Manta is Ecuador's boom town with new construction and new plazas popping up daily! With a population of 268,000, it is economically the third most important city of Ecuador and is also the most developed beach town on Ecuador's coast. In recent years, it has become a popular stop for international cruise liners sailing from the Caribbean to Latin America.

ART & CULTURE:

Manta hosts an International Theater Festival in September. First celebrated in 1988, this festival is the most important theatrical event in Ecuador. The festival features theater, contemporary dance, puppets, experimental music and pantomime, with artists from North and South America, Europe and Asia.

The Banco Central Museum (Avenida 8 and Calle 7) has an important collection of Manta's Pre-Colombian art.

ATTRACTIONS:

Visitors love Manta for its beaches and nightlife. Manta's Malecon, a boardwalk that arcs around the bay, is full of people partying, loud music and groups of young people in the evenings. Located along the Malecon are Manta's finest hotel, Hotel Oro Verde, CC Paseo Shopping Center, banks, and the Manta Yacht Club. Playa Barbasquillo is another favorite for visitors with its amenities such as a swimming pool, sauna, gym and nightclub. There is also horseback riding at Barbasquillo. The Playa Murcielago (Bat Beach) area along the Malecon is very popular. Head there for music, beach aerobics, parties and night life in general or to sample some of the incredibly fresh local seafood. Head over to Tarqui Beach for volleyball, football and other sports in the sand. especially on weekends. Surfers usually travel to San Lorenzo (roughly 18 miles out of Manta) to catch waves which are regularly head high.

Sporting events take place in November and from January through April. As in the entire country, futbol (soccer) is the main sport of the city. The city has two professional teams: Delfin S.C. and Manta F.C. However, most inhabitants are fans of Barcelona S.C., the team with the largest fan base in Ecuador. Water sports include surfing (Manta was the host for the 2004 Bodyboarding World Cup), sport fishing, water skiing, kiteboarding and kitesurfing. Manta was selected as the site of the sixth South American Windsurfing Championship.

Manta boasts quite the selection of nightclubs, an amusement park, cinemas and, of course, restaurants featuring fresh, local seafood.

SHOPPING:

Panama Hats: Nearby is the small town of Montecristi, founded in the early 1600s. With its colonial architecture, this small town is best known for its wickerwork weaving and as the original birth place of the Panama Hats which, despite their name, are from Ecuador. In Ecuador, the hats are even called "Montecristis", not Panama Hats. Montecristi is a great place to shop for local crafts at a number of shops across from the main plaza, which feature ceramics, wickerwork and Panama Hats in a variety of shapes and colors.

HISTORY:

Manta has existed since Pre-Colombian times. It was a trading post for the Mantas and the Incas. Spaniards favored the thriving Manta community as a natural harbor. The port's importance grew as conquistadors began shipping hordes of looted Incan gold all along the Pacific coast. Itineraries for cargo routes had to be changed often to avoid pirate attacks, so like many of its neighbors, the port was developed into a colonial supply station. For many years after Ecuador was colonized and the gold stopped flowing, Manta languished as a traditional fishing community. Even today, Manta's main economic activity is tuna fishing. Since 1999, Manta has been used as a military location for U.S. forces, in conjunction with Ecuador, for supporting anti-narcotics military operations and for carrying out surveillance flights in a strategic warfare program against Colombian drug trafficking cartels called Plan Colombia.

CLIMATE:

Manta is blessed by pleasant, ever-present sea breezes in the evening. From December to April is the rainy season which is also known as 'winter.' During this time of the year, it is hot and rains daily, though also has hours of sunshine each day. Average high during winter is 82F/28C and average low is 71F/22C. From May to December is the dry season which is the coolest time of year with an average temperature of 78F/26C high and 68F/20C low.