Travel to South America: Spotlight on Ecuador (VIDEO)

Galapagos Islands iguanas

The tiny South American country of Ecuador is placing a bit bet on the Superbowl this year. As recently reported by Yahoo Travel, Ecuador is spending $3.8 million on a 30-second advertisement showing off its tourism riches- from the Galapagos Islands to Quito. “Ecuador will be making history by becoming the first foreign country to have a tourism commercial during the Super Bowl,” explains Yahoo. The American market is the second largest (after Colombia) and the country is investing heavily in tourism infrastructure.

In other travel news out of Ecuador, it’s been announced that Quito’s notorious Garcia Moreno jail will be transformed into a luxury hotel. Overlooking the colonial city, the old prison was first inaugurated in 1875 and was closed definitely last April. This is not the first time that a prison has been converted into a hotel (there’s the Liberty in Boston, and another one in Montevideo, the capital of Uruguay).

Image: Iguanas on the Galapagos Islands via Wikipedia/ Marc Figueras