I am considering taking a trip to South America - probably in February. I want some warm weather & sun this winter. I was considering about a week or so - a couple days in BA, a couple days in Rio & a stop at the Falls.

I'd be a solo female traveller. I dont' speak Spanish. I've travelled solo in Europe & been completely comfortable. But I am unsure of South America...

I'm wondering if I should look into a tour? I would prefer to do on my own. But I'm not sure even where to start - looking for flights with stops in 3 locations seems tough. And I'm not sure of hotels that would be in a safe area.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Lolly, I just came on to post the same question! I will be looking forward to the replies.

Lolly100: it's largely a matter of taste, but I certainly would NOT advise going to THREE places in South America, in the course of a ONE week trip. You'd spend much of your week in airports.

There are any number of posts here and in other Argentina forums which indicate that BA is perfectly safe for a female solo traveller, provided, of course, that you adopt the security measures you should adopt in any large town in any part of the world.

You'll have a great time in our country, Lolly100 and Cameron.

Cameron,
Have you looked into any tours? I found a couple itineraries that sounded good, but with the single supplement, they are so expensive!

I figure it would be cheaper to do it on my own. Plus I would rather do that anyway. But like I said, I'm a little overwhelmed with where to start!

Thanks for the tip, avrooster. I agree that 3 places would be alot, but I am a pretty fast paced traveller.

I came up with the itinerary from a package at go-today.com. It shows 3 nights in Rio, 2 in Iguassu & 3 in BA. Flights are so expensive, but they seem to have a decent package right now with airfare & hotels. However, the hotels seem iffy from the reviews on tripadvisor.

The hotels are Lancaster Othon in Rio, Continental Inn in Iguassu & Mayflower Suites in BA. Any feedback on these?

Tours can move you around faster than you can move traveling on your own.

Lolly, I haven't ,as yet, done a lot of research, but I was figuring on seven or eight days in BA as an intro to South America.