South America & Central America Megathread: Share or take the wealth.

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tourism & Travel > South America & Central America Megathread: Share or take the wealth.

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

What's the best way to travel cross-country through SA? I mean really cross country...like from Rio to Cuzco, for example, which would take you through some serious wilderness...to say the least. Is this even possible by road (or rail)?

# ¿ May 27, 2008 03:20

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# ¿ Apr 23, 2024 23:45

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Pusscat posted:

But if you have the money you must must must go to the Galapagos Islands when you go to Ecuador. They are absolutely amazing and definitely the experience of a lifetime.

Is there any way to Galapagos other than airplane? And how cheap is a flight from Ecuador to Galapagos?

# ¿ May 27, 2008 03:28

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

How's the rainy season in Nicaragua? My sister is working there, and I'd like to visit this summer. Is it just going to be so rainy we won't be able to do anything, like hike in the jungle, go to the beach, etc.

# ¿ Apr 22, 2011 01:31

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

I'll be doing six weeks in Bolivia, Peru, and Nicaragua this summer. I'll leave questions about activities for another post, but for now I'm trying to coordinate my arrival. The plane arrives at Santa Cruz's (Bolivia) international airport, Viru Viru, at 12:41am. Not ideal, but it saved me money. Does anyone know if I can expect to get a visa and get past customs at that hour, or will I have to wait until morning? If you've never been to Viru Viru, but have been to other South American airport, I'm still interested in what they do because it's probably a similar situation.

# ¿ Jun 20, 2011 03:27

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Anybody been to Los Cabos? I'm considering a trip there early next year. I know it's a tourist circus, but it might be fun to rent a car and drive up to La Paz, which I've heard is nice.

Interested in others' experiences in Baja.

# ¿ Oct 9, 2021 19:42

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Has anyone been hiking out of the Huaraz area in Peru? How was your experience?

# ¿ Jun 30, 2023 00:40

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Chikimiki posted:

Went there last October, what exactly would you want to know ?

How was the weather/hiking conditions? I understand October is something of a shoulder season, between the dry and wet seasons.

What hike did you do? I'm thinking about the four day Santa Cruz hike. How was the scenery?

What operator/guide service did you go with and would you recommend them?

# ¿ Jun 30, 2023 17:11

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Chikimiki posted:

Weather-wise it was very nice, though it was supposed to be the start of the rainy season we had exceptionally dry weather for end of October. This also meant there were less people on the trek and a few agencies already had closed down. YMMV.

We did a few acclimatization day hikes (very important!) before doing the Santa Cruz trek: Laguna Wilcacocha, Laguna Churup and Pastoruri Glacier (little hiking but nice scenery and a good altitude training). Santa Cruz has really amazing scenery, totally worth it.

Although you can do the trek by yourself if you are experienced enough, by bringing your own equipment or renting stuff in town (Monta�as Magicas is a good adress), we went with the guided tour from our hostel. Can't remember the name unfortunately, but it wasn't one of the big names in the guidebooks.
For the price we paid it was really worth it, you have a guide, donkeys to transport your stuff and tent, and a cook that prepares plenty to eat every day.
I'm guessing that if you go for the more reputable tours you get better equipment, English speaking guides, smaller groups, etc. but for us the basic package was fine. Not the easiest trek we did but really doable if you're reasonably in shape and acclimatized.

Awesome. So you booked the trek once you got there? In my experience in Latin America, that�s usually the way to go if you don�t want to be massively overcharged. Of course, this time I�ll be on a shorter schedule than I was as a backpacker in years past, so hopefully it�s easy to just walk in and book something for after you do the accilimitization hikes.

# ¿ Jul 1, 2023 17:59

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Hibajubwa posted:

I�m thinking about flying over to Iquitos and taking the slow boat down the Amazon to Leticia. From there I can catch a flight up to Medell�n and meet back up with the wife. 3 days on a terrible ferry in the jungle is somehow appealing to me.

I have a friend who did this and took it all the way to brazilian coast. It wasn't a good time lol

# ¿ Jul 12, 2023 19:46

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# ¿ Apr 23, 2024 23:45

Ramrod Hotshot: May 30, 2003

Oakland Martini posted:

If you are hikers and this suggestion is not too late, I highly recommend this long day hike near Bariloche: https://thisremotecorner.com/refugio-frey-from-cerro-catedral-best-day-hike-bariloche/ It was just as good, if not better, than any of the hiking I did in Torres del Paine and El Chalten.

Edit: You might need poles and/or microspikes in mid-November. There was a fair amount of snow up there in late December when I went.

Really? Better than the W?

I'm trying to plan a trip to Argentina (and maybe Chile, but probably just Argentina) for next December, around Christmas. It's honestly overwhelming to figure out, there's so many areas of places to see and hike in Patagonia (Bariloche, Calafate, Chalten, Torres del Paine, Ushuaia) and none of them close. Very hard to pick.

Is there more great hiking in Bariloche or just that standout? And what did you like so much about it?

# ¿ Jan 18, 2024 22:05

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tourism & Travel > South America & Central America Megathread: Share or take the wealth.