Quito - Post Report Question and Answers
What is the typical dress code at work and in public places? Is formal dress ever required?
Quito is pretty casual and lends itself to sensible walking shoes and flannel shirts. Night time temps are perfect for a puffy. - Jul 2023
Work is regular work attire. Few formal events. Overall the dress in the city is quite casual. - Jul 2023
The Embassy is business attire. Otherwise around town you'll see the gamut. - Jul 2019
Formal only for Marine ball. Business/business casual for work. Lots of sweaters, blazers. It is cool in the morning and evening and can get hot in the sun during the day. Bring a raincoat and umbrella. In public people tend not to wear shorts and dress in layers. - Jul 2018
Business casual, usually. Business sometimes. Formal events are rare. - Mar 2017
Women's fashions range from professional to knit stretch pants and a t-shirt. Dress is varied based on employment. Men are usually in casual business attire. Formal or semi-formal attire for women is needed for most evening events like special birthdays, diplomatic functions, etc. Women like to dress up -- high heels and dresses either floor length or 6 inches+ above the knees. - Sep 2016
Quiteños dress pretty formally, even to go grocery shopping. Tank tops, low cut shorts, baggy pants, etc. would be viewed as inappropriate. That said, people are used to seeing foreigners dress in pretty much anything (or nothing). - Aug 2015
Suit and tie at work, casual modern garb out in public. All normal. - Aug 2014
It's quite conservative, so the business world is coat-and-tie. - Jul 2012
Ecuadorian women dress in skirts or long pants and high heels (torture walking up those hills on uneven pavement!). Men often wear suits to work. I usually dress nicely for work. I never wear shorts here. - Jan 2011
Business attire is similar to Stateside. Layering works well in this climate. If you wear shorts or sport sandals in public (male or female), you'll stand out and be branded an "extranjero" or tourist. If you like cleavage and stiletto heels, you'll fit right in. - May 2010
Business dress for work, but on the streets you'll see anything from cut offs to fur. - Oct 2009
Ecuadorians normally wear standard business attire at work: suit and tie for gentlemen, with both skirts and pants considered appropriate for women; fewer short skirts are seen here than elsewhere in Latin America. The climate is in the 50s-70s year-round, on the cooler side except in the hotter, sunny months (June-August), so dress is keyed to that. Short-sleeve shirts and shorts are unusual, except sometimes during the hotter months. Light jackets and layered clothing are the norm, think San Francisco. - Jan 2009
