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Going to South America, Advice needed!
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23-02-2010 9:29pm#1
Comments
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It all depends on how long you have and where you're flying home from.
If you're starting in Rio and going to Peru, I'd suggest travelling South in Brazil with a detour to Iguassu Falls to Uruguay, spend a bit of time there (if the weather's nice try the beaches, otherwise Montevideo and Colonia are worth a few days and the steaks are great!). Then get the ferry across to Buenos Aires, spend some time there, then head south to Patagonia. You can get the bus south to Puerto Madryn to see the Southern Right Whales (if it's the right time of the year) and then another bus to El Calafate where you can see the Perito Moreno Glacier. That's unmissable!!
You can try Bariloche (can't advise on it - didn't go, but heard it was great for skiing) and Mendoza is a great place to do wine tasting and chill. Salta is a nice place in the north of Argentina to break up the journey into Bolivia.
You can cross to Chile first to see San Pedro De Atacama, the valley of the moon, a really cool desert where you can sandboard. From there you can get a tour of the Salar De Uyuni in Bolivia. The Salt Plains are another unmissable thing in South America. We heard that the tours aren't as good from that side as from Uyuni, but saying that only about 3 of the 60 or so in Uyuni are good, so if you want advice on that PM me.
In Bolivia you can spend a little bit of time trekking or horseriding around Tupiza (the area Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid used to rob trains and banks in) and head North to Potosí. In Potosí you can do a tour of the mines there. It's pretty tough going physically and mentally, but really worth it. Be prepared for altitude in Bolivia and parts of Peru. Get some Diamox tablets before you leave and drink lots of Coca tea when you're there. From Potosí you can chill out in Sucre, a gorgeous town unlike the whole rest of Bolivia. In La Paz, you can cycle the World's Most Dangerous Road - it's just as it sounds, people really die and injure themselves here, but it's such a cool experience it's def worth the risk. Just don't go out drinking or doing drugs the night before and take it easy and enjoy the scenery. If you do it, go with Gravity. They're the only reliable company doing it. YOu hear shock stories about bikes with no brakes etc. Plus with Gravity, you can arrange a night in La Senda Verde, a wildlife sanctuary where the tour ends. You might even end up volunteering there - it's a really cool place full of monkeys, parrotts, a spectacled bear and lots of free-roaming animals rescued from the horrible market in La Paz. You can finish Bolivia off with a visit to chilled-out Copacabana and a trek on Isla Del Sol on Lake Titicaca.
You can cross from here to Puno in Peru and do the Peruvian version of the islands on Titicaca. Don't let this first impression of Peru put you off. It's very overly touristy and a bit lame at times, but interesting all the same. The floating Uros reed islands are interesting for what they are, but clearly now only used for a tourist attraction. You can stay with a family on Amantani island which is authentic enough, except for the big impromtu festival they have that night, where they dress you up and you head out for a night of dancing! From Puno you can head to Arrequipa, a really nice town. From there you can do a trek of the Colca Canyon, one of the world's deepest canyons. It takes three days and is pretty tough, but really amazing. Land Adventures are brilliant and make sure you ask for Carlitos as your guide. You can head north from here to Cusco. The obvious attraction around Cusco is Macchu Pichu. I can't reccomend the Inca Trail enough. This is truely unmissable. YOu hear a lot of people say it's overly touristy and crowded and you should do an alternative trek instead, but that's bull****. The Inca Trail is heavily regulated - there's only a certain amount of people allowed each day and besides the first and last day, you really don't feel like you're overcrowded. You'd need to book almost 6 months in advance and it's closed for the whole of Feb. Plus I'm not sure of the situation now with the floods. You see lots of other amazing ruins along the way and arriving at the sungate as the sun rises over Macchu Pichu is an unforgettable experience. If you have to do an alternative trek, we heard good things about Salkantay, which brings you on a more natural trek for 4 days at altitude, finishing at Macchu Pichu. I didn't hear so many good things about Lares. Don't neglect Lima - it's just a big city, but a nice one. Worth a couple of days to explore the old quarter and the catacombs and relax. Between Cusco and Lima are the Nazca lines. Didn't have time to do it ourselves, but sounded pretty cool. They're these huge crop circles only visible from the air made by the Nazca tribe. You have to hop up in a tiny plane that lunges from side to side so each person can see - can be a bit tough on the nervous flier or weak-stomached i hear!
The most important thing to bring with you is Diamox tablets for Bolivia and Peru and any altitude over 2,500m (although it really doesn't bother you until about 3,5000m). They're a lot harder to get out there and very valuable. I stopped taking them and ended up with altitude sickness for 4 days. It was the worst sick I've ever been in my life!! Also, some warm clothes for trekking and being at altitude and depending on what time of the year, it might be very cold in Patagonia and the rest of Argentina.
I've lots of advice about other places too like where to stay in Rio, and info about Chile and Ecuador if you need it!!
Enjoy, South America is my favourite place in the world!
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v.e.r.b.a.l wrote: »It all depends on how long you have and where you're flying home from.
If you're starting in Rio and going to Peru, I'd suggest travelling South in Brazil with a detour to Iguassu Falls to Uruguay, spend a bit of time there (if the weather's nice try the beaches, otherwise Montevideo and Colonia are worth a few days and the steaks are great!). Then get the ferry across to Buenos Aires, spend some time there, then head south to Patagonia. You can get the bus south to Puerto Madryn to see the Southern Right Whales (if it's the right time of the year) and then another bus to El Calafate where you can see the Perito Moreno Glacier. That's unmissable!!
You can try Bariloche (can't advise on it - didn't go, but heard it was great for skiing) and Mendoza is a great place to do wine tasting and chill. Salta is a nice place in the north of Argentina to break up the journey into Bolivia.
You can cross to Chile first to see San Pedro De Atacama, the valley of the moon, a really cool desert where you can sandboard. From there you can get a tour of the Salar De Uyuni in Bolivia. The Salt Plains are another unmissable thing in South America. We heard that the tours aren't as good from that side as from Uyuni, but saying that only about 3 of the 60 or so in Uyuni are good, so if you want advice on that PM me.
In Bolivia you can spend a little bit of time trekking or horseriding around Tupiza (the area Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid used to rob trains and banks in) and head North to Potosí. In Potosí you can do a tour of the mines there. It's pretty tough going physically and mentally, but really worth it. Be prepared for altitude in Bolivia and parts of Peru. Get some Diamox tablets before you leave and drink lots of Coca tea when you're there. From Potosí you can chill out in Sucre, a gorgeous town unlike the whole rest of Bolivia. In La Paz, you can cycle the World's Most Dangerous Road - it's just as it sounds, people really die and injure themselves here, but it's such a cool experience it's def worth the risk. Just don't go out drinking or doing drugs the night before and take it easy and enjoy the scenery. If you do it, go with Gravity. They're the only reliable company doing it. YOu hear shock stories about bikes with no brakes etc. Plus with Gravity, you can arrange a night in La Senda Verde, a wildlife sanctuary where the tour ends. You might even end up volunteering there - it's a really cool place full of monkeys, parrotts, a spectacled bear and lots of free-roaming animals rescued from the horrible market in La Paz. You can finish Bolivia off with a visit to chilled-out Copacabana and a trek on Isla Del Sol on Lake Titicaca.
You can cross from here to Puno in Peru and do the Peruvian version of the islands on Titicaca. Don't let this first impression of Peru put you off. It's very overly touristy and a bit lame at times, but interesting all the same. The floating Uros reed islands are interesting for what they are, but clearly now only used for a tourist attraction. You can stay with a family on Amantani island which is authentic enough, except for the big impromtu festival they have that night, where they dress you up and you head out for a night of dancing! From Puno you can head to Arrequipa, a really nice town. From there you can do a trek of the Colca Canyon, one of the world's deepest canyons. It takes three days and is pretty tough, but really amazing. Land Adventures are brilliant and make sure you ask for Carlitos as your guide. You can head north from here to Cusco. The obvious attraction around Cusco is Macchu Pichu. I can't reccomend the Inca Trail enough. This is truely unmissable. YOu hear a lot of people say it's overly touristy and crowded and you should do an alternative trek instead, but that's bull****. The Inca Trail is heavily regulated - there's only a certain amount of people allowed each day and besides the first and last day, you really don't feel like you're overcrowded. You'd need to book almost 6 months in advance and it's closed for the whole of Feb. Plus I'm not sure of the situation now with the floods. You see lots of other amazing ruins along the way and arriving at the sungate as the sun rises over Macchu Pichu is an unforgettable experience. If you have to do an alternative trek, we heard good things about Salkantay, which brings you on a more natural trek for 4 days at altitude, finishing at Macchu Pichu. I didn't hear so many good things about Lares. Don't neglect Lima - it's just a big city, but a nice one. Worth a couple of days to explore the old quarter and the catacombs and relax. Between Cusco and Lima are the Nazca lines. Didn't have time to do it ourselves, but sounded pretty cool. They're these huge crop circles only visible from the air made by the Nazca tribe. You have to hop up in a tiny plane that lunges from side to side so each person can see - can be a bit tough on the nervous flier or weak-stomached i hear!
The most important thing to bring with you is Diamox tablets for Bolivia and Peru and any altitude over 2,500m (although it really doesn't bother you until about 3,5000m). They're a lot harder to get out there and very valuable. I stopped taking them and ended up with altitude sickness for 4 days. It was the worst sick I've ever been in my life!! Also, some warm clothes for trekking and being at altitude and depending on what time of the year, it might be very cold in Patagonia and the rest of Argentina.
I've lots of advice about other places too like where to stay in Rio, and info about Chile and Ecuador if you need it!!
Enjoy, South America is my favourite place in the world!
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Thats some fantastic information. I was there about a year and a half ago and its definitely the best trip i have taken. Bolivia was my favourite place by far. Try and go to rurrenabaque while you are in Bolivia. Its a town in the amazon and from there you can go on amazon treks and wildlife tours etc. which are unmissable.0 -
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