Ayangue is an ensenada, a bay with calm, clear waters. The coastal town combines a distinctive seascape with a historic underwater image and a food culture associated with fresh seafood and traditional dishes. This offers several points to consider when choosing a destination: the bay, nearby excursions, and a cultural feature beneath the sea.
Bay and Beach Access
In 2017, a recreational area at Ayangue’s beach access was handed over, according to the provincial authority. Its facilities included a paved area and a gazebo, as well as restrooms, changing rooms, and showers. This historic handover adds a clearly defined beach area to the natural coastal setting.
Coastal Landscapes and Excursions
Playa Rosada is located near Ayangue; its sand has a pinkish hue. This is a different coastal feature from the calm, clear waters of the ensenada. Coral reefs and Roca El Pelado can also be explored nearby. This allows you to distinguish Ayangue’s bay as a defining feature of the town from other nearby excursion options.
Ayangue’s Underwater Image
The image Sagrado Corazón de Jesús de las Aguas was installed in 2011 off the coast of Ayangue, opposite Islote El Pelado, at a depth of eleven meters. The figure of Christ is 2.5 meters tall and weighs four tonnes. It can be viewed from boats that visit Islote El Pelado. For travelers interested in religious art underwater, the installation is a particularly concrete point of reference: its installation year, depth, and position opposite the islet are specified precisely.
Seafood Cuisine and Choosing a Destination
Ayangue is associated with fresh seafood and traditional dishes. This culinary side adds another consideration for travel decisions alongside the bay and the underwater image. If you take local food culture into account, as well as scenery and the sea, when choosing a coastal destination, this connection is part of Ayangue’s character.
Ayangue within the Wider Destination of Santa Elena
The wider destination of Santa Elena encompasses other distinct natural and landscape features. The Reserva Marina El Pelado includes the coastal areas of Playa del Palmar, Ayangue, and Valdivia. It was included in Ecuador’s national protected areas heritage in October 2012, and covers an area of 131 km². Ayangue is therefore one of the named coastal areas within this larger protected-area framework.
Within the wider destination of Santa Elena, La Chocolatera is the farthest-projecting point of Ecuador’s coast and the second farthest projection in South America. Five viewpoints are connected by self-guided trails with information boards. Humedal Ecuasal is a habitat for more than 100 species of seabirds and shorebirds. Around 300 bird species have been recorded in the Loma Alta Reserve, including endemic species of the Tumbes and Chocó regions as well as typically Andean species.
The Las Cascadas hiking trail in Dos Mangas also passes through the humid forests of the Cordillera Chongón-Colonche and by several waterfalls. During the rainy season, the main waterfall can reach up to 20 meters in height. The landscape and nature attractions of the wider Santa Elena area thus offer a different focus from Ayangue’s bay and underwater image.
More Destinations
Discover more destinations: Santa Elena, Chanduy, Montañita, San Pablo, Valdivia, Ballenita, Anconcito, La Libertad.
Go to the overview of the wider destination: Santa Elena.
