# Santa Elena Province, Ecuador – Cantons, Population & Map

> Source: https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/santa-elena/

Province · Ecuador 

# Santa Elena Province

Santa Elena Province is a province of Ecuador. It had an estimated **401,178 people** in 2020 on 3,695 km² (about 109 per km²). Its main town is Santa Elena. It is divided into 3 cantons. 211 named villages and localities are recorded here, and 1,139 mapped services such as hospitals, banks and schools.

- 401,178people (2020)
- 3,695km²
- 3cantons
- 1,139mapped services

## How many people live in Santa Elena Province?

Santa Elena Province had an estimated **401,178 people** in 2020 — 2.3% of Ecuador, 14th of 24 provinces. There are 966 women for every 1,000 men (below the Ecuador figure of 1,021). Spread over 3,695 km², that is about **109 people per km²**, 7th of 24 provinces.

32.1% of people are children under 15 and 6.4% are 65 or older; the median age is about 25 years (it is 27 across Ecuador). For every 100 people of working age (15–64) there are 63 children and older people.

0–4 ****8,897**

1–5 ****35,245**

5–9 ****43,330**

10–14 ****41,383**

15–19 ****37,487**

20–24 ****33,944**

25–29 ****30,981**

30–34 ****28,472**

35–39 ****26,305**

40–44 ****23,715**

45–49 ****20,803**

50–54 ****17,867**

55–59 ****14,971**

60–64 ****12,070**

65–69 ****9,281**

70–74 ****6,730**

75–79 ****4,561**

80+ ****5,136**

Source: [UNFPA and INEC - Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos via OCHA HDX, population 2020 (COD-PS, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ps-ecu).

## Where is Santa Elena Province?

Santa Elena Province lies in [Ecuador](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/). It borders 2 other provinces: [Guayas Province](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/guayas/) and [Manabí Province](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/manabi/). By area it is the 22nd largest of 24 provinces in Ecuador. It covers 1.4% of [Ecuador](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/). The centre of Santa Elena Province is about 303 km in a straight line from Quito, the capital. The centre point is at 2.0876° S, 80.5241° W.

Source: [INEC - Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos via OCHA HDX, administrative boundaries (COD-AB, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ab-ecu).

## Things to see in and around Santa Elena Province

OpenStreetMap lists 42 named sights in Santa Elena Province: 10 viewpoints; 9 museums; 6 attractions; 6 beachs; 4 memorials; 3 waterfalls; 1 hot spring; 1 nature reserve; 1 archaeological site; 1 aquarium.

- Acuario Valdivia · museum
- Galería Náutica · museum
- La casa de las Antigüedades · museum
- Los Amantes de Sumpa · museum
- Museo Casaleón · museum
- Museo Cultural Valdivia · museum
- Museo Paleontológico “Megaterio” · museum
- Museo Salinas Siglo XXI · museum
- Museo de Ballenas (appointment required) · museum
- Complejo Cultural Real Alto · archaeological site
- Cascada de Dos Mangas · waterfall
- Las Cascadas de Álex · waterfall
- Waimea · waterfall
- Reserva Ecológica Comunal Loma Alta · nature reserve
- Guaymea Beach · beach
- Mar Bravo · beach
- Playa Carioca · beach
- Playa Cautivo · beach
- Playa Cuyuipe · beach
- Playa de Cadeate · beach
- ATAHUALPA · viewpoint
- El Mirador de La Caleta · viewpoint
- Mirador El Faro · viewpoint
- Mirador Farallón Dillon · viewpoint
- Mirador La Puntilla · viewpoint
- Mirador Montañita · viewpoint
- Mirador de Olón · viewpoint
- Mirador, Cerro "El Tablazo" · viewpoint
- Punta Carnero Beach · viewpoint
- Viewpoint of the sea · viewpoint

…and 12 more.

Source: [© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL), Geofabrik extract — named settlements](https://www.openstreetmap.org/copyright).

Named attractions, museums, viewpoints, historic sites and natural features mapped in OpenStreetMap. Places of worship are not listed.

## Know before you go: Santa Elena Province

- Time zoneUTC−5, no daylight saving · America/Guayaquil
- CurrencyDollar (USD)
- Country calling code+593
- LanguagesSpanish
- Plug typesType A, B · 120 V
- Driving sideRight
- Postcode format6 digits (######)

### Nearest airports

- General Ulpiano Paez International Airport (SNC) · Salinas/La Libertad53 km
- José Joaquín de Olmedo International Airport (GYE) · Guayaquil72 km

### Daylight

Days are longest in Dec (about 12.2 hours, sunrise around 06:09) and shortest in Jun (about 12.0 hours, sunrise around 06:22, sunset around 18:22).

Month Sunrise Sunset Daylight 

Jan 06:23 18:37 12.2 h 

Feb 06:31 18:41 12.2 h 

Mar 06:28 18:35 12.1 h 

Apr 06:20 18:24 12.1 h 

May 06:17 18:18 12.0 h 

Jun 06:22 18:22 12.0 h 

Jul 06:27 18:28 12.0 h 

Aug 06:25 18:28 12.0 h 

Sep 06:14 18:20 12.1 h 

Oct 06:03 18:12 12.2 h 

Nov 06:00 18:13 12.2 h 

Dec 06:09 18:24 12.2 h 

Source: [GeoNames country and time-zone files (CC BY 4.0)](https://www.geonames.org/); [Wikidata (CC0) — plug types, mains voltage, driving side; retrieved 2026-11-02](https://www.wikidata.org/); [OurAirports (public domain)](https://ourairports.com/data/).

Airports with scheduled passenger flights; straight-line distances. Daylight is calculated for the 15th of each month in local standard time. Check entry and visa rules with official government sources before travelling.

## Cantons of Santa Elena Province

Canton Area km² Parishes Services 

[La Libertad Canton](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/santa-elena/la-libertad/) 25 1 190 

[Salinas Canton](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/santa-elena/salinas/) 68 3 382 

[Santa Elena Canton](https://wherepedia.org/ecuador/santa-elena/santa-elena/) 3,602 7 567 

Source: [INEC - Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos via OCHA HDX, administrative boundaries (COD-AB, CC BY-IGO)](https://data.humdata.org/dataset/cod-ab-ecu); [GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — settlements, natural and historic features](https://www.geonames.org/); [Overture Maps places (CDLA-Permissive-2.0) and © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)](https://overturemaps.org/).

## Largest towns in Santa Elena Province

- La Libertad75,881
- Salinas43,862
- Santa Elena42,214

Source: [GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — settlements, natural and historic features](https://www.geonames.org/).

Populations as recorded in GeoNames, which may be older than the estimates above.

## Landscape and landmarks of Santa Elena Province

Named natural and historic features inside Santa Elena Province, from the GeoNames gazetteer.

### Water

32 rivers and streams; 1 lake.

- Estero Balsa
- Estero de Canando
- Estero de Guangala
- La Quebrada
- Laguna Velasco Ibarra
- Río Atravesado
- Río Blanco
- Río Carrizal
- Río Don Pancho
- Río El Coroso
- Río Engabao
- Río Espingo
- Río Fernán Sánchez
- Río Grande
- Río Hondo
- Río Javita
- Río Jusá
- Río Manglaralto
- Río Matapalo
- Río Matilla
- Río Nuevo
- Río Olón
- Río Pechiche
- Río Seco

…and 9 more.

### Coast and islands

7 headlands.

- Punta Ancón
- Punta Barandoas
- Punta Blanca
- Punta Carnero
- Punta Chullluype
- Punta Mandinga
- Punta Petróleo

### Hills and mountains

8 mountains; 3 hills.

- Cerro Zapotal · 315 m
- Cerro Alto · 248 m
- Cerro El Gallo · 182 m
- Loma Alfaro · 132 m
- Cerro Ánimas · 116 m
- Cerro Verde · 78 m
- Cerro de la Cruz · 74 m
- Cerro Pachanga · 68 m
- Medio Cerro · 58 m
- Achaílan · 24 m
- Cerro de La Plata · 9 m

### Estates

3 estates.

- Hacienda Conchita
- Hacienda Inés
- Hacienda San Pedro

### Getting around

5 airfields; 2 lighthouses; 1 airport.

- Agrivel
- Ayangue
- Chocolatera Lighthouse
- Coaselsa
- General Ulpiano Paez Airport
- Manglaralto
- Mar Abierto
- Punta Santa Elena Lighthouse

Source: [GeoNames (CC BY 4.0) — settlements, natural and historic features](https://www.geonames.org/).

Places of worship are not listed. Elevations are from the GeoNames terrain model and are approximate.

## Weather in Santa Elena Province and the best time to visit

In Santa Elena Province, the warmest month is Feb (average 26 °C) and the coolest is Sep (23 °C). About 517 mm of rain falls in a year; the wettest month is Feb (156 mm) and the driest Sep (1 mm). The most comfortable months for a visit are **April to January**.

- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec

Month Average °C Rain mm 

Jan 25 80 

Feb 26 156 

Mar 26 156 

Apr 25 76 

May 25 22 

Jun 24 5 

Jul 24 2 

Aug 23 1 

Sep 23 1 

Oct 23 2 

Nov 24 3 

Dec 25 14 

Source: [NASA POWER climatology, retrieved 2026-10-29](https://power.larc.nasa.gov/).

## Hospitals, banks and other services in Santa Elena Province

Places mapped inside Santa Elena Province in open map data, by type — each number opens the full list with locations.

- Hospitals40
- Banks26
- ATMs7
- Petrol pumps29
- Hotels370
- Shopping malls7
- Schools83
- Colleges and universities18
- Cinemas3
- Pharmacies65
- Restaurants457
- Police stations8
- Dental clinics26

Source: [Overture Maps places (CDLA-Permissive-2.0) and © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL)](https://overturemaps.org/).

Coverage depends on what has been mapped; contact details are not shown.

## Quick answers

- Where is Santa Elena Province?In Ecuador
- What is the population of Santa Elena Province?401,178 (2020 estimate)
- What is the median age in Santa Elena Province?About 25 years (2020 estimate)
- What is the population density of Santa Elena Province?About 109 people per km²
- What borders Santa Elena Province?Guayas Province and Manabí Province
- What is there to see in Santa Elena Province?ATAHUALPA, Acuario Valdivia, Baños de San Vicente, Casa de los 100 años
- What time zone is Santa Elena Province in?UTC−5
- What currency is used in Santa Elena Province?Dollar (USD)
- What language is spoken in Santa Elena Province?Spanish (main languages nationally)
- What is the largest town in Santa Elena Province?La Libertad
- What is the highest point in Santa Elena Province?Cerro Zapotal (315 m, GeoNames elevation model)
- What is the best time to visit Santa Elena Province?April to January
- How many hospitals are in Santa Elena Province?40 mapped
- How many banks are in Santa Elena Province?26 mapped
- How many ATMs are in Santa Elena Province?7 mapped
- How many petrol pumps are in Santa Elena Province?29 mapped
- What is the P-code of Santa Elena Province?EC24 (OCHA common operational dataset)