Museo de la Ciudad

Quito


This first-rate museum depicts daily life in Quito through the centuries, with displays including dioramas, model indigenous homes and colonial kitchens. The 1563 building itself (a former hospital) is a work of art. There are also a number of temporary exhibitions. Entry is free on the last Sunday of the month.

The museum sits just past the 18th-century arch, Arco de la Reina, built to give shelter to churchgoers.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Quito attractions

1. Arco de la Reina

0.02 MILES

This massive arch, built in the 18th century to give shelter to churchgoers, spans García Moreno.

2. Monasterio Museo del Carmen Alto

0.02 MILES

The Monasterio Museo del Carmen Alto, built in 1653 and still home to an order of 20 Carmelite nuns, now houses an interesting museum. Exhibits explore…

3. La Ronda

0.11 MILES

La Ronda is a colorful cobblestone street featuring colonial houses mostly given over to souvenir shops, bars and restaurants, and carefully restored for…

4. Casa Museo María Augusta Urrutía

0.12 MILES

Of Quito’s house museums, this is the one not to miss: it’s a splendidly preserved, 19th-century home that was once the abode of the city’s best-loved…

5. Casa del Alabado

0.12 MILES

Housed in an elegant colonial-era home, this privately owned museum with contemporary displays showcases an impressive collection of pre-Columbian…

6. Museo Casa de Sucre

0.14 MILES

The beautifully restored former home of Mariscal Antonio José de Sucre, the hero of Ecuadorian independence, is now a small museum full of early-19th…

7. Plaza San Francisco

0.15 MILES

Walking from the Old Town’s narrow colonial streets into this open plaza reveals one of the finest sights in all of Ecuador: a sweeping cobblestone plaza…

8. Plaza Santo Domingo

0.16 MILES

Plaza Santo Domingo, near the southwest end of Calle Guayaquil, is a regular haunt for street performers. The plaza is beautiful in the evening, when the…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "ecuador/quito/attractions/museo-de-la-ciudad/a/poi-sig/436386/363359",
      "destination": "Quito",
      "continent": "South-America",
      "country": "Ecuador",
      "city": "Quito",
      "position": "superzone"
    }