The Pantanal, Rainforest Brazil

golfgirl

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone reading has been there? I'll be booking a tour over there in August but there are loads of companies out there and any recommendations would be appreciated. Have a quote with Trip Brazil of 475 euros for 4 night, 5 day package ..

Will be travelling through Peru, Bolivia & Brazil, ending up in Rio .. doing Inca, Titicaca, Pantanal, and Iguazu ... is there somewhere I have to visit on this trail, I've heard the Salt Flats are a must but I'm not so sure ...

Thanks. :

golfgirl

Bump ...

dave_eire

oh the memories!!!

i did the same about 4 years ago. AMAZING!

here is down and dirty info, its not complete trip but a good half! i am grabbing this from an email i sent a mate some time ago who was over there, so if stuff doesnt make scense which is altogether possible - let me know:

The info about the pantanal is down the end - cant rem the name of the company or the cost - but what you mention seems VERY pricey!

disclaimer: this is my opinion - i dont want to offend anyone! and also please excue the spelling and grammer, it was written some time ago quite late in the evening from what i can remember!!!

quito

otavalo - great markets! and went for a 19 hour trek around a dormant volcano crator, fantastic with the aid of a potent local mushroom drink!

misahuallí (jungle)- the was bloody cool, first opertunity to try various cacti and roots. you need to get your passport cleared to get into the jungle?? was just the case of a stamp, when i was there!

baños - hot thermal pools, at the base of a volcano and went horse riding around the volcano. mind you the volcano did errupt just after we left so im not sure if its still there!!!! (2001) and my mate went back so its still there!

train thtough (can go on the roof, but gets very hot! but great fun though) devils nose and the alausi loop

ingapirca ruins - ecuadors main inca site, i dint think it was that great in comparison to some of the other things! truth be told i cant really remember it, but i have it written down here as a bit shoty! not sure, sorry!

cuenca - where the panama hat comes from, this is a dirty place from what i can remember! if you are travelling by bus, you have heard them all shouting "quenka quenka!" not matter where in that country i was every bus i was on or saw seemed to be going to cuenca!?

tumbes this is where we crossed the border and there was trouble with riots at the time.
just a bit down the road from here we spent a week on the beach in little hut type things and went canoeing, surfing, snorkelling and eally nice for a break

huanchaco - coastal town with the old reed boats still used by the fisherman, you can rent them out, bit dodgy in the waves and not really a huge amount more to say about the place!

chan chán - this has the biggest mud city in the world! well worth a look if its on your way!
if you are go to go there also go to huaca del sol and huaca de la luna (temples of the sun and moon) nearby, they are piramids that were in the middle of excavation when i was there.

lima - lima is a kip! what more can i say!

pisco - ballestas islands - boat to see wildlife (also a candel holder etched on hte side of a mountain, lnked to nasca lines i think), fantastic. great seafood, but not cheap (comparitively)

huacachina - this is a tiny little oasis, in the middle of the desert with a lagoon that they say is magic and healing! as far i was concerned it was just muddy! here is where you can go sand surfing! you rent you board and wax and trek up this huge dune and then surf down the dune! like snowboarding to a certain extent! you get covered in sand!! at this stage you dont really have a choice but to get into the lagoon, as you have sand everywhere!

we rented old 1960 cars asn drivers to drive us nasca! not really sure why as there are busses and they were expensive in coparision, i really am not sure why we did this! the things were REALLY cramped! maybe we missed the bus?!!?

nazca lines - there is a viewing tower, but you need to take the flight for full apprication, i like it, but some didnt

chauchilla cemetery - the cemetery was bloody great and scarey with mummies of the desert people they still have skin and hair!!.

we left by an overnight luxury bus to arequipa

arequipa - this was a beutiful and really rich place when i was there, but there was an earthquake after i left that supposedly destroyed half the citydel!?!? not sure what its like now!

colca canyon - this is the worlds deepest cannon and the bus ride up stops at some really high cafe with some really nice bush grass for next to nothing, we stayed overnight at some weird place with banquets or something and then in the morning went to see the condors, and the cutest little local kids!

cuzco - cusco is cusco! went on a spititual trek here while taking san peadro cactus! go to a little tatto parlour under the irish bar in the corner of the main square, this is where i heard about it!

inca trail - this is a must! plus you should get to the sun gate for sunrise! its bloody good! then if your up for it climp huayna picchu, it easy! did the 9 day treck, which was the 4 days to machu picchu and then into aquas calientes and the a 6 dayes down into the jungle!

puno - lake titicaca - long lazy boat ride across the highest navigtable lake in hte works and i overnighted on the island of amantani with the locals followed via a quick stop on euro island! sounds great and is great! but really touristy when we were there a bit of a let down by the commericial side of it! but if oyu are anywhere near, you have to go! and go for a swim too, off the boat on the way over or back. just ask htem to stop somewhere! the water is ****ing freezing, a little like the 40 ft at christmas, and all the other people from warmer climates think that your mad! but its dam refreshing!

la paz - tihs was prety ****y and industrial and comercia but the mountain biking was great. there are some weird markets¬ with feotuses and lots of dead things for sale!?!?

uyuni salt lake - this is fantastic! try go acrodd to fish island if you can to see the cactusus and stay in the salt hotel! this place is entirely made of salt! beds, tables chair walls floor the lot!

potosi - silver mines, this is where you get to blow **** up!!! you can buy dinamite like sausages! and also see the condtions the workers are under! a little harrowing!

sucre - cant remember!

santa cruz - flew here, this was just to get into the pantanal -->

pantanal - we went into brazil at a place called corumba then to rio paraguay, then into the pantanal from there

the wild life here is amazing! giant river otters, anacondas, iguanas, jaguars, ocelots, cougars, caman, crocodiles, deer, armadillos, giant anteaters and howler monkeys

this is as far as i got in hte email to my mate - i kept going down through paraguay and back into brazil - but never go that far in the email - i did keep a diary, MIGHT be able to find it at home if youd like?

Hope some of this helps!

nj23

Myself and the boyfriend are looking for somewhere different to go for hols this year? only going for two maybe two and a half weeks, was thinking about Brazil but not sure if that's enough time to spend there.
How would brazil work if you just booked flights and travelled a bit yourself when you got there without doing one of the pre-arranged tours? would it be difficult to get around? Basically what we're looking for is nice beaches to relax some of the days but somewhere where there's lots of stuff and exploring to do.
Also what would the weather be like there in july/august, would you be hit with the monsoons?
and how long is the flight?

any other places you would recommend?

golfgirl

thanks a mill for all that info Dave, my friend will be truly impressed .. and she may start logging onto boards (since discovering this a few weeks ago I've been singing its praises) .. you've given us plenty of food for thought.

nj23, we're spending about 12 days in Brazil .. 5 in the Pantanal (this is a rainforest region, better for spotting wildlife than the Amazon, as it's not as thickly vegetated (word?) .. 3 at Iguazu Falls .. practically one of the wonders of the world .. and 4 in Rio, on the beach. We're still researching a lot, but have our general itinery .. I'll fill you in on travelling around, impression I have is that travelling from place to place can be slow .. (buses main form of transport) but you can get cheap internal flights if need be ... <$100 .. when I know more, I'll let you know !

For something like the pantanal I think it's adviseable to go on a guided tour cos you've better chance of seeing the wildlife. ps. I'd get on about your flights pretty quick cos they're being snapped up for August ..

Enjoy the long weekend .. ciao

dave_eire

no probs!!

if you have any questions, post or email me: dave_eireNOSPAM@hotmail.com

ps Foz de Iguazu is truly amazing - if you can try and get to see it from the argentine side aswell.

d