im in buenos aires right now.... here for another 3 nights....
my entire trip of south america is 2 months; and there are a number of places i would really like to go to:
-igazu falls
-rio de janero
-somewhere in chile (is there anywhere good to go in the north part? if not; santiago)
-salt flats in bolivia
-lake titicaca
-cusco
-amazon (probably from cusco)
-machu pichu
-somewhere in ecuador (im flying out from quito - maybe ill even go to galapagos islands depending on how much cash i have left)
also depending on how much cash and time is left id like to go to colombia (but thats probably not going to happen)
my main issue is trying to figure out a logical itinerary that would save me not having to spend half my trip on a bus.
im open to buying a flight to cut down on travel time.
my original idea was this: (all bus unless otherwise stated)
-buenos aires - uruguay - igazu - rio - (fly to) santiago - salt flats ... (the rest is pretty straight forward by bus)
but FionaB kindly told me there is a stupid charge of US$160 just for landing in the capital of chile.... so id rather avoid that nonsense...
does anyone have any other ideas (im open to all suggestions) regarding my itinerary?
maybe i can land in mendoza then bus to chile?
or something completely different?
is it maybe better to check out the amazon from another point other than cusco?
thanx in advance
Reply to this The Amazon is much cheaper from La Paz than from Cusco. Rurrenabaque (not sure of spelling) is the place to head for.
San PEdro de Atacama in Northern Chile is well worth a visit. In fact, some Salar de Uyuni tours will leave you at the border crossing on Day 3 rather than returnig to Uyuni, so you could move on to San Pedro from there.
The Mendoza to Santigao bus trip is 8 hrs minimum and this is the slowest border crossing I've experienced in SA. BUt the scenery is great, you pass very close to Aconcagua, SA's highest peak.
Reply to this barry,
san pedro sounds like some place i would like to visit.
right now i am in cordoba (heading to mendoza tomorrow)
after mendoza i will be heading to santiago (the crossing which u mention above)
but after santiago i would like to go somewhere else (preferably smallish town) before heading to uyuni.
so san pedrro seems like is a go, but i was curious if u know if i can catch a bus directly there from santiago?
or do i have to connect somewhere else?
also... from san pedro, can i get to uyuni?
thanx. appreciate your help
Reply to this Valparaiso is a nice place close to Santiago, about 1.5 hours by bus.
You can go direct to San Pedro by bus from Santiago(it's a 24 hour journey). A good place to break the journey is in La Serena, about 7 hours north. There are pisco factory tours, mountain hiking and fantastic astronomical observatory tours (world's biggest telescopes are in this area). I've a blog somewhere about Santiago, La Serena and Mendoza which might have more tips.
From San Pedro to Uyuni...you can catch a bus or train from Calama (1 hr from San Pedro) to Uyuni. We went via Argentina, a very scenic route. Take a bus from SP to Jujuy, then travel up the Quebrada de Humahuaca to Bolivian border, then on to Tupiza (where you can do Salar dfe Uyuni tours too) or Uyuni. It's longer but if you have the time I'd highly recommend this route.
Reply to this very informative, thank you.
i will look into la serena for breaking the journey....(is it a coastal city? looking at it on the map it seems it is... or is it a bit of a drive to the ocean?)
i would like to see the ocean (hence i was thinking of checking antofagasta.... have you been?)
thanx again
Reply to this yes, the beach is very close to La Serena. Nice place, great climate. I didn't make it to Antofagasta so can't help you there. San Pedro is very beautiful too, we spent 8 days, could easily stay longer, plenty to see and do, lovely sunsets at Valle de la Luna, hiking in Valle de la Muerte, and high altitude volcanoes and lakes.
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