Latacunga is the capital of Cotopaxi province. The Cotopaxi volcano is 29 km. of the city and dominates the city. During the last 150 years, the city has been destroyed 4 times by the volcano and rebuilt each time by its determined inhabitants.
On a cloudless day you can see many other snow peaks from here and so often a chilly wind blows.
Saturday is market day in Latacunga, but the nearby towns of Saquisilí and Pujilí have more attractive markets. The market in Saquisili on Thursday is one of the most beautiful Indian markets in Ecuador.

On September 23 and 24 they celebrate “La Fiesta de Mama Negra”: a costumed procession with lots of music, dance and drink.
In the area around Latacunga you will visit the Cotopaxi National Park, the town of Zumbahua and the Quilotoa Lake. The landscape alternates between desolate paramos, beautiful patchwork quilts of small-scale fields, spectacular gorges such as those of the Toachi River and small original Andean towns with colorful markets.