The classic day trip is to the Panama-hat town of Montecristi, fifteen minutes inland — covered as a POI in Things to Do. Beyond that, Bahía de Caráquez is two hours north — a quieter resort town on a long estuary, with the curiosity of being declared an "eco-city" after the 1998 earthquake. Portoviejo, the provincial capital, is forty-five minutes inland — a working agricultural city more useful as a stop than a destination, but with one of the best central markets on the coast.