alizeh

hiii! i'm planning my trip to south america with another female friend from 13/20 March to 15/22 April 2016, assuming I get into south america on 13/20 March and need to depart from (location yet to be decided) on 15/22 April - about 34 days.

I want to visit the following places and would really appreciate any help to know if this is workable yet not so rushed. I also wanted a rough budget estimate, exclusive of my flights in and out of the continent. I'm happy to use overnight buses to maximize on time, because I have read that these can be quite comfortable and sufficient for a good rest. Still, I don't want to be commuting constantly and understand distances are large.

I love wildlife and am looking for an active holiday with treks, hiking, scuba diving, snorkelling, horse riding etc. I am a PADI certified diver and skilled horse rider. I also have a good fitness level.

These are not in any particular order.

1. Ecuador - Quito (1 day) and then head for 4 days to the Galapagos

2. Peru - Lima (2 days), Cusco and the Sacred Valley + Ollantaytambo (2/3 days), Machu Picchu (5 days), Arequipa and Colca Canyon (2 days) and the Amazon (4 days), Lake Titicaca (2 days)

3. Chile - Torres del Paine National Park (3 days), Atacama and Moon Valley (3 days), Santiago (2 days), Valparaiso (1 day) and Puerto Montt (1 day), Corcovado National Park (2 days)

I had wanted to visit the Uyuni salt flats in transit between Peru and Chile, but that might be a long stretch?

Any suggestions would really be appreciated! What could I skip out, provided the above doesn't accommodate travel time!

crellston

A few comments:

1. As far as budget is concerned, during the six months we spent in South America in 2013, our average spend ( for the two of us) was less than $100 per day including everything except intercontinental flights. We usually stayed in nice en suite double rooms in most locations. We ate in markets, small local restaurants with the occasional blow out. It is easy to find somewhere to stay on arrival in most places but if you want to book ahead I found www.booking.com to be the best and most cost effective booking engine
2.You are trying to fit in a tremendous amount into the time you have available and I really would suggest a bit of a rethink (with a map in front of you!). Distances are vast and, with the itinerary you suggest, flights will be unavoidable and usually expensive.
3. Overnight bus travel is only really advisable in Peru where it is comfortable, cheap and safe. Chile is ok but I can't speak to overnight buses there as we only went in the daytime. Lima to cusco took 25 hours!!
4. Atacama is quite similar to Uyuni in many respects, although given the choice I woul go with Uyuni. There is little point in doing both but it can easily be reached from San Pedro de Atacama by jeep.
5. Galapagos is probably your best bet for diving ( cold water). We are keen divers but didn't really find anywhere that interested us. You will be spoilt for choice for riding! I am a hopeless rider but enjoyed my days riding near Valparaiso on a previous trip immensely.
6. Titicaca can be done en route from Cusco to Arequipa - an amazing journey in itself!
7. With the places you have in mind, it would make sense to go for an open jaw ticket maybe fly into Quito and out of Santiago. Almost certainly cheaper as well as less time consuming than a normal return.

Here is a link to our blog of our last trip http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...ai/6/tpod.html not saying I got it entirely right as far as the rout is concerned because I made some monumental mistakes!

There is also more info on this blog for a previous trip http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog...ai/1/tpod.html

If you have any specific questions, I would be happy to help if I can.

alizeh

Hey! Thank you so much! This is really very helpful and I have actually been using your blog as a planning guide! It's great! I will most likely be getting in touch with further questions as I get along with planning, as my guidebook comes in today. It should also help me arrive at a more realistic itinerary once I have travel time estimates.

I had intended to fly in and out of different cities at the outset because I need to optimize on the days. Since I plan to make all my bookings by October, I'm assuming I'll be able to arrange for cheaper travel.

As for Bolivia, I think I will do it more fully during another trip to Argentina and Brazil. Trouble is that I need a visa for every country and so a day trip to Bolivia for Uyuni will mean getting a visa just for that day. I'd rather do Peru and Chile more extensively.

A more updated itinerary looks a bit like this now, but again not in order as I'll have a better idea on that once I have the maps I need:

1. Ecuador - Quito (1 day)
- Galapagos (5 days including flight to Lima)

2. Peru - Lima (2 days)
Cusco and the Sacred Valley + Ollantaytambo (2 days)
Machu Picchu through Aguas Calientes on Jungle Trail
(3/4 days)
Arequipa and Colca Canyon (3 days)
the Amazon (5 days)
Lake Titicaca (2 days)

3. Chile - Torres del Paine National Park (3 days)
Atacama and Moon Valley (3 days)
Santiago (2 days)
Valparaiso + Vina del Mar/Puerto Montt (2 days)
Corcovado National Park (2 days)

Thank you so much for the budget estimates! xxx

Huentetu

3. Chile - Torres del Paine National Park (3 days)
Atacama and Moon Valley (3 days)
Santiago (2 days)
Valparaiso + Vina del Mar/Puerto Montt (2 days)
Corcovado National Park (2 days)

There is nowhere on this itinerary which would include long distance bus travel except perhaps Puerto Montt to Santiago. Valparaíso is only a couple of hours from Santiago by bus.

Torres del Paine - April is very late in the season for this but doable. Check what lodging you want to use and when it closes for the winter. Three days is too short to do the multi-day W trek but you can do other treks while you are there. Do not underestimate travel times to get there and back. You need to fly into Punta Arenas from Santiago or Puerto Montt and bus to Puerto Natales then another bus to the park. It is going to involve an overnight somewhere. It is 3 hours by bus from PA to PN and then a further 2 hours to the park entrance. At that time of year there are probably only morning buses to the park. So, for a three day visit to the park, you really need to add at least one day either side for travel times.

San Pedro de Atacama - Presumably your base and not somewhere else in the Atacama. Flights from Santiago to Calama and 1.5 hr shuttle to San Pedro.

Valparaiso + Vina del Mar/Puerto Montt (2 days) - As said, Valparaíso is easy enough from Santiago and Viña is right next to it. But Puerto Montt? That is a flight from Santiago or a 12 hour overnight bus ride from Santiago. Is this where you will catch a flight to Punta Arenas?

Corcovado National Park (2 days) - This is the most complicated bit of your itinerary. It is very remote and getting there is not easy. It may be made more difficult by weather issues at that time of year. You would probably use the two days to travel there and back.

Three countries in one month is a lot. In Chile you have chosen destinations which are very far apart and two are very remote, so you are going to have to build in decent travel times. I would drop Corcovado as it needs and deserves more time. The more you have on a itinerary, the more vulnerable you are to the unexpected making a mess of it.

Note that Easter weekend is 25/26/27 March, which can make transport difficult in any South American country.

alizeh

Thank you - especially for assisting with travel info!!
I think I might leave out Torres and Corcovado for another trip and spend more time elsewhere.. is this more workable?

1. Ecuador - Land in Quito (1 day)
- Galapagos (5 days including travel to Iquitos)

2. Peru - From Iquitos to the Amazon (4 days including travel)
- Lima (2 days including travel)
- Cusco and the Sacred Valley (Salinas and Moray) +
Ollantaytambo (3 days)
- Machu Picchu through Aguas Calientes on Jungle Trail
(3/4 days including travel)
- Arequipa and Chivay for the Colca Canyon (3 days)
- Puno + Lake Titicaca (2 days, which transports to
Atacama)

3. Chile - Atacama and Moon Valley + geysers El Tatio + flamingo
reserves (4 days)
- Valparaiso (2 days)
- Santiago (2 days)
- Pucon – Lake District (3 days)

Any suggestions on what I'm missing out that you'd recommend?

Thank you!!!

sdtravels

Hi, I am not a diver but we did meet some on our recent trip to the Galapagos. There is no where that you can dive from land, you will have to take day trips at a minimum. The divers we met said that it took 2 days to get to their dive site. You might want to check with dive shops to find your best option for 5 days, including your land day before flying. I know Red Mangrove has a divers lodge on Santa Cruz, maybe they can give you some information on how to best use your 5 days. You should definitely schedule your trips in advance.

alizeh

Thank you!!