Advice on route

Hi There,

I will be arriving in Santiago in January and flying out of BA in March, so I have approx 10 weeks to see as much of South America as possible. I know there are probably very similar questions on here already but I am a little overwhelmed at the amount of information! Ideally I would like to visit Chile, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Brazil and Argentina although I realise this may be overly ambitious in the time frame! I would really like to do Machu Picchu and to be in Rio for Carnival. I have no problem with overland travel but am guessing there will have to be some flights in there too. Any advice at all on a feasible route would be much appreciated! I should mention it is possible for me to change my outbound flight to leave from Rio but I can't see how this would make things easier!

Travelling overland can take a long time, spending days on a bus. Flights are cheaper if bought before you get to South America. Much of what is worth seeing in SA is in Peru. There is not really that much elsewhere. You'll have to work out your itinerary based on what you like though 10 weeks should be ample. I always found that Lonely Planet guides were a good investment.

You probably need to skip a part of your trip or stay longer..

You got several options from Santiago to visit Peru and Bolivia.
- Go up north till about Lima and then travel towards Cuzco, Arrequipa (Peru) and La Paz (Bolivia)
- Second option is visiting the Salt Dessert in Bolivia (fun!) then to La Paz and travelling to Peru.

On both tracks there are going daily busses to the bigger places.. for the starting of the salt dessert you need to be in San Pedro de Atacama.. If you would start in Peru then Nazca would be a better option.

Then probably a flight to Columbia or Brazil would be smart.. but ain't known with Brazil or Columbia..

But as said in the last post, find out what you really would like to see and plan your trip around those places..
Don't give yourself a too tight schedule.. see it as a holiday and relax..!

Have fun!

Quoting Cyberia

Travelling overland can take a long time, spending days on a bus. Flights are cheaper if bought before you get to South America. Much of what is worth seeing in SA is in Peru. There is not really that much elsewhere. You'll have to work out your itinerary based on what you like though 10 weeks should be ample. I always found that Lonely Planet guides were a good investment.

Are you serious????
How can you say there is not much elsewhere in South America apart from Peru.Thats crazy.

Iguazu Falls
Buenos Aires
Salta
Mendoza
Cordoba
La Paz,Bolivia
Pampas Tour in Bolivia
Cycle Death Road in Bolivia
Torres Del Paine
Hiking up Volcan Villarrica in Pucon,Chile
Salar De Uyuni,Chile
Aconcagua National Park
Ushuaia

the list goes on...........

And then theres Brazil,Colombia,Ecuador which ive never been to but only hear amazing things.

Don't go to Colombia! It's a horribly dangerous country! LOL

ice

Quoting i c e

Don't go to Colombia! It's a horribly dangerous country! LOL

ice

I dont think advice like this is wise information for 1st time users to read.Especially as people will not know whether to take it as a joke or not with the LOL at the end.