Cover photo credits: Empresa Pública Municipal de Turismo, Promoción Cívica y Relaciones Internacionales de Guayaquil, EP.
Guayaquil is celebrating! The «Port City» is about to commemorate its 487 years of the city’s founding. Like every year in july, dozens of artistic, cultural, gastronomic, sporting and other events have been prepared to celebrate throughout the month. Take a look below at the Guayaquil’s agenda for its festivities.
🗓️ Main events
Musical evenings
- July 22 and 29
- 16h00
- Administration Square
35 members of the “Banda de Músicos de la Municipalidad” will perform traditional Guayaquil melodies that highlight the customs and sounds of the city.
Boat Parade
- July 23rd
- 16h00
- Caraguay Dock, Guayas River
6 allegorical barges will sail along 2 miles of the Guayas River together with public, private and tourist boats; while helicopters and aeroplanes squads will overflight.
Burguer Show
- From July 23rd to 25th
- 13h00 - 00h00
- Riocentro El Dorado
More than 40 stands will showcase traditional burgers, smash burgers, signature recipes and other complementary ventures. In addition, there will be musical performances.
Music Show
- July 23rd
- 17h00
- “9 de Octubre” and “Malecón”
More than 30 national artists and orchestras will participate in this event which, besides all the art and entertainment, will generate over 50 direct jobs and 150 related jobs.
Cordova Street Fest
- July 24th
- 09h00 - 23h00
- “Córdova” and “Mendiburo”
In this traditional Festival there will be 20 gastronomic stands and 10 handicraft stands, national artists will participate and there will be traditional contests for children and adults.
Artistic Festival
- July 24th
- 17h30
- “Malecón” and “9 de Octubre”
Starting with 6 dancers from the Elite Academy, orchestras and national artists will get everyone on the danceflor. 15 artists will participate in the musical show.
Student’s Parade
- July 25th
- 10h00
- “9 de Octubre” and “Malecón”
702 participants will decorate with their civic spirit, art and creativity more than a dozen blocks of the city with the Civic-Student and Cultural-Artistic Parades.
Student’s Parade
- July 25th
- 15h30
- “9 de Octubre” and “Malecón”
More than 3,100 participants will accompany the 6-block parade of students, bands, Army, Navy, Air Force, Police and CTE.
Artistic Parade
- July 25th
- 15h30
- “Malecón” to “Colón” street
The cultural and artistic parade will have 702 participants divided into 6 blocks, each with allegoric carriages, 27 characters in historical costumes and more than 700 national and foreign dancers.
Dance shows
- July 25th
- 17h30
- Saint Francis Square
75 dancers from national dance academies will perform on stage, as well as 6 international groups with 15 dancers from Panama, Bolivia, Mexico, Chile and Colombia.
Bicentenary Homage Concert
- July 26th
- 18h30
- “Hemiciclo de la Rotonda”
Free entrance event with the participation of 3 opera and lyric tenors from Guayaquil Andrés Córdova, Salvador Rivera and Ovidio Parra who will be conducted by Patricio Jaramillo and the Philharmonic Orchestra.
Artistic and music show
- 31st July
- 17h30
- “Paseo de los Presidentes”
15 well-known national and international artists will light up the party with rhythm in the Artistic and Musical Show at “10 de Agosto” Street (Malecón 2000).
🎒 Places to go sightseeing
With so many activities to enjoy, July is the ideal month to explore Guayaquil and learn more about its history, streets, heritage sites, gastronomy and culture. In every part of the city there is a place to enjoy all kinds of experiences. Here are some of the most outstanding places in Guayaquil to visit during the festivities.
Santa Ana hill and port
It is one of the most tourist and patrimonial places of Guayaquil, and it is in this place that Guayaquil was born, back in the 16th century. In the port you can find squares, shops and museums for children, youngsters and adults. In addition, on top of its 197 ft hill is located one of the most important viewpoints for a panoramic sight of the city. On the 444 steps way up you’ll find squares, museums, galleries, the lighthouse, handicraft shops, bars and restaurants.
“Malecon 2000” Boulevard
This urban park, of 1.5 mi (26 blocks), is located in the heart of the city. Here you will find gardens, artificial lagoons, fountains, viewpoints, piers, plazas, historical monuments, museums, children’s playgrounds, cinemas, shopping malls, food courts, bars and more. It is the ideal place to reconnect with the nature, history, tradition but also with modernism and the timeless beauty of Guayaquil. In addition, it frequently hosts artistic events.
The Park of the Iguanas
This place is one of the oldest and most iconic places of the city. Also known as Seminario Park, Plaza de Armas, Plaza de la Estrella or Plaza Bolivar, it silently keeps among its trees, gardens and monuments the history of the Pearl of the Pacific. Here reside more than 300 iguanas hanging among the trees, posing for a photo or simply accompanying tourists. You can also admire the Bolivar monument and the Cathedral.
Administration Square
It is located in the Clemente Ballén and Pichincha streets. It was created by the township in 2000. Here you can appreciate heritage buildings with more than a century of history. In addition, this pedestrian walkway features monuments in homage to Mariscal Antonio José de Sucre and the Vulcano Forge. Also, crossing the town hall is the Arosemena passage where you can admire the iron and glass roof with decorative stained glass windows and images of caryatids on its pillars.
🍛 What to eat?
An unmissable stop is the city’s restaurants and gastronomic shops. Here you’ll find a wide range of meals to taste traditional recipes featuring seafood flavours. The chef’s choice would be:
Encebollado
Its real name is ‘spicy fish’. It is a hot soup prepared with albacore fish, cassava, onion and coriander. It is served with plantian chips and some times with rice and bread. It is a dish made in the 1970s, as a frugal alternative to bucket ceviche.
Crab
The crustacean, caught in mangrove swamps, is a delicacy that has several preparations: Creole, garlic seasoned and many more. The creativity and innovation of local chefs allow diners to choose only the crab meat, very well accompanied by the traditional “cocolon” (toasted rice), ripe banana, a great tasting sauce and avocado.
Bolones
Plantain is one of Ecuador’s star products. Its versatility allows you to create a variety of preparations such as patty, “bolones” and many more. The green plantain is cooked and stuffed with a variety of garnishes such as chicken, shrimp, fried pork or cheese. Finally they are fried in oil and served with coffee.
Sausage broth
The rich sausage broth, also known as “caldo de manguera”, is a traditional dish prepared with pork, seasoned and stuffed with plantain, rice and a seasoning made with the pretin’s blood. All this gets ans spectacular flavour when is cooked.
With so much to discover, all that remains is to plan what to do in Guayaquil and enjoy its “Fiestas Julianas”.
