Overview
Manta is a port city on Ecuador's central coast. It's known for its tuna-fishing industry. The popular Murciélago Beach is on the city's northwestern tip. Bars and restaurants are clustered along the Malecón Escénico promenade and nearby streets.
Description
The low-key Tarqui Beach has a waterside fish market. Nearby, the Central Bank Museum contains pre-Columbian relics from indigenous tribes. The largest city in the province (and the fifth largest in Ecuador), Manta is a bustling and prosperous port town graced with high-rises, and a few urban beaches that draw mostly domestic tourists. As an important center for the fishing and tuna-processing industries, it’s the kind of place you smell before you arrive, and its quirkiest sight is a huge statue of a tuna (complete with attached tin can). Indeed, there aren't a lot of reasons to come here – the beaches are far better elsewhere on the coast – but it’s an important transportation hub and has lively nightlife. You may pass through if you’re visiting the handicraft town of Montecristi.
Manta, Manabi
Ecuador
URL:
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/ecuador/pacific-coast-and-lowlands/manta