Arrival Ecuador 28.01.2023

Unfortunately, there was a change in the booked connection from the airline KLM. The originally planned departure date was postponed by one day, so we could only leave on Saturday, January 28, 2023. Fortunately, there were no other changes.

So, on Saturday morning, around 02:00 am, we got up and drove to Hamburg Airport at 03:00 am (in jogging pants and light clothing). KLM had an automated baggage check-in terminal, so we could quickly complete this procedure. The luggage tag also indicated Cuenca as the destination airport and I hoped that we didn't have to go to the baggage claim beforehand.

The security check also went relatively quickly. So, we were able to buy a coffee and a bottle of water in the departure area (18 €!). Boarding started at 05:40 am and we departed on time at 06:15 am to Amsterdam. We arrived one hour later. In Amsterdam, we had to stand in line again for passport control to leave the EU. However, we had about 2.5 hours and were relaxed. Boarding for the flight to Quito started at 09:20 am, in a Boeing 777-200. We had booked seats in the front row of Economy Comfort, so we had plenty of legroom for the quite long flight of over 11 hours.

We departed on time at around 10:30 am and had an uneventful flight. The food and service were good. It's just not so nice to sit for a long time.

Since we had a tailwind, we arrived in Quito 30 minutes ahead of schedule at 03:30 pm. Unfortunately, that didn't help us much because the next flight to Cuenca was scheduled to depart at 08:20 pm. At the exit, there were employees on site who took care of the correct paths for the travelers. We told them that we wanted to continue to Cuenca and they explained to us that we should first pick up our luggage, then go through immigration, and then check in our luggage again. I found it very good to be immediately instructed correctly here, so as not to arrive at the destination without luggage in the end. Since we had plenty of time, we were able to complete all procedures relaxed. After the additional security check, we still had 3 hours until the final departure and visited the airport, which looked very clean, tidy, and even pretty with the indigenous shops. Some German and European airports could take an example of that. However, the prices were at European level. We weren't hungry or thirsty. So, we enjoyed the view from the panoramic windows and charged our phones. In the meantime, we were also very tired.

Boarding for the LATAM flight to Cuenca started on time at 07:40 pm and we departed on time at 08:20 pm from Quito over this huge city. We landed at 09:10 pm in Cuenca at a very small airport, with only one baggage claim carousel. After a short time, our suitcases also arrived and we met Pauline in the arrival hall and hugged each other. Then Pauline organized a taxi with a short wave and we drove for 1.5 dollars for about 20 minutes to our hostel. The owner was already waiting for us and showed us the very beautiful room in a garden paradise in the courtyard of the hostel. We chatted a little bit, but were so tired that we said goodbye to Pauline and went to sleep.