The main Inca ruins of Ecuador can be found on a hill above the village of Ingapirca, where there is an interesting Friday market and a good cooperative artesanate shop runs right next to the church.

Ingapirca is a quichua word that means “the walls of the Inca”. The architectural style of the main building – the oval castillo or templo del sol – is typically Inca. The blocks of andesite are precisely matched: although no cement or glue was used to hold the blocks together, there is no pin in between.

Ingapirca is usually visited as a full-day excursion from Cuenca. If you want to spend the night close to the ruins to visit the complex on your own, you can spend the night in Ingapirca itself, about 500 meters from the ruins.

To visit Ingapirca in style, a two to three day hike on the old Ingapirca path can be made. It is a beautiful walk through the countryside. The landscape here has undergone few changes since the time of the Incas.