3 / 5 - 2 reviews
How to get there
14km by road from Puerto Lopez
When to go
All year round
Minimum stay
Half a day
Punta Los Frailes (Ecuador)
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Cecilia Heinen
Practical information on Punta Los Frailes
Reviews of Punta Los Frailes
Los Frailes is a group of beaches in the Machalilla National Park. The big, white sand beach attracts a fair number of people but is still quite well preserved.
My suggestion:
Before you go to the beach, walk along the path which leads to the other, smaller, beaches. When you go swimming afterwards, you'll feel you've earned it!
My review
We hitched to Los Frailes. We like walking, so rather than stopping on the big beach and swimming right away we took the path which led us around the site. For about two hours we explored little creeks and climbed a tower which gave us a great view over the whole site and the neighbouring villages.
Finally, we ended up on the famous sandy beach. It is surrounded by two hills, ,which those who love beautiful beaches will appreciate. It was the weekend, so there were a lot of people - quite a lot of families were picnicking, for example. When it was time to go swimming there was a bit of a fresh wind and it wasn't that easy to decide to go in!
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stéphanie charbit
Los Frailes is a protected beach located a few kilometres from Puerto Lopez. Long preserved by a paid entrance policy, entry has recently become free of charge again. A real cove on the Pacific shoreline, it is one of the few beaches in the country where you can swim.
My suggestion:
I recommend you go there with the morning bus from Puerto Lopez to enjoy a whole day on the spot. The beach is large enough to avoid being disturbed - don't hesitate to move along a bit further toward the rocks.
My review
We spent a day at Los Frailes beach during our stay in Ecuador, after a sea excursion to go whale-watching from Puerto Lopez. Regarded as one of the most beautiful beaches in the country, we just had to go and find out for ourselves.
And we confirm that its miles of pristine white sand are truly impressive. It's a first for Ecuador and this can be explained by a protection policy that has a cost. At one time, we had to pay an entrance fee of ten dollars per person, but the price also included Macchalilla National Park and an excursion to La Plata island.
You can swim at Los Frailes as long as you don't venture too far offshore due to the Pacific waves, but the best is thing is to walk along the beach to admire the forms that the ocean has chiselled into the rock. As a bonus you got priceless tranquillity, because the entrance fee discouraged more than one.
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Cecilia Heinen
114 travelers' photos
