One thing you read about, and are conscious of throughout South America, is making sure you are safe. We didn’t have any bags, back packs or bum bags with us and when we walked around and we dressed down so as not to look like wealthy tourists – no jewellery, cameras, etc., and nothing happened to us so we think this must have worked!
Our bible for the trip was the Footprint 2005 Handbook for South America. We were on a tight budget of £20 per day each (for everything) so could only stay in cheap places.
Ecuador
Our first port of call was Quito. We didn’t explore it much as we were still green to travelling and thought it too dangerous to go out after dark. However, if I went back I’d take taxis out at night to restaurants as I think we missed out on a lot. In the day time we explored all the good spots – churches, museums, etc. but didn’t go up to the angel overlooking Quito as it is a dangerous place for tourists to go. We stayed in the old city, we thought it was nicer than the new city. However, if you want to be around other tourists the new city is the place to go. We stayed in the Real Audiencia (Bolivar Oe3 y Guayaquil at Plaza de Santo Domingo Trole stop) a lovely family run hotel.
After the city we decided that we had to visit the Galapagos which sounds expensive but really doesn’t need to be. We got internal flights there which weren’t too expensive and went for 2 weeks. We spent some time on the main island of Santa Cruz in Puerto Ayora. This is the main town in the Galapagos and where most people go to book tours. It’s where the Charles Darwin research centre is. We would have gone on a boat trip for 3 days, which could be booked there, but didn’t because Ben was ill.
We got a dodgy South American fishing boat (3 hr trip) to the island of Isabella – much less populated with amazing marine wildlife and a wonderful long beach to walk on, plus safe snorkelling. Not much to do except chat with the sea lions, watch the incredible bird life and stare at the huge marine iguanas that populate the island. We stayed at Ballena Azul run by a lovely Swiss lady called Dora. It’s very hot there though so if you can afford a/c the La Casa de Marita would be better. We flew out of there rather than get the boat back (due to Ben’s illness - he had v bad food poisoning).
Peru
Next stop was Peru. I have mixed reports of Peru. We didn’t go to Lima as we had heard how dangerous it is, however some French friends of mine were there last October and they loved Lima and felt fairly safe there.
We flew straight to Cusco which was a great place. You do get all the tourist hassle there though so be prepared - everywhere you go people are trying to sell you something. The town is a stunning mix of Spanish and Inca architecture, nice restaurants, bars and things to see. We stayed in 2 places, the nicest by far was the Pension Loreto (Paraje Loreto 115, Plaza de Armas) – I think this was due to the fact that our room had an Inca wall which was quite cool! Also it was central next to the main square.
From Cusco you get the train to Machu Picchu. It’s a spectacular 4 hour journey. We stayed in Aguas Calientes for 4 days and went up to the Machu Piccu site each day – a good way to do it and see it properly. We stayed in Gringo Bills which was a nice back packers. The town isn’t nice though, very touristy but the surroundings are spectacular! You can walk up to the site but it’s a vertical climb for an hour and then there’s a lot of climbing once you reach the top and walk around the ruins. Best to get the regular buses that go there. If you can make the first bus up there the view first thing in the morning is incredible. My French friends did the Inca trail which they enjoyed but found it hard work – steep and tough walking.
Bolivia
We flew to La Paz from Cusco but only stayed one night. I’d love to spend more time there, and in Bolivia in general, but we couldn’t fit it in. It’s very medieval and the women wear huge skirts and bowler hats!
Chile
We flew down the coast from La Paz to Santiago – a few stops on the plane so it took about 6 hours but the views were stunning. Santiago is a great city, again we didn’t have much time there and I’d love to go back. Once we arrived in Chile I felt a lot safer. It’s got more of a european feel to it and is more familiar. We wanted to stay in Res Londres (Londres 54) but it was full, Ben has stayed there before and liked it. When I went back on my own for a night I stayed in Hostal Rio Amazonas (the one in Barrio Brasil) – a lovely place with a big room to myself in an old family house.
Easter Island: a great place to visit, very remote and rugged with interesting history and good statues! Lots of accommodation there and helpful locals.
Argentina
We took a long bus journey from Santiago to Bariloche in Patagonia, Argentina. Stunning views after the night trip but Bariloche is a horrible town – don’t go there unless you have to! We couldn’t afford to do any of the Southern parts as we would have needed to either go on tours, hire a car or get a few internal flights. However, I really want to return to see the Southern part of Patagonia and the glaciers, etc..
We spent 6 weeks in Argentina, again I always felt safe there and loved the place, sadly I didn’t make it to Salta in the North or the beauty of the South due to time and finance restrictions. Here are a few places we visited:-
Mendoza: a town further north and in wine country. Small town but good trips to wineries and a good stopping place to go to and from Chile. We rented an apartment for a week here, cheaper than a hotel and it meant we could cook our own stuff.
Mar del Plata: definitely a place to avoid, worst than the grottiest sea town in the UK but near some nice places.
Balcarce: a lovely, leafy village/town where famous racing driver Manuel Fangio was from with a great motorcar museum there in his honour. We stayed in a hotel overlooking the main square.
Laguna Brava: very remote but beautiful spot in between the two.
Bahia Blanca: not a great town but good architecture, however a good place to hire a car and drive 100km north to
Sierra de la Ventana: this is one of my favourite places in Argentina. Beautiful scenery and some good walks but only a few – you’ll discover in South America that they are not good at taking advantage of their walking spots. However, not good to go to if you don’t have a car. We rented out an apartment in the town.
Buenos Aires: Argentina’s capital and I think a great city. Accommodation gets really booked up here and will be worse now as all the papers here are promoting it as the place to go so I’d suggest to book well in advance. We rented apartments here or stayed in cheap back packers but there are a lot of good choices. Loads to see in terms of buildings, museums, culture, plus great food and wine and shopping! A 'must see' to me is an opera at Teatro Colon (it’s about £10-20 a ticket and a stunning place). Other good spots: Museo de los Presidentes, Cemetery of the Recoleta, Museo de Bellas Artes, Puerto Madero, San Telmo, Eva Peron museum.
Iguazu Falls: these sit on the border with Brazil. I went on my own and felt safe on the Argentinian side but not on the Brazilian side. However, I was getting public buses across the border between the two and everyone was nice to me. The Brazilian side is where the spectacular views are but there’s less to do there although they are opening up more walks. The Argentinian side has good walks all up, down and around the falls and you can spend a good day there. The town I stayed in was in Argentina, Puerto Iguazu (much nicer than Brazil’s Foz Do). I stayed in a hotel a little too far out of town – a 10 min walk in which was OK but it would be better being more central. For a treat it would be great to stay in the Sheraton which overlooks the falls (the towns are both a bus ride away), or the Esturion Hotel which is beautifully set overlooking the river borders.
Brazil
I went to Brazil on my own to meet my girlfriends who were on a holiday from the UK for 3 weeks. When I arrived the immigration officer warned me that it’s a dangerous country and to be very careful! First stop was Salvador. We stayed in the lovely old district of Pelourinho in a very cheap back packers. Great old Portuguese architecture, nice restaurants but I didn’t feel that safe there at night. From here we decided we wanted an island holiday so took the ferry from here to Morro de Sao Paulo – a beautiful Brazilian island with good food and loads of beach facing hotels. There are no vehicles and the taxis are wheel barrows!
Rio de Janeiro: Despite all the warnings about Rio I loved it there and it’s a very beautiful city. We stayed in a hotel in Ipanema (San Marco hotel, nice 2 star with good breakfast), a smart suburb with great shops, restaurants and beach. There wasn’t enough time in Rio and I’d like to go back to see the sites which I didn’t really get a chance to do. Things to see: Sugar Loaf mountain, Botanical Gardens (v peaceful with a nice little café), Corcovado (statue of Christ).
South America Tips
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