elliptictraveler

Hi everyone,

I am planning to travel solo this xmas weekend to South America. I have booked a multi city ticket from the USA to Peru on December 24th, then from Lima to Rio de Janiero on December 29th and back to USA on January 1st. The following is a tentative itenarary I have in mind

December 24th night - Reach Lima
December 25th - Fly to Cusco and see Cusco
December 26th - Visit Machu Pichu
December 27th -
December 28th -
December 29th - Fly morning from Cusco back to Lima,see a bit of Lima, Fly night to Rio De Janiero
December 30th - Reach Rio in the morning see Rio
December 31st - See Rio, and new year celebrations
January 1st - Fly back to the USA.

Does this look like a feasible trip? I also have two buffer days on 27 and 28th, do you guys think it would be possible to do a quick trip to a neighbouring country?Maybe Chile?

Also I am not an American Citizen , So have to apply for Visa to these countries. Do you think it is advisable to apply for a visa through mail or better to go to the consulate in person? I am kinda worried about sending my passport through the mail.

Also if anyone else has plans of travelling on/around these days to south america, please let me know. We could team up if possible.

Thanks a lot guys. Sorry If I am asking questions that have been already asked. Please do direct me to the specific threads which answer them.

Thanks again,
elliptic

Jeff_Costa_Rica

Definitely don't add a third country. Two countries in eight days will more than keep you hopping. There is so much to see and do in Cusco and the surrounding Sacred Valley that you could easily fill up Dec. 27 and 28.

crellston

I agree don't add a third country. Cusco/MP/the Sacred Valley will have more than enough to hold your interest. Be ware that you will be affected by teh altitude when flying into Cusco, the only question is how much. Might be best going straight to teh SV to acclimatise and then to MP form say Ollantaytambo. You could then visit Cusco.

Not sure about eeh VISA question - what nationality are you? Also, if you want to get to MP by train then you should book tickets asap.

qwovadis

latinamericaforless.com

great multicountry tour options

good folks use them.

You may have Visa issues move quickly on that

through embassys not snail mail...

High season in Brazil do book quickly there.

mdtravelhealth.com Peru Brazil Alttude sickness

a VERY real possiblity for you flying from sea

level to Cusco 11000 ft rapidly u could be sick

your whole stay so take a preventive visit MP

which is lower 7900 ft first than go back up to

Cusco for your tour after you have adjusted.

Way too expensive and crammed for me would just

Relax do Peru Gringo Trail to incalandadventures.com to MP

Nothing beats trekking in through the Sun Gate AWESOME!

Equestrian

Where are you planning to stay in Rio? Most accomodations for Reveillon are sold in multi-night packages, at very exorbitant rates, usually from the 28th December through the 2nd January. There is enough demand so that few places might consider a shorter stay. Most might even be fully booked by now.
Also, regarding the visa for Brazil, the Consulates in the U.S. tend to start to back up at this time of year, so they may keep your passport for quite some time.

elliptictraveler

Thanks a ton guys for the replies. Based on your suggestions, I decided to drop plans for a third country. This is what I am planning for now.

December 24th night - Arrive in Lima. Sleep in the airport
December 25th morning - Take a flight to Cusco. Take a taxi to Ollanta. See sacred valley and other ruins
December 26th - Visit Machu Picchu
December 27th - Travel from Ollanta to Cusco. See cusco
December 28th - See some more Cusco. Take flight to Lima
December 29th - See Lima, take night flight to Rio de Janeiro
December 30th - Rio
December 31st - Rio/ new years celebration
Jan 1st morning - Take flight back to US

Please let me know if this sounds okay. Also I have to get visas for both peru and brazil as I am from India. Do you think I need to get vaccinations (malaria/yellow fever) before I travel?

Equestrian

Again, where do you plan to stay in Rio? Please do not underestimate the fact that few, if any, hotels are likely to be less than fully booked, so you will probably either be paying for packaged nights you don't intend to spend or find yourself without a place to stay in Rio.

elliptictraveler

I have booked most of my tickets and accomodation except in Rio. Frantically searching for some good hostels there, but most seemed to be booked out. Hopefully I should be able to find something quickly. If you know any places, please do let me know.

crellston

I found www.hostelworld.com to be pretty good for booking places in SA.

Try and incorporate visits to places in teh SV en-route to and from Cusco/Olly. Pisac in definitely worth. We did a whisltle stop tour when we first arrived in teh country and went back for more later. Here is a report of one, very long, day in the SV which covered most of the major sights:

http://blog.travelpod.com/travel-blo...8980/tpod.html