Tambopaxi Lodge

I called to ask if I could come with my motorcycle. The guy said no. When I looked disappointed he simply hanged up without any form of politeness. Very rude staff and from what I read prices are insanely high for the country.

We stayed here two nights. Our impression of the lodge is that it is a solid 3-4 stars. It's located just inside the park's north entrance and they play up the fact that they are the only in-park lodging/restaurant outside of the Refuge, but in terms of activities, scenery, altitude/acclimatization and convenience there's little practical difference in comparison to their three competitors just north of the park boundary. I would look seriously at these. Know that although a sedan can make it to the north gate from Machachi it's a very very slow bumpy ride on cobbles and dirt averaging 20 km/hr. Apparently the main entrance to the west is paved to high elevation and then I can confirm the dirt road is wide and smooth. Google maps is completely wrong and there is a road connecting these two entrances. As far as our stay, the food is average and the recipes don't seem particularly Ecuadorian. Pricing is competitive with nearby upscale competitors (menu of the day around $18, main dishes average around $11) but obviously this is way more expensive than less touristy areas. Our private room was clean but the bathrokm smelled of mold (without any obvious mold growing). They light the wood stove for you every evening and let you stoke it as needed. We had no issues with employees not knocking as previous review mentioned. We had no issues with wifi either. It is true there are no employees who speak English well so if you don't speak any Spanish I would avoid. It is somewhat striking that there don't seem to be female employees. The employees are friendly but don't seem to go out of their way to make you feel welcomed or attended to. Electricity is via a diesel generator about 200 m from main buildings so you don't hear it but you will smell diesel exhaust sometimes. It would be nice if they started transitioning to renewables. Generator goes off at night so no lights or charging. Overall we can't complain. It's expensive but in line with competitors. My impression purely from reviews is that alternatives just to the north probably have better food and more attention to detail.

I don't know why people hating on this place. This placed is located in an amazing area with a great view of Cotopaxi. Food was amazing, staff was friendly. It wasn't at all expensive. I do gotta mention that you will probably have to share a room with other people. We stayed in the biggest room that would probably fit ten people.. beds are right next to each other but we got lucky enough that there weren't many people staying that night or in our room.. the cabin can get cold so bring extra sweaters! Amazing experience though

The food is extremely overpriced. I regret not eating in Machachi before going to the Cotopaxi. For the same price I paid at the lodge, I would have eaten a feast for 10 people. I’m not talking about a reasonable extra price due to location, that’s normal, but paying 4~5 times the price for the same plate is ridiculous!

Excellent food and staff. Modern rooms with fireplaces and hot showers. Good wifi. Beautiful and peaceful location.