelen/Quito North
Terminal Carcelen is where you’ll head for more northern destinations within Ecuador. Otavalo is one of the most popular destinations for tourists. You’ll also find a $2 bus to Quito’s airport, making it the cheapest way to get to the airport.
Like with Terminal Ofelia, you’ll want to take the metro to the northern most station. Then, you’ll want to catch a bus bound for Terminal Carcelen. Follow the signs and walk to the transfer area where you’ll find numerous buses to transfer to.
The other option is to find a local bus to Terminal Carcelen. This is what I did on the way to Terminal Carcelen, but it felt very slow. We traveled early on a Saturday morning so traffic was minimal, but at any other point, I’d recommend taking the metro and bus combination.
Like at Terminal Ofelia, you’ll want to follow the signs at Terminal Carcelen looking for a bus that connects to the metro. My friend and I managed to navigate this by ourselves. If you have to pass a gate where a worker collects your bus fare before you stand on the platform, you’re in great shape.
Final Thoughts
Compared to some other big cities I’ve traveled in, Quito’s transportation felt a bit more confusing than others. I got the hang of it, but still wish I had known more when I traveled to Quito. My hope is that you now have the information to plan a more stress free trip through Quito’s bus terminals.
Continue Your Adventure
Ecuador: Spend one day in Quito, Ecuador’s capital city. From here you can visit Mitad del Mundo to visit the equator, take a day trip to Otavalo, or take a day trip to hike to Cotopaxi Base Camp. Nearby is the town of Mindo which has great nature and the Tarabita Waterfalls. Continue hiking with the three day Quilotoa Loop trek. Baños is an adventure town, but I recommend a jungle tour. Don’t forget Cuenca, which I think is one of the prettiest towns in South America. Learn even more in my Ecuador Travel Guide.
