San Francisco Square, Market &amp; Church

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Places to visit within 30 km.

Casa de la Mujer (Woman's House) craft center

The Centro Municipal Artesanal (CEMUART)-Casa de la Mujer, promotes the fair commercialization of Cuenca's artisan products, since 1998. CEMUART is located in an old patrimonial house, in front of San Francisco Square, in the Historical Center. Inside, there are more than a hundred commercial premises with all kinds of handicrafts. Tourists can find almost the entire range of souvenirs to take home to family and friends. Toquilla straw hats, silver and gold filigree jewelry, textiles, wood carvings, ceramics, basketry, tagua, Andean musical instruments, glass, leather objects such as belts, bags and wallets, etc. A special place to find a gift, all under the same roof. The name Casa de la Mujer has its origin in the need to emphasize the important role of women in the artisan trades and their ability to perform them as a life option and to maintain their homes. Although the site is very well located and easily accessible, organized craftsmen and women take advantage of holidays and important dates in the city to hold outdoor fairs in much more central locations such as the block of the Cathedral, Sucre Street and Benigno Malo. CEMUART is an encounter with design, color, variety and cultural influence from all over the world. Its craftsmen and women are duly qualified. The cultural richness of Cuenca exhibited in these small stands puts something for all tastes within reach. The interior courtyard and its premises are covered. Buying handicrafts has this comfort even on rainy days. A nice feature is the dialogue that the visitor can initiate with the artisans, while watching their work and products. When people visit Cuenca, they want to know where they can find a souvenir. Bring a little culture. If there is no time to shop, you should go to the Casa de la Mujer. It's an option that could save a long walk around the city.

0.05 Km.

Cuenca's Flowers Market

Buying flowers was never as beautiful as in “Plaza de las Flores” or Cuenca's Flowers Market, World Heritage Site by UNESCO, in Ecuador. It is one of the most emblematic and outstanding urban spaces of the Historic Center of that Andean city. The market is a free space for pedestrians and it is surrounded by important buildings, such as the Church of Carmen, where the Divine Traveler Child (Divino Niño Viajero) is venerated, the Convent (cloister) of Carmen and the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. But the real standout attraction in the Plaza is its flowers market, which makes it a charming place. In 2014, the uniqueness of the market placed it in the Top 10 of the most beautiful outdoor flowers markets in the world, denomination granted by the international magazine National Geographic. The offer that can be find here is diverse, but mostly you will find roses, orchids or lilies. There is a dozen of tents that stand out by the explosion of the colors, the variety of flowers and aromas and the kindness of its merchants. Other destinations with which the Flowers Market of Cuenca can be compared are: Marché Aux Fleur (France); the Bloemenmarkt (Netherlands); Campo Dei Fiore (Italy); The Adderley Street Flower Market (South Africa); the Phool Mandi (India); and Pak Khlong Talat (Thailand). The Carmen Church, which is part of the architectural complex of the Monastery of Carmen de la Asunción, next to the Plaza, is one of the majestic religious structures of Cuenca. It has a stone carved facade, which constitutes a magnificent example of Baroque art in the city, and inside it has a renaissance-style wooden structure, in which you can see interesting sculptures. The nuns of the cloister of the Carmen prepare medicinal drinks with flowers that are sold to the population in the stores that are next to the Market.

0.12 Km.

10 de Agosto Market

Interest : Culture Type: Food and Supply Market Class : Urban Friendly with: children, families, seniors Relevant categories : Historic Center of Cuenca, Cultural Heritage of Humanity UNESCO - Within the Macizo del Cajas Biosphere Reserve UNESCO - Within Cuenca, National Cultural Heritage of Ecuador Hours : Monday to Sunday 07:00 - 18:00. The Historic Center of the city of Cuenca has three popular markets: August 10, October 9 and November 3, which curiously represent the three main dates of the Ecuadorian Independence process. Of these, the Mercado 10 de Agosto is the most central; a total mix of people, smells, colors and tastes. Visiting it may seem like a bizarre experience, but soon after being on the site this feeling disappears and despite its modernist structure, inside it preserves the characteristics of a popular Andean market intact. It was inaugurated on November 3, 1954. Years ago they remodeled it, placing two escalators to access the second floor, the food court. And on its façade, local artists painted three enormous murals in which they represented the symbols of Cuencanity: The Cathedral, the Plaza de los Flores, the Chola Cuencana and the Barranco. Tourists are surprised to find escalators in such a popular place. It has become a gastronomic custom for visitors to go to the food stalls on the upper floor, due to their cheap prices and because there they can consume a variety of traditional and typical dishes of Cuencan and Ecuadorian food: pork hornado, potatoes with leather or "crazy potatoes", corn or "mote" in its different preparations, potato tortilla or "llapingacho", lunches, smoothies and much more. The 10 de Agosto Market is also famous for its section of medicinal plants where it is possible to access an ancient healing method known as "clean", a process that has been inherited from generation to generation of herbalists and herbalists, vendors who know the properties plant healing. Vegetables, meats, handicrafts, fruits, sweets, all kinds of supplies and above all the spontaneous affection of people for foreigners, are part of this small world. Source: Fundación Municipal Turismo para Cuenca

0.15 Km.

Santa Ana Cathedral of Cuenca

It is said that the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, in Cuenca, Ecuador, is as big as the faith of the “Cuencanos”. It is also called the New Cathedral or simply the Cathedral. It is a catholic temple and the largest building in the city of Cuenca, which is World Cultural Heritage declared by UNESCO. Legend has it that when Bishop Miguel León ordered its construction, at the end of the 19th century, he would have expressed "I want a cathedral as big as the faith of my people". In the city of Cuenca, the third city in development of the Republic of Ecuador after Quito and Guayaquil, the religious fervor of its citizens can still be seen today. In its Historical Center more than 25 churches can be counted, sometimes up to two by each neighborhood, which is why it is also called "the city of the clergymen". The particularity of the presence of two churches in the same block or neighborhood is manifested in the Central Park of the city. In front of the New Cathedral there is the Old Cathedral. From its tower, the Franco-Spanish Geodesic Mission of the 18th century would have made the measurements that led the establishment of “metro” (meter) as a universal measure. The construction of the New Cathedral began in 1885 and ended 90 years later in 1975. It constitutes the great architectural attraction of Ecuador because of its size, at the same level as the Basilica of the National Vote in Quito city. The blueprints of the temple were designed by John Baptist Stiehle. Its two main towers have a characteristic truncated finish and one of the best panoramic views of the city. The cathedral marks the heart of Cuenca city, where 4 UNESCO’s awards coincide: the city’s historic center, the toquilla straw hat or "Panama hat" and the Camino del Inca (Inca Trail), which are World Heritages, plus the vast massif that includes the territory of the city which is a Biosphere Reserve.

0.17 Km.

Building of the Mayor's Office

Interest : Culture Type : Historic House Friendly to : children, families, seniors, handicapped, pets Relevant categories : Cuenca's Historic District World Cultural Site by UNESCO - Within Cajas Massif Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO - Cultural National Heritage by the Ecuadorian Government Hours : Monday to Friday 09:00 - 18:00, Saturdays 09:00 - 13:00 The building of the Mayor's Office of Cuenca belongs to the select group of patrimonial constructions that are the pride of the inhabitants of the city. Luis Donoso Barba built it for the headquarters of the Banco del Azuay, an entity that operated there from May 24, 1929 until its liquidation in 1999. Due to the façade of this building, in addition to the façades of the Superior Court of Justice, the New Cathedral and other houses in the historical center, the city is known as the "city of marble". In 2002, the Municipality of Cuenca received the building as a donation. It has an area of 2,500 m2. The ground floor is occupied by a gallery for artistic exhibitions. On the second floor there are the offices of the mayor, vice-mayor, the alternate room for the councillors, the secretary, the trade union and the financial management. The neoclassical-style building, without an internal courtyard, has spacious halls connecting various rooms. On the second floor, the brass ceiling stands out. It is undoubtedly one of the best examples of the French influence on Cuenca's architecture in the early 20th century. Its architect fulfilled the intention of its owners: to reflect greatness, luxury and economic power. The now disappeared Banco del Azuay was the first in Cuenca. Founded in 1913, in 1914 it became a pioneering entity when it printed the first Ecuadorian 1, 2, 5, 10 sucres banknotes.

0.20 Km.

San Luis Seminary

The San Luis Seminary, built in Republican style, is another of the emblematic buildings that surround the block of the Central Park or Abdón Calderón de Cuenca (UNESCO World Heritage Site). Also known as Major Seminary or Seminary College, it is a symbol of the influence of the Catholic Church in this city. It is administered by the Curia. In the center of the building there is a beautiful chapel, with reserved access. At present the Seminar’s rooms are mostly occupied by restaurants, cafes and craft shops. There is a Catholic radio station, offices of the Laity Pastoral and training rooms. From its main courtyard, the domes of the New Cathedral have a different, magnificent perspective. The Seminary represents a time of economic boom and important changes of the 19th century. It was the new image that the city assumed, due to the introduction of European models of architecture. The export of toquilla straw hats was booming and with the resources it generated, monumental works like this Seminary were undertaken. Construction began in 1867, under the direction of Mera from the capital city of Quito and the Frenchman Grevilliers. They introduced in its design the traditional portals. The San Luis Seminary occupies a complete block between Bolivar, Benigno Malo, Santa Ana and Padre Aguirre streets. For a long time, the building was the only center of higher education in the city. It was home to educational institutions such as the San Luis School, the only one in its time in Cuenca, to the Borja School and to the Catholic Educational Community. In 2013 this jewel of the region's architecture was on the verge of disappearing, due to a fire. The Ecuadorian state took charge of its restoration. Today, completely restored, it is the center of intense social, cultural, commercial, artisanal and gastronomic activity.

0.20 Km.