Getting Here
Airport and bus terminal
Cuenca has its own airport with flights from Quito. Buses arrive at the bus terminal.
After you arrival at the airport or the bus terminal in Cuenca you can take trams, buses and taxis to your final destination. The airport and the bus terminal both have tram stops. At the tram stops, you can buy tickets for the tram ($1.00). For buses, you need a bus card to pay for your trip. You can buy a bus card inside the city bus terminal next to the main bus terminal. Cuenca has metered taxis so you don't need to negotiate a price. Taxis to the city center will cost around $2.00 during the day and a little bit more at night.
Road closures
Sometimes roads to Cuenca are closed because of traffic accidents, landslides, or floods. See the Twitter page ECU 911 Austro to see whether a road is open or not.
Travel Options
From Baños de Agua Santa
Transportes Amazonas has direct bus services from Baños de Agua Santa to Cuenca. Tickets need to be bought with anticipation. The duration of the trip is about 10 hours. The buses will stop for a lunch. Another options is to first take a bus to Ambato or Riobamba and switching buses in these cities.
From Guayaquil
See How to travel from Guayaquil to Cuenca for all options.
From Loja and Vilcabamba
EcuavanTur and Elite Tours offer van services from Loja to Cuenca.
Buses to Cuenca depart from the Reina del Cisne bus termina in Loja. The companies that offer bus services to Cuenca are Cooperativa de Transportes Loja ($7.50 in 2021), Ejecutivo San Luis, and Viajeros Internacional.
If you depart from Vilcabamba, you first have to take a taxi to Loja.
From Manta
Flota Imbabura operates a daily nightbus between Manta and Cuenca.
From Montañita and Olón
CLP operated direct buses between Montañita and Cuenca ($16).
From Salinas, Ballenita, Santa Elena
CLP operated direct buses between the Santa Elena Bus Terminal in Santa Elena and the Cuenca Bus Terminal in Cuenca ($14).
From Quito
Buses to Cuenca depart from the Quitumbe Bus Terminal in Quito. Price: $13.80 (2023).
From Peru
Cooperativa de Transporte Azuay Internacional offers daily bus services between Chiclayo, Piura and Máncora in Peru and Cuenca. Buses in Cuenca arrive at the Cuenca Bus Terminal. There will be a stop at the border where you'll be given ample time to do the border procedures. In Peru, there will also be a stop at a customs checkpoint 7.5 km south of Punta Sal.
Traffic Fines
There are several speed cameras in and around Cuenca. It is usually worth contesting speed camera fines. You can contact the legal firm Legal and Travel for this.