Planning a trip to South America in June
 

My daughter who's 28 and I are planning 2-3 weeks in South America in June. We were thinking of Argentina but would consider Chile or Uruguay or Brazil. Any ideas to start us on an itinerary? We love nature and wildlife as well as good food and museums.

I love those same things, so you might want to read my trip report of my trip to Chile: http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...rip-report.cfm

Of course Peru is in there a bit, too--if you haven't been there yet, well...it's my favorite South American country so far. I did enjoy being on a ranch in Argentina, though, and Iguassu Falls are pretty spectacular.

My daughter wants to scuba dive but I'm telling her it's too cold in June. I'm thinking of Santiago, the Lake District, Bariloche, Buenos Aires, the falls, and Rio. Is this feasible?

I think I'd skip out Santiago on that one, truly, if you're already going to Rio and BA. I like Santiago, but (even though I've not been to that part yet) I would think your two-three weeks could be filled very easily with Bariloche/Lake District after the Rio/BA/Iguassu segment. I think you can do a lake crossing out of Bariloche into Chile?

We spent 5 months of a year long trip in South America and just visited Argentina, Peru and Chile. Difficult to choose our favourite places but here is a link to our blog with lots of photos and more info on the places we visited:

South America starts at entry#55

With 2-3 weeks I think I would go with Argentina or Peru - so much to see in both places. Chile would be close behind. Much as I liked Uruguay, it would not be high on my list on a 3 week trip (maybe a day trip to Colonia from BA)

Don't forget that it is winter in the southern hemisphere in June so the weather should have a big influence on where you decide to go

You may find the following website useful in the planning process if you use the search box 9top right) you can pick from a huge variety of trips of different types and duration.
http://www.intrepidtravel.com/?s_kwc...|p|10712234271

We did a six week triplast year to Chile and Argentina. Click on my name and under my TRs u can read about our travels.
On our first trip to Argentina several years ago we went to Iguazu Falls and loved it. It's absolutely spectacular.
Enjoy your planning...there are many choices.

www.latinamericaforless.com nice folks with a good multi week multi country itinerary did a 5K road trip lest fall. Lived
in BsAs as a child and traveled a lot my father was director of a major SA chemical corp. My favs are Rio Iguazu Sheraton spg.com falls view room Florianopolis nexussurf.com and BsAs. Chile is ok not as cheap as others but Valpo and the lakes are beautful.Bariloche El Calafate for glaciers.

So some combo of those for me distances are vast buses suck you cannot rent cars across borders so I fly if possible..

Have fun!

Thanks everyone. We're torn between Peru (Lima, Cuzco and Machu Pichu) and Lake District of Chile to Bariloche and then B.Aires. Iguazu falls and Rio. If we do the later, we'll fly from Bariloche to B.Aires and fly to Iguzu falls, as well as fly to Rio. Does that seem doable?

A few years back we went to Peru. Did not care for Lima at all. Cusco and the SV were very interesting and of course, MP is fantastic. The two ideas u have are very different. I think Argentina has the best food out of the countries u mention. BA has many very nice museums. I think that Chile is scenically spectacular, but didn't care for the food. Lots of nature with outdoor activities and really nice hiking. Peru is the most "rustic" . I have not been to Brazil.

yestravel has summed it up perfectly. I would add that you should check out the flight situation very carefully around Bariloche. There has been a lot of volcanic activity recently which has grounded some flights and I am not sure whether this is still going on.

A friend and I visited Iguazu Falls at the end of January. We splurged and stayed at the Sheraton----well worth it! The location enabled us to stroll right into the park, with no lines or thoughts of am transportation. We were able to maximize our time at the falls and enjoy some poolside relaxation, as well. The staff was fantastic, and our jungle view room was as nicely updated as the Sheraton in Vancouver where I stayed a year before. My only complaint involves the relatively chintzy internet allowance---but we were able to get our boarding passes printed, and that's what counted.

Our rate included a huge, bountiful breakfast each morning, including a host of interesting juices(parsley and celery, papaya, and more), champagne, eggs, fresh fruits, cereals, and more. This meal kept us going well until dinner.

I was just looking at my photos yesterday and wistfully wondering if I'll ever get the chance to return. Enjoy!

If ashes from the volcano are still a problem, how comfortable is it to take a bus from Bariloche to Buenos Aires? & how long is the trip?

here is a link to the Andesmar website, one of the best bus companies in Argentina. http://www.andesmar.com/TOLWeb/pages...sationId=44953

It seems the trip takes around 21 hours. We traveled all over South America by bus and experienced several journeys of similar length. There is no getting away from the fact that it is a long time but it is not as bad as it sounds. The trips are largely overnight and the buses very comfortable. make sure to book ejecutivo or Full Cama seats as these are luxurious and comfortable and will enable you to get some sleep. Travel on the lower deck where there is less motion. The food served on board is pretty good as is the wine. They run DVDs enroute which provides some diversion but take a good book or an Ipod

I think we're eliminating Bariloche because I learned the airport opens in July and we're in Argentina in June, so I'm thinking of Mendoza. It has the wine, the skiing, the rafting. It sounds perfect. Anyone been there in June?

Haven't been to Mendoza, but have u considered the NW of Argentina? Salta and the surrounding areas? We did a nine day trip there a few years back and loved it. I also have a TR on that trip. I believe June is a great time to ravel that region.
http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...of-arg-pt1.cfm

I have been to Mendoza. It was OK but did not live up to all the hype I had read beforehand. It is a great place for oenophiles and some excellent restaurants. We were spending a long time in Argentina and were not on a fixed itinerary so we moved on after a few days. We spent a bit longer in San Raphael, also in Mendoza province, which was nice but not really on the route for international travelers (we were looking for property there) - although the Canon de Atuel is a big attraction for Argentines (justifiably so).

Like yestravel, we fell in love with the Salta region and would return in a heartbeat. So beautiful and an amazing amount to see. Great food and even better wine. Best rent a car or a driver & guide to make the most of the region. We ended up spending a couple of weeks there we liked it so much. Realistically you need to allow 5 or 6 days to make teh most of it.

Some more info and photos on our time in Argentiana @ http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...ai/1/tpod.html

mendoza & salta entries start at #70

If you are visiting in June, then the lake district and Bariloche don´t make any sense unless you want to ski (which you can do in the mountains above Santiago anyway). The weather will not be the best and views can be covered by rain and cloud. The north of Chile and Argentina will have the best weather at that time of year. It is an ideal time for Peru if you are going to Cusco as it is dry season. It is also the most popular time to go so you would need to have everything booked. But 2-3 weeks is a very short time to cover all that. You need a week for Cusco/Machu Picchu. You could look at open jaw tickets, fly into Lima and out of Buenos Aires. You could do Peru flollowed by Argentina: Buenos Aires/Salta/Iguazu. If you had 3 weeks that would about fill it.

I like your idea of Northern Chile, Argentina and Peru. I'll have to check some internal flights so that I can fly into and out of one city. Thanks.

I've been all over the place. New idea is Buenos Aires-3 nt
Salta-2-3 nts
Mendoza-2-3 nts
Bariloche-2-3 nts
Iquazu Falls-2 nts
Buenos Aires-1 nt

Should I add days to any portion or deduct days? Latin Destinations can provide hotels and air to all and it seems reasonable.

Not enough time for Salta- need at least four and preferably five. U need to either drop Bariloche or Mendoza. I'd say drop Bariloche unless u plan to ski.