Climb to the Cotopaxi Summit in the Ecuadorian Andes

An Experience I Will Never Forget! I chose to summit Cotopaxi to celebrate my 57th birthday, and it was one of the most meaningful and rewarding experiences of my life! Having Juan Carlos as my mountain guide made this journey even more special. From the very beginning, his professionalism, patience, knowledge, and genuine care gave me the confidence and support I needed. When the climb became difficult and I had to dig deep to keep going, his encouragement and calm presence helped me find the strength to take one step at a time. I never felt like just another climber; I felt that he genuinely cared about my safety and about helping me achieve my goal. Surrounded by the breathtaking beauty of the Andes, it was an emotional moment beyond words. What a beautiful way to celebrate life, challenge myself, and prove that it's never too late to chase extraordinary dreams! Thank you, Juan Carlos, from the bottom of my heart, for helping make my 57th birthday truly unforgettable. I couldn't have asked for a better guide for such a special milestone! ❤️🏔️

I have the feeling that going from parking lot and gaining additional 260-300 meters incline is not the best strategy but maybe going from refuge is better

I spent 8 days with Juan Carlos and his very nice team and it was amazing! Juan Carlos is friendly and flexible. He picked me up at the airport and also brought me back there to get my flight. I did Corazon, Iliniza norte, cayambe and Chimborazo. The acclimatation plan is optmized also thanks to the location of the base camp (around 3300m). All is done to achieve the different summits. Don't hesistate! Alexis

Good trip for someone already in the region and acclimatised; I wouldn’t recommend for someone travelling in to immediately start climbing. Climbed with another guide (Patrick) for the first two peaks. Great on the first day, seemed distracted on the second day and the rush (for Ecuador’s election day) made the second climb fast and uncomfortable considering cloudy and cold conditions. Cayambe had a lot of weather which created quite hazardous conditions on the glacier so we could not summit. Due to the extremely fast acclimatisation process, I opted not to climb Chimborazo. Juan Carlos was good about the change of plan. Throughout, it was difficult to get much information. I had to message repeatedly and ask very specific questions just to obtain any packing lists and if I hadn’t prior experience, I am sure I’d not have been prepared. The accommodation was fantastic but travel in the area needs a car so I was stuck in the one location when not climbing. Transport between climbs was long. Might have been better to change accomm to suit peaks. Overall happy to have tried to climb these peaks but the trip itself requires a lot more info for the climber and needs some prior acclimatisation.