Gretchen Stuppy Carlson
Just 1 hour from Quito, Papallacta is sits that the base of Antisana Volcano and is home to the incredible hot springs at Termas de Papallacta Spa, Resort and Pools. We spent a night and a full day exploring Papallacta and spent most of this time at the Papallacta hot spring spa. Below you can find everything you need to know to plan a visit to this relaxing destination including whether to take a tour, where to stay, how to get to Papallacta and tips on visiting the resort as well as how to get to Las Termas de Papallacta
It’s helpful to note that when people refer to the Quito hot springs, they are typically referring to the Papallacta hot springs.
Overview of Papallacta
Papallacta is a small town at the base of Antisana Volcano and just below the Cayambe Coca Ecological Reserve. The town is best known for the gorgeous hot spring resort, but also offers several great lodging options and places to eat and access to some excellent hikes.
The town is small with just one main street that runs up past a few places to eat and ends at the hot springs and several smaller roads. Past the hot springs, the road becomes smaller and makes its way up high into the mountains to the ecological reserve. Papallacta is at an elevation of about 10,800 feet (or 3,300 meters). It’s important to acclimate before visiting the area and drink plenty of water.
Termas de Papallacta is truly the highlight of the area with the luxury hot spring pools and facilities. The area is surrounded by lush forest and farmland and the grounds of the resorts are full of flowers. There are two different ways to enjoy the water either by buying a ticket to the pools or the spa. You can see complete details about the cost and facilities below.
Best Ways to Visit Papallacta Hot Springs (or Termas de Papallacta)
There are several different ways to visit an enjoy the Papallacta Hot Springs. If you are staying in Quito, you can find day trip tours to Papallacta. You can also arrange to travel to Papallacta on public transportation, or spend the night at the hotel springs resort or one of the other hotels and hostels in the area.
Take a Tour
Taking a tour is easy and a popular way to visit Papallacta. Since the hit springs are just 1 hour from Quito this is a great day trip and you can find many different tour options including day trips, night trips and tours with visits to the nearby lagoons or rose farm.
Our favorite places to look for tours are Viator or Get your Guide, but you can also ask your hotel in Quito and they can often arrange a tour or point you in the right direction. If you are booking a tour, make sure that the entrance fee to Termas de Papallacta is included. See our 3 top recommendation on the best Papallacta tour.
Papallacta’s Volcanic Termal Springs: this tour gets great reviews and we talked to a couple who enjoyed this tour. It’s also the most reasonable tour we saw in terms of price.
Papallacta Hot Spring Tour with Lagoon Hike: This is a full day tour that visits the hots springs in Papallacta and also includes a 1 hour hike to one of the high Lagoons in the Andes. This is a great tour option if you have the time and want include a hike.
Hire a Car or Taxi
If you are interested in visiting the hot springs and don’t want an official tour, it’s also possible to take a taxi or arrange your own transport to Papallacta. This makes sense if you are traveling with a larger group. You will want to be careful that you also arrange transportation home, although we arranged a taxi from Papallacta directly to the airport with no problem (cost was $40 for 5 people). You can also check for an Uber for your drive.
Take the Bus
There are many buses that pass the town of Papallacta. Buses will drop you off right at the road leading to Papallacta (about 2 km from the hot springs). From here you can either walk up into town or flag down a taxi for the short ride up the hill. We took the bus from Lago Agrio after visiting the Amazon and asked to be dropped off with no problem.
If you are coming from Quito, the bus costs under $5 and buses leave about every 30 minutes from the Southern bus terminal in Quito – Quitumbe. Walk into the bus station and ask for a ticket to Tena, Coca, Lago Agrio or Puyo. You will want to tell your bus driver that you want to stop at Las Termas de Papallacta. Just before the bus gets to Papallacta, walk up to the front of the bus and they’ll let you off.
Spend the Night
If you are visiting on your own I strongly encourage you to spend the night in Papallacta. This lets you visit the hot springs in the evening when the tours leave and enjoy a hike in the area. In addition to the gorgeous hot spring, Termas de Papallacta is also a mountain lodge and you can stay right in one of the rooms or bungalows.
There are also several other places to stay in the town of Papallacta. We stayed in the fun and eclectic Mamallacta Paramo Lodge. We loved this spot and it is just a few minutes walk from the hot springs. They have a great restaurant/bar as well if you want to stop by for a meal.
Visiting Termas de Papallacta Spa and Pools
If you are planning to visit Termas de Papallacta pools and hot springs, there are several things to know to help you plan your visit. First off, the pools and the spa are a separate area so you will need to pay a separate fee if you plan to visit both.
Termas de Papallacta Public Pools
The public pools are included if you are staying in the resort, otherwise they cost $8.50 USD for adults (kids and seniors are $4.00). The pools are open from 6:00 am to 9:00 pm.
The public pools are beautiful and you will find 10 separate pools of different temperatures. You can rent towels for $1 with a $5 deposit and you will be given a basket to keep your stuff in. The pools range in temperature and you can also find a cold plunge pool you can use to cool off. There is a small snack area to get some food.
Termas de Papallacta Spa
The more exclusive spa portion of Termas de Papallacta is an extra fee even if you are staying at the resort. The spa has 5 pools with fountains surrounding by beautiful landscaping. One of the pools is a plunge pool and the other pools have a range of temperatures so you can move between them to find the right temperatures.
The spa costs $22 for adults, $14.50 for children, and $11 for seniors (these were the prices when we visited in 2023).
You will also find spa services here including massages and mud wraps. When you walk into the spa, you will enter the large changing area with showers, checking rooms and lockers. From here you can take a shower before visiting the spa pools. Towels and swim caps are included in to the entrance fee, and you can rent a bathrobe for walking around or eating.
There is a very nice restaurant inside the spa with excellent if slightly expensive food (for Ecuador).
After visiting the resort, we spent the entire afternoon relaxing at the spa and enjoyed the pools, surroundings and the quieter feel to this part of the resort. You should plan at least a few hours to enjoy the spa.
Other Things to do in Papallacta
If you are visiting Papallacta for longer than a few hours, it’s worth exploring some of the other sites in the area. The best things to do in the area is to eat some of the local food (specifically the trout) or explore the area on foot for one of the local hikes.
See a list of some of the local hikes.
We spent the morning enjoying the lovely and short Papallacta hot springs trail. The trail starts just past Termas de Papallacta and follows a lovely little stream gently uphill through the forested land. The path is easy to walk with bridges and boardwalks as well as nature signs.
See complete directions for hiking this 1.2 mile trail.
Have you visiting Papallacta or have questions about visiting the area? Drop a comment!
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