What about language?

There are many English-speaking Ecuadorians in Quito, but none in Playa de Oro. If you speak no Spanish at all, you may want to travel to Playa de Oro with someone who does.

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What about money?

Ecuador's currency is the US dollar. There are ATMs in cities, but they are often broken or have long lines. Credit cards can be used in Quito, but prices are often 10% higher. Travelers' checks are accepted in urban areas.

The ONLY form of payment accepted at Playa de Oro is US cash, with no bills larger than a fifty. The amount you will need to carry with you, in cash, is: $50 times the number of nights you plan to stay, plus tips, plus transportation costs. Transportation costs vary, depending on whether you travel by public bus or private mini-bus, and how many visitors there are to share the cost of the boat taxi on the day of your arrival and departure. Tipping the lodge staff is optional, but if you wish to do so, $1 per day per staff member is appropriate. This should be presented at dinner on your last evening, either to each individual or to the director (Mauro), who will divide it evenly among the lodge's six employees.

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What about medicines?

All travelers should carry a basic first-aid kit which includes anti-diarrhea medication, headache remedies, antibiotic cream, bandaids, and any prescription medicines and sanitary supplies they are likely to need.

No shots are required for travel in Ecuador. According to Ecuadorian health officials, malaria is not a problem in Quito, the highlands, or at Playa de Oro. However, most doctors recommend malaria prophylactics for persons spending time in the Ecuadorian Amazon or in any coastal city. These would need to be started in advance of your visit to those areas.

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What about dangerous creepy-crawlies?

It is rare to see snakes, big spiders, or other creepy-crawlies at Playa de Oro or the Cushi Primate Forest, but these are tropical rainforests; they are there and some are venomous. If you can't handle the possibility of glimpsing one, it may be best for you to vacation elsewhere. Rubber gumboots are the best footwear for trekking in the rainforest, both because of the mud and as protection against snakebite. The Playa de Oro lodge provides these for its guests. For the Cushi Primate Forest, you must bring your own. (Rubber boots can be purchased cheaply in Coca).

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What other things should I bring?

Insect repellant, sunblock, sun hat, and a rain poncho are essential. A poncho is better than a raincoat because it will cover your legs if it rains while traveling by boat, takes up less luggage space than a raincoat, and can be worn in the city as well as in the jungle. Bring a battery-powered reading light, the kind that clips onto your book or is worn on your head, so you can read after you are tucked in at night under the mosquito net. Some reading lights also function as a flashlight. If yours doesn't, bring a flashlight, too, as once the lanterns have been put out at night, there is NO LIGHT. Bring enough batteries to last as long as you expect to be in the jungle.

For clothing, a couple pairs of pants of some lightweight, quick-dry fabric and at least one long-sleeved lightweight shirt. Long pants are preferable to shorts, as they provide protection against sun, insects, and scratchy vegetation. The kind with zip-off legs are convenient. You'll need a swimsuit for Playa de Oro, and perhaps a pair of cheap rubber sandals for the rocky-bottomed river and to wear around the lodge. All hiking, in Playa de Oro and the Cushi Primate Forest, will require rubber gumboots. In Quito and the highlands, normal walking footwear is fine. The temperature there is consistently pleasant and springlike, chilly enough for a sweater or jacket at night.

As there is no place to shop in the rainforest, and meals, although ample, are basic local fare, you may want to bring a small supply of your favorite snack foods.

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What about gifts?

While gifts are not expected at Playa de Oro many visitors, aware of the poverty in the region, ask what they can bring. The best gifts are sewing supplies, school supplies, or something health-related, like toothbrushes, toothpaste and bandaids. Toys should be ones that can be shared, like balls, crayons, musical instruments, and children's books in Spanish, showing brown and black children, not only white ones. Candy, gum, money, and slogan t-shirts are inappropriate.

The protocol for giving gifts is extremely important. They should be presented to the teacher, nurse, daycare director, or a member of the village council, along with, "Gracias para la hospitalidad de su comunidad." DO NOT hand out gifts to individual children. To do so undermines both parental instructions and their culture, and will have a negative impact on their relationship to you and subsequent visitors.

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