A deeply Roman Catholic country, Ecuador's many festivals are centered around the liturgical calendar and combine pageantry with the traditional Indian fiesta. This said, Ecuadorians love to party, and thus music, parades, dressing up, beauty contests, dancing in the streets, drinking, feasting, bull fighting, rooster fighting, and firecrackers are involved in any of the numerous events (which sometimes happen for no apparent reason, though are probably linked to ancient Incan times). Fiestas are a great party place for a visitor to start.

Carnival, the biggest festival of the year, is the week before Lent (usually in February) and involves the famous Ecuadorian water fights in which no one (not even a tourist) gets spared (expect in the town of Ambato). Following Carnival, Semana Santa begins on Palm Sunday and ends on Easter. The religious processions that characterize this week are said to be best in Quito--penitents and flagellants dragging crosses through the streets. June marks the Corpus Christi celebration in many of the highland towns (south of Quito), and the Festival of St. John the Baptist, for which Otavalo (north of Quito) shuts down almost entirely. This holiday is often merged with San Juan and San Pablo holidays later in the month. The country's most famous festival is held in September for La Fiesta de la Mamá Negra in Latacunga. All Souls' Day is November 2, and a slew of city days follow; Quito's is the first week of December, marked by bullfights at the Plaza de Toros.  

For a complete list of Ecuador's holidays, go here. For details on each, go here.