I'm going to Backpack through South America....any good sites/suggestions on where to go/what to see?

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WillD

yeah, in brasil: Foz do iguazu, Rio de janeiro is awsome, sao Paulo is the culinary capital of the world, Salvador has great colonial architecture and beautiful beaches
Bolivia. has a rich culture, u can see the island of the sun and great ecoturism (if ur not looking for that then ide skip it)
Chile: has great skiing, and sea food see Chile, viÃ±a del mar, and the wine orchards
Colombia (my favorite): tayrona has the most amazing beaches ever!! cartagena great colonial city full of legends, romance and magic, great for ecoturism, friendly people and itsvery safe, regardless of what u hear in the news, Ecuador, Ide skip, Peru: Machu Pichu and its sun trail, if ur going make it quik, soon the government will make it off limits for tourists, Argentina: buenos aires u can miss, its amazing, its a huge city with absolutely everything u want and more, go to thase the wine in Mendoza where u can also xtreme sports, bariloche is a great skiing town and very beautiful, dont go to ushuaia (its overrated), Uruguay: the city of Colonia is very pretty but Montevideo is a bummer. Venezuela has its angel falls but honestly besides that, its not worth the trip, u can get al of that in Colombia or Brazil, ide stay away from the guyanas and suriname its out of the way and not that much to see

fantasma de canterville

http://www.vivecuador.com/html2/eng/home.htm
there you can get a detailed information. but in a brief summary I can recomend you to visit Tungurahua volcano. it is active now, and in the night (from a safe place don't worry) you can see the lava going out. also you should visit cotopaxi, the highest active volcano in the world. also the petrified forest of puyango. it is a place where everything becomes rock millions of years ago by an unknown reason. you can see trees, insects, plants, fruits and even a dinosaur egg made stones. it is AMAZING and UNIQUE. you should not miss it. you should go to YasunÃ park in the amazon jungle. and if you like the beach you should go to Esmeraldas or ManabÃ. here you have a lot to do!!!

kenai_sailor

Patagonia in Chile and Argentina, if you are an experienced backpacker

northmiamibeach1975

If this is your first time, I recommend you to start in Chile then Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. This four countries are the most european of all Latin countries, they have better roads, comunications, so it's easy for tourists to feel more "at home". Still, take your precautions, especially in the cities. People in the country sides or in little towns are very friendly and welcoming.

In Chile you can visit Santiago, travel to Vina del Mar on the coast, relax and enjoy the beach, you can go north to the Desert or south to the Snowy Chilean Patagonia.
http://www.turismochile.cl/

Then you can cross to Argentina by plane or car,bus. Mendoza is beautiful, this is the region where all the best argentinean wines come from. Bariloche is amazing too, lakes,mountains,rivers, great place to make friends and have a good time. Buenos aires is incredible, cosmopolitam, elegant but affordable, many theatres,museums,restaurants,etc. you'll love it.
You can go north to Iguazu falls, south to Patagonia, Puerto Madryn, to view whales,penguins,seals. Or way down south to end of the world, Ushuaia!
http://www.travelsur.net/buenosaires.htm
http://www.turismo.gov.ar/

In Uruguay, go to Colonia, a lovely town, it's like going back in time, little streets, trees everywhere, nice and friendly people.
Montevideo is the capital, uch smaller than Buenos aires, but still, modern and affordable.
Punta del Este is a very chic beach, all models, rock stars and the jet set from Brazil, Argentina and Chile visit this place during summer.
http://www.turismo.gub.uy/

In Brazil, you have many choices, In the south you have a lot of beaches, all beautiful, some are fullof tourists and some are more quiet. you can go all the way up to Sao Paulo or Rio, but the real beauty of Brazil is on the little towns and the beaches.
http://www.turismo.gov.br/

South America is a huge continent, with very different and contrasting countries,cultures and traditions.
So, no matter where you chose to go, I'm sure you'll have the best time of your life!

fabi

Hey you cant miss, machu pichu and salar of uyuni,(Salt Flat of Uyuni), in Bolivia, by the way its incredible and fascinating country!!!

bobbnweav

Try Vic Hanson aka Sugar Daddy, at vichansonperu@yahoo.com or vichanson@juno.com. He leads trips thru So. America. He completed his thru-hike in '06.
Also The Boat People, aka Heather and Matt, who, if memory serves, trained for their '05 PCT thru-hike by trekking through S.A., hum...maybe it was Mexico, no, I think S.A. They have an e-address of pj@pelorus-jack.com and a website at http://www.pelorus-jack.com.
I thought I'd read of some members of your Class of '05 who trekked in S.A. as well, but don't know for sure...you might check out PCT trailjournals.com./. You can choose the year, or there's a list of trails you can open, there may be international trails listed there too.
Good luck and Happy (safe) Trails,
Georgi,
Trail Angel,
Old Station, CA

kmatty

First of all, to all the people who suggested that it's dangerous to travel in South America (diseases, guerrillas, etc.) you obviously haven't actually spent any time down there. Of course there are the everyday dangers (getting something stolen, getting mugged, etc.), but those things could happen anywhere in the world. If you get the recommended vaccinations and wear mosquito repellent, you're fine! I traveled there for two months and didn't run into one single problem (and I'm a young woman).

My suggestion to you is to not take on more than you can handle in the time you have. I could have probably spent just two months in northern Argentina and been totally content, but I wanted to see so much that I spent a lot of time on buses going from country to country. It is a huge continent and I totally underestimated its size! I suggest that you find a few places you want to visit and spend a few weeks in each place. You will have a much more fulfilling time if you do that.

My favorite places were: Uruguay (Colonia del Sacramento, Montevideo & Punta del Diablo ... but if you like a more South Beach environment you could go to Punta del Este as well), Argentina (Buenos Aires especially, but I also loved the wine making region, Bariloche, and the beaches south of B.A.) and Chile (Santiago is a great city). Peru was wonderful and exciting as well. Machu Picchu turned out to be breathtaking, but also overrun with tourists, so take that into consideration ... it's a bit expensive for the average back-packer, too!

Check out hostelworld.com for awesome places to stay for really cheap! Hostels are totally the way to go. You meet great people and the staff are very knowledgable about things to do in the area and how to get places. I suggest making reservations (online) a few days before you arrive in a new city, but don't plan too much ahead or you'll be rushed and maybe miss out on another opportunity.

Check out slowtrav.com for some great articles about exploring South America.

Don't pack too much! You can always do laundry or buy (cheap) clothes down there if you need more. Believe me that you do NOT want more than 25 pounds on your back while hopping on and off buses, trams, taxis, bikes, etc.!!!

mechis

wherever you go,make sure to talk to some local ppl so they can warn you where not to go and what u shouldnt miss. it would be great if u talk a lil spanish at least.

make sure to be in the north of argentina (salta, jujuy and maybe tucuman) by january. LOTS of ppl are backpacking there at that time (mostly argentinians, but a lot of europeans, too) and it gets really fun. i was there last january and it was great. there are several tiny towns where time seems to have stopped, the culture is amazing, the sightseeing, spectacular and the ppl very fun (bonfires at night with everyone singing and playing spanish guitars). you can go to hostels or camping. if u decide to go, dont miss Purmamarca.

then u can go to patagonia (the south of argentina) It has a totally different landscape from the rest of latin america, very beautiful. you would have to be a more experienced backpacker here if you want to be in the countryside. if not, you should stay in the cities such as Bariloche, El bolsÃ³n or Villa La Angostura.

both places are really safe and are the favourite of backpackers in Argentina.

I dont know much about the rest of latin america but i hope this was useful.

homeless

Having been to all the Countries in South America. I might suggest 2 websites that are helpful, http://thorntree.lonelyplanet.com/categories.cfm?catid=22 and http://forum.virtualtourist.com/forum-4-1-Travel-South_America-1-forum.html
If you are starting out soon I may suggest starting out in Ecuador, Brazil or Colombia and traveling south because at this time it is Autumn and starting to become cold in southern Argentina and Chile but are still a not miss area

Star

Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires.

Rio-Sugar loaf, Corcovado, Floresta da Tijuca...

You can look for good sites on Google.

(I live in Rio)

Lola P

buenos aires is one of my favorite cities in the whole world. definitely go there.

jennyy

Go to south america, see something south american.
Oh bring a backpack.

eviot44

the banks of boa vista the angel falls the Copacabana beach the corcovado the foz Du iguazu falls..and the stadium of maracana..

cantankerousoldlady

bad case of TB there. That stuff is highly contagious. Good luck.

delfinazul23

It would be a shame if you went through without spending at least a few days in Panama.

Czech Chick

Watch out for "guerrillas", you know, insurgents. Oh, and the police. A friend told me he had to pay off the police to get from one town to another. Please be careful! God bless you.

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