Most visitors to Otavalo come on day trips from Quito to see the famous handicrafts market. This doesn´t leave much time to visit any of the rural communities and surrounding countryside. Therefore we strongly recommend to stay at least one night and to do a short hike to some of the communities the next morning. Even better is if you have three or more days available to fully immerse yourself in the local culture. That way, you will get a much more detailed and balanced look on the daily life of indigenous families in the area.