How to Visit La Casa del Arbol in Baños, Ecuador

One of the most popular things to do in Baños is a visit to La Casa del Arbol and to go on the ‘Swing at the ‘End of the World’. This small treehouse, perched on the side of a hill overlooking Tungurahua volcano, is on many visitor’s itineraries.

We spent a total of four days in Baños, and a visit to La Casa del Arbol was on our list too. The site is located just above the city, but the road leading to it is a good 20-30 minutes drive from the centre. In this guide you can learn about all the different ways to reach La Casa del Arbol and what other things you can do in the vicinity to make your visit worthwhile.

If you’d like to see our visit to La Casa del Arbol, then check out our dedicated Baños video on our YouTube Channel. For more Ecuador videos check out our Ecuador Playlist.

About La Casa del Arbol

La Casa del Arbol, or ‘the treehouse’ in English, is built on the edge of one of the mountains next to Tungurahua volcano. Sitting at 2,600 m (8,530 ft) above sea level, it’s about 800 m (2,624 ft) higher than Baños itself (1,820 m / 5,971 ft).

The site of La Casa del Arbol was being used to monitor the activities of Tungurahua volcano, which restarted volcanic activity in 1999 and has had multiple eruptions since. The family of the man who was monitoring the volcano used to visit him up there. To keep the kids entertained, he attached a simple swing to the treehouse. As you can imagine, once a photo of the kids on the swing with a volcano in the background ended up on the internet, the site became quite an attraction.

So much so, that due to safety concerns the treehouse has been re-modelled in recent years. Now the tree is supported by steel beams and there are two swings attached to it. The swings have seatbelts too for extra security. In addition to the treehouse, there are also some other swings, a mini zip-line, and a restaurant on site.

How to Visit La Casa del Arbol in Baños

1. Hiking to La Casa del Arbol from Baños

The most cost effective but most physically demanding way to visit La Casa del Arbol from Baños is to hike to it.

If you’re staying in the centre of the city, then you can easily reach the trailhead on foot. The trailhead is located at the end of Misioneros Dominicanos street, close to the cemetery. Unfortunately, the trail starts with a lot of stairs which can be quite challenging. It’ll lead to a viewpoint called Mirador la Virgen from where you can enjoy some fantastic views of Baños.

From the viewpoint you’ll need to take the right fork and keep hiking uphill. The left fork would take you back to the city. Along the way you should get a few more viewpoints of Baños. Taking about two more right forks, you should join the small paved road leading to La Casa del Arbol.

Now it’s worth noting that whilst the route up to the site is only about 3 km long, you’ll gain nearly 750 m of elevation. We would also recommend doing this hike with someone else, just to be on the safe side. You can get back to Baños by going back the same way or extend your hike to another viewpoint called Mirador Bellavista. If you’re tired, you can just hop onto the local bus back down. You can follow our hiking map here.

2. Taking a Local Bus to La Casa del Arbol from Baños

Another budget friendly way to reach La Casa del Arbol from Baños is to take the local bus. Now, this is definitely much easier than hiking, but the main downside of this option is the irregular service.

The bus leaves at 5:45AM, 11AM, 2PM and 4PM to the treehouse. Then it returns to Baños at 8AM, 1PM, 4PM and 6PM.

The bus departs from the stop in front of Panaderia La Delicia Don Gato located at the corner of Pastaza and Vicente Rocafuerte streets.

Taking the 11 AM bus is definitely the best option since there isn’t much to do up there before the 8:30AM opening time. The bus would head back to Baños around 1PM, which would give you plenty of time to swing at the end of the world. This is a great option for those wanting to save some pennies and who don’t mind the crowds or queues for the swings. Alternatively, you can also go up with one of the afternoon services.

A one-way journey is $1 USD.

3. Taking a Taxi to La Casa del Arbol from Baños

The most convenient way to visit La Casa del Arbol is to take a taxi. It will give you the chance to get there around opening time and you’ll be able to enjoy the place without crowds or queuing for the swings just to get that iconic photo.

The downside of this option is obviously the cost. Since it’s quite a drive – it can take a good 20 to 30 minutes to drive up – expect to pay at least $10 USD for a one-way journey. Make sure to agree on a fare before the journey and let your driver know if you want a ride back or not. The price will be higher if you want a return journey, but you can always negotiate a little. Of course, if you’re splitting the cost with a few others than it can be a more affordable option.

Top Tip. Other ways to save are to either take the local bus back to Baños leaving around 1PM or hike back down. If you take the taxi up early, you can even combine your visit with another cool viewpoint we’ll detail further down this post.

4. Taking a Tour to La Casa del Arbol from Baños

Personally, taking a tour is our least favourite option. However, we appreciate that you might be in a bit of a hurry or looking to socialise and a tour could be the most convenient option for you.

There are plenty of tour operators in Baños, so we recommend booking something once you’re in the city.

Best Time to Visit La Casa del Arbol in Baños

You can visit La Casa del Arbol all year round. The rainiest months in Baños are between January and March. The driest months are between June and August.

Now, it’s worth noting that Tungurahua volcano will be covered in clouds more often than not. Although you might get lucky during your visit. We recommend picking a relatively dry day to visit the treehouse, because it’s a pretty open space.

If you want to avoid the crowds, then definitely visit early in the morning before the first local bus and tour groups arrive. However, nowadays, no matter how early you are, there will likely still be others there already.

Entry Fee and Opening Times at La Casa del Arbol

Entry fee to La Casa del Arbol is $1 USD per person.

The site is open every day between 8:30AM and 6:30PM with slightly longer opening times on the weekends (7:30AM – 7:00PM).

Other Things to Do Around La Casa del Arbol in Baños

Las Manos de la Pachamama

Since a visit to La Casa del Arbol won’t take too long, we recommend a visit to Las Manos de la Pachamama to make the most of your time up in this area. Located only a few kilometres to the east of La Casa del Arbol, you can easily walk between the two sites by following our AllTrails map here.

The viewpoint’s name literally translates to ‘the hands of Pachamama (Mother Earth)’ and you’ll find two massive models of hands and a heart here which are used as viewing platforms.

The palms have a diameter of about 64 m and were built about 700m above the Ulba River. From the hands you can admire the views of the volcanoes of the Sangay and Llanganates National Parks.

Entry fee is $7 USD per person for the viewing platforms. You can also enjoy some more adrenaline pumping activities here, such as extreme swings and a suspension bridge, for an additional cost.

Mirador la Virgen

If you decide to hike up to the treehouse, then you’ll likely stop at Mirador la Virgen. This viewpoint is located about 30 minutes up some steep steps from the city. It provides you with some beautiful views of Baños.

You can visit the viewpoint as a separate activity too. However, combining it with a visit to La Casa del Arbol will make the most sense if you’ve hiked up that far already!

Mirador Bellavista

Located on the other side of Baños is another lovely viewpoint called Mirador Bellavista. From here you can enjoy the views of Baños from a slightly different angle. There are also some food vendors in case you’ve gotten a bit peckish after your hike.

Based on our research, some of the chiva tour buses go up here too. The viewpoint is also a great place to visit after sunset when you can enjoy the atmosphere and the view of the city at night.

Stop By at a Cafe or Restaurant in the Area

After our visit to Las Manos de la Pachamama, we had some time to kill until the bus. So we decided to grab something from La Mazorca Dorada just across the road.

We had the most amazing chat with the owners and the best tomate de arbol juice (tamarillo or yellow tomato juice). We could literally see the vegetable fields where our juice came from behind the restaurant. There was even an artsy shop inside where you could purchase some jewelry and other gifts.

It’s definitely worth stopping at any one of these restaurants and cafes scattered around La Casa del Arbol.

Social Media Expectations vs. Reality

People (including us) visiting La Casa del Arbol can take some pretty creative photos where the end result really looks like you’re swinging at the end of the world. With a massive active volcano right next to you, it can almost feel like you’re doing something extraordinary.

The scenic setting, the thrill, and the affordable entry definitely make this places a tourist magnet.

Which is the reason why we read from so many others that it was a bit of a disappointing experience. This is totally understandable, since on a well curated photo you won’t see the extra stone slab that helps you to swing even higher, or a person pushing you to just the right height. You also won’t see the queue behind the person on the swing waiting to take the exact same shot.

We think it’s still worth visiting the site. The location itself is breathtaking. Snapping some creative photos is also totally fine. After all, who wouldn’t want to imagine themselves swinging at the end of the world?

However, for a more fulfilling experience we suggest you go the extra mile and hike up to it. In hindsight, we would’ve done this if we had to do it all over again. Perhaps add a visit to other nearby attractions such as Las Manos de la Pachamama, Mirador la Virgen, or Mirador Bellavista to your itinerary. Stopping at some of the surrounding cafes or restaurants would also be supportive of the local community.

Plus, don’t forget there are now a few other cool swings at the site too, and with the right angle you can take some equally cool photos.

Final Thoughts on Visiting La Casa del Arbol in Baños

It’s safe to say that we enjoyed our visit to La Casa del Arbol in Baños. However, this is mainly because we made an effort to get there before all the tour groups and other visitors arrived. This definitely made our visit more pleasant. We’re not sure if we would’ve enjoyed it a few hours later.

What made the whole experience even better was also visiting the Las Manos de la Pachamama viewpoint. This is such a beautiful spot and since we didn’t have time to visit the ‘Las Manos de Dios’ viewpoint, we could at least enjoy a similar structure at this site.

Have you ever been to La Casa del Arbol in Baños? If so, what was your experience? Was it overhyped or did you enjoy your visit? If not, would you visit this very popular spot during your trip to Baños? Let us know in the comments below.