South America

ellie2

Im just wondering if anyone could advise. Im thinking about going to South America and the following is a rough itinerary

Galapagos -7 nite cruise (10 days)
Cuzco & Inca Trail (9 days)
Puno, Lake Titiaca, La Paz, Salar De Uyuni, Potosi(13 days)
Salta, Mendoza, Bariloche, El Calafete,El Chalten (17 days)
Buenos Aires, Iguazu, Rio De Janeiro (14 days)

We have roughly 9 weeks. Is it possible, or will it be way too rushed. We are going over xmas and the new year so this may impact on travel plans.

We will fly galapagos to cusco, El Calfate to BA, BA to Iguazu, Iguazu to Rio.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

Hockney

I can only comment on two of these!

I'd shave one day off Rio (5/6 days)- Iguazu (2/3 days)- BA (5 days) and knock it down to 13 days, and maybe add one to the Cusco and Inca Trail leg.

I took a 16 hour bus between BA and Iguazu which was really nice, it's like 1st class on a plane, it could save you a few quid if you need to. Check out http://www.viabariloche.com.ar/ for the bus service, I'd recommend them.

We were very lucky with not getting altitude sickness in Cusco but many were not so lucky, leave at least 3 days (best 4+) before your Inca trail hike. The Classic hike needs to be booked in advance, I went the Salkantay hike which was 5 days in total but takes in more scenery, you end up hiking up but glaciers and forests and stuff too, the scenery hugely changes every day!

doriansmith

I'm in South America at the moment and just did your route in the opposite direction in about 13-14 weeks, went everywhere on your list except El Chalten because of bad weather.

Parts of it might be a bit rushed if you only have 9 weeks but then again we spent some time kicking back in a few places doing nothing for a few days here & there, eg we spent a week and a half in Sucre doing a few Spanish lessons & a week in Cusco doing very little. So it could probably be done in 9 weeks, especially if you're planning on doing a few flights along the way.

I agree with Hockney that 14 days is probably a bit much for BA-Iguazu-Rio. I'd cut that & add extra time onto Patagonia cos it's amazing. BA is just another city IMO. At least a few days in Cusco is needed too before the Inca Trail. We were at high altitude for over 3 wks before it & found it a lot easier than the rest of our group who'd only been at altitude a few days.

I'm just back from the Galapagos a few days ago & it's amazing. If you haven't booked anything yet then I'd recommend you book your boat through Happy Gringo agency, they were really helpful. I'm gonna post a report on our cruise in the Travel Reports forum soon which you might find useful

filthymcnasty

ellie2 wrote: »

Im just wondering if anyone could advise. Im thinking about going to South America and the following is a rough itinerary

Galapagos -7 nite cruise (10 days)
Cuzco & Inca Trail (9 days)
Puno, Lake Titiaca, La Paz, Salar De Uyuni, Potosi(13 days)
Salta, Mendoza, Bariloche, El Calafete,El Chalten (17 days)
Buenos Aires, Iguazu, Rio De Janeiro (14 days)

We have roughly 9 weeks. Is it possible, or will it be way too rushed. We are going over xmas and the new year so this may impact on travel plans.

We will fly galapagos to cusco, El Calfate to BA, BA to Iguazu, Iguazu to Rio.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

Sounds good did similar bar Galapgos. Good flight decisions, Feck all to see between BA and Iguazu, if time is limited.
Don't waste time in Salta, chalten also do hike and get going.

carolgus33

doriansmith wrote: »

I'm in South America at the moment and just did your route in the opposite direction in about 13-14 weeks, went everywhere on your list except El Chalten because of bad weather.

Parts of it might be a bit rushed if you only have 9 weeks but then again we spent some time kicking back in a few places doing nothing for a few days here & there, eg we spent a week and a half in Sucre doing a few Spanish lessons & a week in Cusco doing very little. So it could probably be done in 9 weeks, especially if you're planning on doing a few flights along the way.

I agree with Hockney that 14 days is probably a bit much for BA-Iguazu-Rio. I'd cut that & add extra time onto Patagonia cos it's amazing. BA is just another city IMO. At least a few days in Cusco is needed too before the Inca Trail. We were at high altitude for over 3 wks before it & found it a lot easier than the rest of our group who'd only been at altitude a few days.

I'm just back from the Galapagos a few days ago & it's amazing. If you haven't booked anything yet then I'd recommend you book your boat through Happy Gringo agency, they were really helpful. I'm gonna post a report on our cruise in the Travel Reports forum soon which you might find useful

any tips on what to pack for june-july flying to rio....going to peru and bolivia! any other tips regarding travelling to and from those regions, weather (no idea what it will be like) and hostels to go to as im a female travelling solo!

Pisco Sour

Bariloche to El Calafate is a very long bus ride. 12 hours to Puerto Madryn if I remember correctly, and then 30 hours to El Calafate (including a 4 hour stop in Rio Gallegas). I'd suggest you break that up and stay in Puerto Madryn and take in the whale watching and the penguins at Punta Tombo. It is seasonal of course. The whales and penguins arent there all year round.

solerina

You wont need much time in Puno /Lake Titicaca....we arrived in Puno on a Monday afternnon, went onto the lake on tuesday, did a homestay on Amantani Island Tuesday night, returned to Puno via the Uros Islands...back in Puno Tueesday night.....glad to leave on Wed morning as there isnt much there....Unless you plan on going right across the lake to Bolivia