Mitad del Mundo and Puluahua tour, including entrances

For starters, Mitad del Mundo is not precisely on the equator; the true equator is about 200 feet away. The science museum was so-so at best, with many of the exhibits not in working order. The famous demonstration of water going clockwise down the drain on one side of the equator and counter-clockwise on the other side was rigged with faucets aimed to create the desired swirl direction. The knock-off Disney-esque park in which this museum sits, however, is pretty, and we had fun (and a nice meal in a second-floor restaurant overlooking the line that, again, is not the equator. This whole trip starts confusedly as half of a Quito City Tour, and requires a change of bus that is not made clear to all travelers. We left our hotel at 10 a.m. to catch this tour and we were not back at our hotel until 6 p.m. -- this is for a purported half-day tour, so be aware of the time commitment when you book this tour. Once you get on the correct bus, the tour heads north to the Pululahua Crater for about 20 minutes. This is pretty cool, to see a community of 200 people living in an active volcano crater. There are various things one can do at Mitad del Mundo, including the aforementioned science museum (don't bother standing in line if you are willing to take the stairs; the line is only for people who want to take the elevator to an observation deck on the top floor of the tower), various restaurants, many shops, singers and dancers in the town square, a playground, llamas, and a place to try to balance an egg on the head of nail (two of our party of four succeeded; the others didn't try). One last stop before returning to Quito is a distillery where one can sample misca made from the agave plant (following a brief but interesting tour and discussion of agave and its uses). The owner of the distillery, Diego, is so passionate about the agave and its products; just listening to him was both educational and entertaining -- with the extra bonus of a shot of misca at the end!

It was a great experience. My daughter liked it a lot. It’s interesting to know why this place was picked as the middle of the world