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[texacalimatt]

Hi all,

I'm going to be spending five months traveling through South America. This will be my first real trip of its type and my first solo backpacking adventure. I plan to mostly stay in hostels, but am willing to culture things up with couch surfing every once in a while and pamper things up with a hotel stay when I need it. I've got a tentative itinerary that I would love help solidifying, or at least learning more about. Let me know what you think!

Here's what I have so far:

Feb 12 - Land in Florianopolis, Brazil for Carnaval. Stay for 1.5 - 3 weeks.

End of Feb - Fly to Foz do Iguacu. Check out Brazilian and Argentinian falls. 3 days max.

Fly to Montevideo, Uruguay. Stay for 2.5 - 4 weeks. Study spanish. See sights.

Bus through Uruguay to Colonia. Stay for max 1 week.

Ferry across bay to Buenos Aires. Stay for 2.5 - 4 weeks. Study spanish. Take tango / salsa lessons. See sights.

See more of Argentina, if possible. Ideas?

Fly or bus to Santiago, Chile. Stay for 2.5 week - 4 weeks. Find places to salsa. See sights.

Explore Chilean wine country for ~ 1 week.

Fly or bus to San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. Stay for up to 1 week. See sights. Sandboard.

Bus or fly to Juliaca, Peru. See Lago Titicaca.

Bus or fly to Cusco, Peru. Do Inca Trail. See Machu Picchu.

Bus or fly to Guayaquil, Ecuador. Check out sights. Schedule tux rental for next month.

Bus to Quito, Ecuador. Check out sights. Stay for 1 week.

Check out other places in Ecuador.

Return to Guayaquil, July 1. Attend wedding.

July 5 - 8. Wedding party goes to Galapagos.

July 10. - Headed Home!

Honestly, I'm going to have so much time on my hands, I would love to have any and all advice to fill in the blanks.

The only point I'm not completely sure about is the flight to Foz do Iguacu. I would absolutely love to see the falls, but it's hard to justify two $220 plane tickets for two days of trails and pictures. The pictures would be phenomenal, and I'd love to have them. But, it's a tough dot on the path.

Thoughts?

Thanks so much!

Matt W

[skylab]

Add Patagonia to your list!

[kathryn77]

I would take a bus from Florianopolis to Foz de Iguacu, and cross to the Brazilian side there. Then I'd either take a bus to BA, and base myself there for the places you want to see in Uruguay, or go from Puerto Iguazu to BA via Uruguay.

I wouldn't miss it, the falls are awesome

Between BA and Chile? Again - why fly? Break up your journey with a stop in Mendoza - Argentinian wine country - yum! And then head on to Patagonia like Skylab suggested.

San Pedro de Atacama is quite expensive comparatively, so depending on your budget, you might want to amend your itinerary there too...the salt flat tour into Bolivia is amazing, and going that way would link you into Lake Titicaca

If you want to do the actual Inca trail, you have to book months in advance, so if you didn't already do so, look into it...!

Also in Peru, is Huacachina - awesome sandboarding!

[texacalimatt]

Hey guys,

Thanks so much for helping out and taking a look at my itinerary.

I've made a few changes, adding in a stop in Patagonia and modifying my routes from Florianopolis to include a stop in Iguazu and Porto Alegre. I also rerouted to go through Mendoza and Salta, Argentina before seeing Uyuni and La Paz, Bolivia, instead of getting to Peru through San Pedro de Atacama.

Take a look and please let me know what you think:

http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog/texac...att/1/tpod.html

The only parts that I'm a bit weary of at this point are those in Brazil. I speak somewhat intermediate Spanish, but my Portuguese is definitely toddler level. I've been warned that Brazil can be dangerous (I've got a friend who had a bottle broken on his head in broad daylight). That, in conjunction with not knowing if an easy bus route exists from Iguazy -> Porto Alegre -> Montevideo makes me a bit uneasy about bussing it through Brazil.

Does anyone have any advice on solo-traveling via bus through Brazil with lacking Portuguese skills, perhaps in the areas above?

Thank you so much!

[kathryn77]

I love, love, love your new route! I'm so glad you're going to Salta too, it's so pretty! (I didn't mention that before as didn't want to throw another option in there! Make sure you can still get into the salt flats though (not sure if you can go en-route to Uyuni, or you might be able to do a day from Uyuni...not sure...)

In Uyuni, this is a good hostel: Hostal Quara, Santiago del estero 137 (like a little family home - and they have empanada nights - the local delicacy, yum!)

When I went to Brazil, I couldn't even say thank-you! I actually had no intention of going, I was in SA to learn Spanish, but I met a friend at Iguazu, and she persuaded me to go to Rio - which I agreed to...but 'just for 2 days'...and I stayed 5 months, lol! (I can speak Portuguese now, mind!) The places you are going to in Brazil, being close to Argentina, will more likely understand Spanish anyway - plus the people in the hostels will speak English and will help you out - Iguazu is no problem at all! You'll be fine with the language - it's unusual for 'gringos' to be able to speak Portuguese - if you want, I'd recommend the Lonely Planet Brazilian Portuguese phrasebook - really good - and it tells you how to pronounce the words phonetically (I assume the SA Spanish version is just as good) Lot's of people do travel in Brazil though without being able to speak Portuguese and they manage

From my own personal experience, I didn't find Brazil dangerous, but I appreciate it can be, but moreso in the big cities of Rio and Sao Paulo - I lived in Rio for 5 months, and was fine. It's just about taking the precautions you would normally elsewhere. Probably the biggest thing is on buses (and this is in all of South America), keep your daypack close to you - not in the rack, or on the direct floor underneath the seat in front of you. I used to rest mine on my legs/feet in front of me - a lot of daypacks get robbed (or some of their contents) on long bus trips when people nod off to sleep.

Finally, I wouldn't worry about buses in South America - the bus network is incredible, and you're not going off the 'gringo trail' in any route you're taking, so you will be fine

I'm so jealous! Boa viagens!! (Happy travels in Portuguese )

[laorfamily]

I'd spend a few days in Torres del Paine in Chile - one of the most beautiful places I've every been to: http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entri...30800/tpod.html

As well as a day trip to the island of Chiloe (named one of the top 100 islands in the world by National Geographic): http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entri...09480/tpod.html