Illustrious Women of Quito Free Tour

Quito's official histories tend to remember generals and presidents; this tour goes looking for the women behind them. Starting at Parque de la Alameda, your guide walks the Centro Histórico retelling the story through figures like Manuela Sáenz, the quiteña revolutionary who fought alongside — and once saved the life of — Simón Bolívar, and Manuela Cañizares, whose house hosted the meeting that sparked Quito's first cry for independence in 1809.

Along the way you'll see the same colonial plazas and churches as the classic walking tour, but through a different lens — the women who organized, wrote, fought and were later left out of the plaques.