Fodor's Expert Review Chirije

It's only 30 minutes from downtown Bahía de Caráquez, but to get here you can only come at low tide, because you have to drive along the beach before heading up a cliff again to. (The hotel knows the tides a year ahead.) This cluster of comfortable, solar-powered, thatch-roof cabins (each fit for six people) is built on a cliff overlooking a beach, where you'll find little besides fishermen's huts and tiny red crabs. The lodge is also literally on top of an archaeological site: artifacts uncovered are placed in a small on-site museum and registered with the government. Pottery has been dated to 500 BC. If you stay here, you'll be encouraged to help with the diggings—and if artifacts wash ashore, as they often do, to turn them in.