The Southern Sierra, Ecuador

Ecuador’s third largest city only has a population of just 200,000,. It is totally different from Quito and Guayaquil but what it does share with Quito is that its a UNESCO world heritage site. The old-town centre of Cuenca, featuring pretty balconies, cobbled streets and colonial architecture, plus the striking blue-domed Cathedral Nuevo, make it easy to see why Cuenca is considered by many as Ecuador’s most picturesque town. Cuenca can also lay claim to being the home of the Panama Hat,  their actual place of fabrication!

El Altar is an extinct volcano in Sangay National Park surrounded by multicoloured lagoons, giant waterfalls and glacial lakes. El Altar is found at  17,451 feet (5,319 metres) high and this extinct volcano this extinct volcano is stunning, with a ring of nine jagged peaks (which the Spanish thought looked like friars in church, hence the name) and its own crater lake. For now, there’s only one way to get there and itvolves a seriously muddy track!