Category: Ecuador for Investors

Hopelessly lost in Ecuador – The best free Ecuador GPS maps

“Oh sh*t.” I thought as I looked at my friend who I was driving to south Quito main bus terminal.  

Now, anyone who knows Quito knows don’t go to south Quito.  

Its rough.  Locals joke with reason,  ‘go into south Quito and you’ll come out naked.’  

In fact, there’s only one reason I can think of to EVER go to south Quito, and thats to go to the main bus terminal in Quitumbe, where we were going.  

And it was 10pm at night, pitch black.  

I pulled the car over and told my friend, “man, sorry but we are really lost.” 

Should I even try to ask someone for directions in my broken Spanish or is that not a good idea?  I thought.

As we sat there pondering what to do next, among the shadows we saw this figure, it looked like a baby.  A baby selling something.  As it noticed us and started walking towards us my ecuadorian friend from Guayaquil pulled out his phone and opened the WAZE app.  

He said, hey look at this… my friends and I use this all the time.  Its a free GPS with great, detailed maps of Ecuador.  Just plug in where you want to go and it will tell you how to arrive and where you are.  

“And we better get out of here cause that baby is about to rob us,” he finished.

So we did just that and plugged in the Quitumbe Terminal and zipped out of there, and a guided U-turn, and two rights later we were at the bus terminal saying our goodbyes.  

The road detail complete with street names of WAZE, even deep in the ghetto of South Quito, is amazing.  And even the smallest towns on the coast appear too.  

Other users called Wazers even upload info about police stops and traffic problems in real time.  

And its much better than buying GPS hardware like a Garmin for which you then need to buy an Ecuador map chip which may or may not be out of date.  

Plus, try pulling out a Garmin while walking in the middle of the street.  Think not.  Talk about looking like a tourist.  

Or just pull out your phone and open Waze and you can get a quick look at where you are and where you need to go.  Very nondescript!

And its free!  

And by far the best maps of Ecuador I have found!  

So go download Waze to your phone and check it out before you come to Ecuador!

To learn where to find more free maps of Ecuador subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

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When to fly cheapest from Ecuador: Quito-Miami RT $354

Now’s the time to buy your flight if you plan on flying back from Ecuador to visit the US/Canada in the next few months!  

Wait a month to buy and any reasonably priced fare from now until May will be long gone.  

Working next to the Quito airport in my hotel for over a year and a half now, I’ve got a good feel for whens best and least expensive to travel to/from Ecuador.  

For an expat living in Ecuador, we often have the luxury of picking and choosing when to fly back to North America.  

So why not go when its cheaper?

Right now, its cheaper.  

The high season, and when the flights are more expensive, is late December to early April.  Then again from Late June to early September.  

The low season when you’re most likely to find deals is in May, October/November (now), and until early December.  

The highest of the high season and when you are least likely to find flight deals is in January and July.  (Don’t ask me why, it is what it is.)

Right now, TAME, Ecuadors national airline, has a few low season specials available until the end of this week.  

-Quito to Fort Lauderdale USA for $455 round trip with all taxes and fees included.  Travel whenever you want over the next few months if you buy this week.  (New route special).  Normal price Quito to Miami area around $6-800 USD. 

–Quito to Baltra (Galapagos) round trip $268 (for residents of Ecuador) all taxes and fees included except park fee.  This is the CHEAPEST I’ve ever seen, usually the flights are in the $450 range round trip.  

I recommend buying one of these flight specials NOT online, but in one of the TAME kiosks in the big malls in Ecuador.

LAN, a Chilean airline that flys extensively to Ecuador has an even better special from Quito to Miami, but with restricted dates.  This is the BEST price I’ve seen in two years!  

– $354 Quito – Miami round trip all taxes and fees included… but must fly from DEC 10-16 and fly back between JAN 13-24.  Doesnt get any cheaper than this, wait a few days and this price will be gone!   I recommend buying this deal QUICK via kayak.com .  

– $429 Quito – NEW YORK Roundtrip, all taxes and fees included.  Promotion offered this week by LAN on their site.  

For more flight specials for Ecuador subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

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The easy way to bring household goods tax-free to Ecuador

One big perk of moving to Ecuador is for new residents to be able to bring their household belongings tax-free.

Under Ecuador law, any new arrival who just got their legal permanent residency visa, albeit a pensioner, investor or even a professional visa based off a college degree, can bring as much as one container of their personal goods tax-free one time after achieving residency.  It could be as little as a few bags, doesnt matter.

And it’s actually easier to do than you think.  

No pricey import agents needed in most non-complicated, normal cases.  

My friend just did it in Canada, then stayed at my place last night.  

Im talking about this week, in October of 2014.  

All he did was go to the Ecuadorian consulate in Canada (where he’s originally from) and filled out a form, paid $50, waited about an hour and that was it, they then gave him everything he needed to pass his sh*t smoothly through customs upon arrival to Ecuador.  

All they ask for in the consulate is the inventory list of what you are bringing.  Proof of your residency (like your visa stamped into your passport and your Ecuadorian Cedula ID card.)  And for new purchases they may ask for receipts, but it is not fully necessary as stated by my friend.

Upon arrival to the consulate in your home country just say you want the form to bring MENAJE DE CASA to Ecuador.  

Then yesterday he arrived to Ecuador with his half dozen bags and big screen TV and on through he went, no taxes charged.  

No problems. 

Just remember you only have a specific time window after getting residency to be able to do this, so try to bring your stuff down within 6 months AFTER NOT BEFORE getting your residency visa!

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My love hate relationship with Ecuador

I swear man, I have a love hate relationship with Ecuador.

Aww, I love Ecuador… as I wake to the sound of hundreds of birds chirping in my yard, I see why Ecuador is a top 3 destination in the world for bird watchers.  Then my thought gets disrupted by the horrid screech of a neighbors rooster, the same one that was crowing at 2am last night… I freakin hate Ecuador.  

 

I love Ecuador… as I lift myself from bed as the warm, gentle breeze brushes past my forehead.  Then I get bit by a mosquito on the arm cause the window was open all night, da*n Ecuador, how do they live and rent properties without screens on the windows?… I hate Ecuador. 

 

I love Ecuador as I get up to go to the bathroom as I’m feeling good cause I’m noticably lighter than I was in the states, and my clothes fit loosely… then my mood changes as I have to literally walk through my front yard to go to the one and only bathroom in my two bedroom house.  And this is new 2014 construction, what were they thinking detaching the bathroom from both bedrooms?  I hate Ecuador.  
I love Ecuador I think as I get in the nice, hot shower powered by a tank of natural gas that lasts a couple weeks which cost a mere $3 due to subsidies provided by the local government.  But my feeling shifts as i tweak the shower knob and the temperature goes from scolding hot to ice cold due to a millimeter shift, really people, you can’t figure this one out?  I hate Ecuador.  
I love Ecuador.  For any man, sitting down with a paper while taking a morning shat is a nice moment of the day… But having to wipe and put the paper in the bin on the side of the toilet is still not easy to get used to, I mean, its hard not to sneak a peak at the skid marks after wiping.  I hate Ecuador.  
I love Ecuador, I think as I walk out to catch a cab and start my day as I’m greeted by friendly neighbors who all wave and acknowledge my existence.  I hate Ecuador I think as the damn roof dog next door starts to bark like he does every time i walk out of my own da*n house.
I love Ecuador, I think as i catch the $1 taxi to the bus stop 10 minutes away… I hate Ecuador when I arrive and the driver changes the agreed upon price on the fly and asks for $2 because the main road was closed and he had to take a detour.
I love Ecuador as I catch the bus after just 2 minutes of waiting, and I had the good fortunate on this day of getting the last seat in the bus.  I hate Ecuador as within 5 minutes the bus packs up and due to all the human mass gets scorchingly hot yet the Ecuadorians at my side happily ride along without even so much as cracking the window.  Really people, were you born in an oven?  Then to top it off within 5 more minutes the people standing in the aisle next to me due to getting more and more squished start to lean in and their buttocks starts to wisk past my cheak with every turn of the bus.  But hey, I think at least this guy wasn’t standing in the other direction or his crotch would be tea-bagging my scalp every time the bus rolled over the slightest bump.
I love Ecuador as I arrive at the mechanic to pick my car up and discover how little I’ve been charged for the work.  I hate Ecuador as I discover the main job I brought the car in for which was supposed to be done last Thursday, now being the following Monday, still isn’t done.  So after waiting 5 hours for them to finish the job, im off to the store.
I love Ecuador as i drift through the aisles of the grocery store admiring and selecting all the delicious exotic fruits… I hate Ecuador as I find out the bathroom cleaning solution that I always buy is no longer available because of some new import restriction… yet im offered no alternative… which prompts me to wonder, “am I the only one who cleans his bathroom in this country?”
I love Ecuador as I then meet up with some friends, boy do Ecuadorians know how to have a good time.  I hate Ecuador as not only our first choice of restaurant, but then our second and third and fourth are all closed because its the day after a holiday weekend.  I guess after a holiday everyone needs a recovery day in this country.  So we ended up buying a bottle and parking in a vacant street to hang out.  Like back in High school.
I love Ecuador while driving home past pedestrians waiting patiently on the side of the road, where they should be, as they do NOT have the right of way in Ecuador… I hate Ecuador when the slightest little drizzle starts and the roads turn into a gridlock worse than LA at rush hour, then as I try to change lanes 26 cars pass before one lets me over.
I love Ecuador as I arrive home and glance at the moon which seems way brighter than any moon I saw growing up in North America.  I hate Ecuador as I realize the moon seems so bright cause all the lights are out in my neighborhood, we’re without power.  Da*n it!
I love Ecuador as I walk in my front door and am warmly greeted by my beautiful girlfriend.  I hate Ecuador when I realize shes being so nice cause shes about to tell me her sister and her sisters kid just moved into our spare room (permanently).
I love Ecuador as I lay down to sleep as the temperature cools down just enough for a great sleep under blankets, I hate Ecuador as my neighbors then begin to blare music until 4am cause one of them just had their sixth baby this year (if thats possible)… thank God for earplugs as calling the cops on a noise complaint wont get you very far in this country!
Aww, just another day in paradise.

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The golden fruit of Ecuador – Papaya

 

When you move to a new country and try to sell a product to the locals, there are two ways to do things.

The right way.

And the wrong way.

Especially when it comes to food.

The wrong way, at least if you dont have a multi-million dollar marketing budget, is imposing your “superior” foods on the local population.

For instance, pizza.

Maybe you can make a much better pizza than they have available locally according to your North American or European standards.

But maybe the pizza in Ecuador is the way it is for a reason.. with its more liquidity and almost sweet tomato sauce… cause thats how the locals like it.

Its hard to know as a new-comer.

So all you can do is observe.

And to sell the locals something they already eat like crazy.

Its simply much easier.

Enter Papaya.

But there are two types of Papaya that grow in Ecuador.  The Hawaiian breed and the Criolla breed.  The Hawaiian is smaller and for export primarily, cause the locals don’t eat it.  (Actually, some consider it pig food.)

The Criolla is the gigantic rugby-ball-looking Papaya that is for local consumption only, not export, and boy do the locals love it.

Its truly one of those products where if you grow it they will come.

Papaya Criolla likes a dryer climate, while it can and does grow in the Amazon region its better grown in the coastal region of Ecuador.  Specifically in the areas of Santo Domingo to Independencia or on down to Quevedo.

In these ideal areas, the Papaya can grow without any formal irrigation system in place, its fine with just the natural rainfall in this area.

The Papaya is also best grown on flat or almost flat land.

In these areas land apt for Papaya production usually can be found starting around $3-6000 USD per hectare.  According to my local Papaya expert, 30-40 hcts is the minimum for a worthwhile, highly-profitable Papaya farm.

For today, lets take a closer look at the Papaya Criolla (lets give the locals what they already want).

The Papaya tree has a lifespan of 2 years.  It begins to give fruit at the 8 month mark.

And harvests from there are weekly.

The Costs

The initial costs of planting the crop and preparing the soil average around $4-5k per hectare.

After that, costs are minimal with this crop as for a farm of 40 hectares, all you need is one live-on full-time employee (who makes about $500 a month).  And about 5 part-time employees that from the time the plant begins to give fruit at the 8 month mark, you will need to hire them about 2 days a week paying each $15 a day to harvest, weed and fertilize the crop as needed.

It may also be a good idea, especially starting up, to hire a technician or agro-engineer with experience in the crop, to help manage the technical aspects of the farm.  For a full-time agro-engineer you are looking at minimum $1000 a month, but you could also hire one on a part-time basis.

The Production

Each hectare fits about 1100 Papaya trees.  About 100 of those are masculine and dont bear fruit and are used for future breeding purposes only.

Each tree during its lifespan gives at least 20 fruits, some can give as many as 30 if the care has been good.

Thats 20,000 fruits per hectare per each 2 year cycle.

The Sale and The Profit

The fruit sells wholesale at about $1 per fruit.

The fruit is an easy-sell and is often sold to the retail sellers at open-markets or directly to top-end restaurants.

Thinking in ballpark figures for busy people like yourself, thats $20k per hectare in brute sales over the course of a 2 year period.  According to my expert, the grower can expect about 40% of that is usually the profit for the farm owner.  Thats $8k per hect, every two years… so for a 40 hectare producing Papaya farm, that would be about $320k over a two year period or $160k per year, however youd like to look at it.

ROI

So even if you bought the land at the more conservative $6000 per hct for a 40 hct farm… for a total of $240,000 youd be able to realistically make that money back within a bit over 1 and 1/2 years.  Not bad.

This is certainly a product Im considering for my upcoming agro-investment here in Ecuador.

For much bout Papaya and other profitable products in Ecuador subscribe to my weekly Ecuador Insiders Newsletter below, you can unsubscribe at any time:

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