Montecristi & The Rain Forest
Overview
Available languages
Mobile ticket
Lower prices, high quality! this tour will show you our culture, our traditions, our cuisine, History, nature, handcraft and heritage in just 5 to 6 hours, with the friendliest Ecuadorian tour guide in town, we will be able to see howler monkeys, wildlife, the palm tree that we use to weave the Panama hats, the fish market to see how the fish is being brought to the shore, sharks, marlin, tuna, we will be visiting Ciudad Alfaro museum, and we will be seeing how they make the Panama hats, this tour covers almost everything you do not want to miss, and also how they make buttons out of a particular palm tree that only grows in tropical areas.
Warning: there are 800 meters of this trail in PACOCHE are strenuous, not recommended for travelers with heart or walking problems, please wear running shoes at least and mosquito repellent.
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Not recommended for pregnant travelers
Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
During December and May we face the rainy season, so we might have to deal with some light rain.
If you require a guide that speaks another language other than English or Spanish, you will have to notify us, extra charges might be applied.
Boots or running shoes, do not wear sandals, Mosquito repellant long pants and long sleeve clothing
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What To Expect
Plage de Tarqui
Visit to the fish market, we will see how the fishermen bring the fish to the coast, and we will see the seafood the market is offering.
Plage de Tarqui
Visit to the boatyard in Tarqui, you will be witnessing how the boatyard are being built.
What‘s Included
Bottled water
All Fees and Taxes
Air-conditioned vehicle
Pickup points
Select a pickup point
Options
Montecristi & The Rain Forest
Pickup included
French or German language
Other Languages : Option for German and French language
Pickup included
Reviews
24 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Very good guide and good organization
Alain G,,Nov 28, 2025
- Review from Viator
4.00The paccoche rain forest has little to offer and the fish market is not terrible in short a very well organized good team but few interests for us.
Excellent Tour!
David G,,Nov 27, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00An excellent tour! A great ‘sampler’ tour to experience Ecuador and the area around Manta for those of us visiting here for the first time! Very informative, interesting and a great guide (and driver). We arrived here via cruise ship and would HIGHLY recommend other cruisers take this as it was well organized and easy to do — at a more economical price point than a ship tour!
Great guide!
Laura D,,Nov 24, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00Our guide Mariss was fantastic - so friendly and knowledgeable. We especially enjoyed the fish market and the walk thru the preserve. The guide at the preserve was also excellent. The hat store in Montecristi was interesting but took too long.
Perfect experience for a short cruise in Manta
Rainer K,,Nov 24, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00For a short cruise stop in Manta a perfect experience. Good mixture of interesting sightseeing points.
This was a day full of...
Ellen H,,Nov 15, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00This was a day full of nice and interesting experiences. I just loved everything that Manta and surroundings had to give
5 stars
101stevef,,Nov 11, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Fernando was a terrific host and great ambassador for Monte.Ecuador. we highly recommend you go with Fernando! The next time we are in Ecuador, we will definitely find Fernando for our next trip.
Blanket, beyond the tourist postcard
liuvanh,,Aug 18, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Fortunately, the tour is not intended as a juxtaposed succession of routes, spaces and repetitive information. There are people who love their work, and Fernando, the guide, is one of them. His punctuality, friendliness and knowledge enriched a personalized experience that included a visit to the coast, the seafood market, a shipyard, the rainforest and respective hat and chocolate factories. Iconic moments: a freshly captured cherna brought to shore in a small boat, a wooden skeleton being polished by a bunch of carpenters to become a boat; a shy herd of howler monkeys in the middle of the jungle; an on-site demonstration of the conformation of a Panama hut and a tasting of pure chocolate in a craft factory. In a few hours, and thanks to the empathy of the actors at every step of the way, the result cannot be better: a real journey of introspection to a Blanket that goes beyond the tourist postcard.
Trip to Ecuador
898ashtonb,,Apr 5, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Best tour guide I’ve ever had super friendly, great conversations 100% recommend I was so happy with this trip it’s the best tour I have ever gotten
Great tour for cruise passengers
Dale T,,Mar 31, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00The tour was similar in scope and price to what was offered by the cruise ship, but going in a small group made this tour better. We enjoyed the stops, especially the hat factory. The museum was closed so the tour guide substituted with a stop at a vegetable ivory (button) family business. I would like to have went a little faster on the rainforest hike since it was hot and because there were no animals to be seen in the hot part on the day. Also, there were 2 ships in port and it would have been nice to group tourists from the same ship together, especially since we were able to input arrival info when we purchased the excursion. The trip was delayed by 45 minutes while waiting on the other ship to arrive. Eventually, we left without some of the guests after waiting those 45 minutes. My recommendation to the company would be to group by ship, give a 15-minute grace period, and then get going. Alejandro was a fantastic guide, both on the bus and during our stops.
Mixed Experience
John G,,Mar 30, 2025
- Review from Tripadvisor
3.00Pros: great guide, smaller (20 person) van with water and great AC, well organized pickup at Terminal. Cons: No fauna seen on rain forest tour except for a beetle. That tour shortened by half. Montecristi downtown and shopping was limited solely to an intensely crowded hat “factory “ / shop. No amplification of tour guide commentary so you needed to be very close by to hear. Suggest seating near front of the bus.
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Operated by Manta SOS