Bucket List Trip : Planning to visit South America

I am Planning to Visit South America

I have been dreaming of South America for a couple of years and this year has again reiterated how short life is and so I need to book a trip ASAP before it is too late.

There are so many places I would love to tick of the bucket list as it isn’t I start looking at the top places to visit in South America I realised how many cool places there are and now I just want to go to them all.

There are the Salt Flats in Bolivia, The Amazon Jungle, Peru, Falklands, Columbia, Brazil, Argentina oh my god the list just goes on and on. Then I googled unusual places to visit in South America and now I have even more places I want to visit.

Why do I want to go to South America

It just seems like such a diverse continent. There are beaches, mountains, rivers, jungles and wildlife all of which look so different to what I have experienced before. I want to try the food, listen to the language and listen to stories of the locals to get a true sense of the continent obviously I will probably be visiting the main tourist areas but I would also like to go a little off beat if possible.

Where do I want to go in South America

There are so many places in South America I would love to visit and of course I know that it is not going to be possible to do it all within a couple of weeks so it might be a few trips I need to do. I can not be away for more than 4 weeks at the moment because of treatment and so I can no longer go for a couple of months which is what I was originally planning.

Ideally I would really love to do a cruise around South America I have been wanting to do a Holland and America cruise for a while as the itinerary is so amazing but this is now no longer possible due to the duration.

I have thought about doing a smaller cruise and have had my eye on another HAL cruise if the price is right this could be an option.

Brazil

The main place I have wanted to visit ever since I first saw them were the Iguazu Falls in Brazil. I absolutely love waterfalls I find them so beautiful and sort of magical. I would also love to visit Rio for the Carnival but I hate crowds so I know I probably wouldn’t enjoy it as much when it is so busy. 

Argentina

You can also visit the Iguazu falls from Argentina. I want to listen to the music in Buenos Aires I would like to say I would dance but I am more likely to just be tapping my foot watching the others doing the Tango. Mendoza is the heart of the wine country in Argentina, I am a little partial to a glass of wine and would love to spend some time trying the different varieties they produce. I want to do some hostel stays when in South America so I can interact with other travellers and save some money. This is a little out of my comfort zone but I have been looking at some of the Best Hostels for Solo Travellers in Mendoza, Argentina

Peru

I never used to want to visit Machu Picchu as I always thought you had to hike there and there was no way I was going to be able to hike. But the more I researched it the more I want to visit. I didn’t realise there was a best time to visit Machu Picchu at first I was looking at visiting in December but now I realise this is the rainy season so might not be the best time as I want to have good views and dont want them obstructing the views.

When do I plan on visiting South America

I was thinking of going in December but have been reading that the best time to visit the falls are either February and March or August and September. February is the Carnival in Rio so I might plan for August / September time. Obviously the falls will be most magnificent in rainy season but as I also want to travel some more of the region I need to try and visit during a dryer period.

Planning for my trip

As with all my trips I am doing some research. I am not the type of person who wants to visit somewhere and not know anything about the area. Also there is nothing worse than planning a long haul trip and someone says “oooo are you going to xx”  and you haven’t factored this in because you didnt know about it. I have been reading other blogs about South America Itineraries and I also find the Lonely Planet website a great resource I might have to also get their book just to add to my collection. 

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There is also a increased risk of Yellow Fever with increased reports in Rio De Janerio (Source : UK Gov Travel Advice 2018) so I need to make sure I am vaccinated. I dont want to go through all this chemotherapy to then get finished off by a tropical disease. I need to have this at least one month before my trip so I am going to book this is soon as the vaccine is then for life.

Even though I do not listen to disaster holiday stories I have heard that Brazil can be a little risky for female solo travellers so I am either looking at going on a group tour or with a friend I dont think I would feel safe touring around on my own. I have thought about backpacking around South America but I would need someone with me to do this mainly because of the language barrier, but if I have a travel companion its not as scary.

I have still got more research to do and I am still undecided where I want to go so if you have any recommendations or tips then please do get in touch.