Puyo, Cities, Travel Destinations

Founded in 1899 and located in the Pastaza province in Ecuador, Puyo plays a very important role in the local economy. In fact, Puyo is the capital of the Pastaza province and it serves as a sort of ‘gateway’ to Baños and several other cities. The city itself is quite beautiful and is located on the banks of the Puyo River. This means that the city is always green despite hot or humid weather and that for many years the river has been the life of the city. Today Puyo is home to the most advanced river port in the Pastaza Province and a lot of trading for the area is done in Puyo.

The pretty little city of Puyo enjoys a good elevation of roughly 950 meters above sea level. This means that the area is somewhat less humid than many lower-lying regions, but not as cold as certain mountainous areas. Combine this with the city’s proximity to a large and free-flowing natural body of water and you have great climatic conditions and a very attractive place to live. The city is also bordered by the rainforest, which further adds to its allure. For many hundreds of years the nearby Puyo River has proved to be the perfect method of trade and transportation. This watery highway is a tributary of the Pastaza River and local peoples have long seen the value of using the river as a method of transport. Many small towns and villages settled along the banks of the river in various places and people navigated it by means of small boats. Today, not much has changed. Local peoples still make use of boats of all shapes and sizes to transport goods or provide transport services to people living in the area. Puyo, with its excellent location and great port facilities, has proved to play a central role in the transport of regional products. Many people choose to use this fairly cheap form of transport, getting their products delivered by road or even by air, to have them delivered to some other place in the country by water. For this reason a small aerodrome has been built roughly ten kilometers north of the city of Puyo.

In recent years, Puyo has become noted by tourists for its incredible natural beauty. Surrounded by mountains, forest, rivers and natural valleys, the abundance of surrounding wildlife and scenery is absolutely breathtaking. The city also has a good infrastructure, providing visitors with good accommodation and a variety of activities. The annual festivals that are celebrated by the locals are also a special treat.

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