Would anyone mind giving me some advice?
I'm a Britfag about to turn 22 and am planning to quit my job in a few months time to travel this alluring region.
The one core part of my trip will be a 2 month stint volunteering with a charity in Cusco, Peru; no fixed date yet but I imagine between July and September.
Time isn't a particular issue for me, but money is. I'd absolutely love to add Cuba to my trip - feeling like it's a now or never kinda deal - but the extra two flights throw a spanner in the works re. budget.
I have two vague travel routes outlined and was hoping you could give me some ballpark figures and budgeting advice with both? It'll be dorms all the way for me outside of the volunteer house, and the bulk of my attractions spending will be in Peru/Bolivia. Thanks!
>Route A
UK -> Cuba (2 weeks) -> Lima (few days) -> Cusco (2months; accommodation will cost £200) -> Machu Picchu -> La Paz -> Potosi -> Uyuni Salt Flats -> EITHER flying home from Bolivia or getting to Rio and flying.
The issue here being that any money for Chile, Argentina and an extended time in Brazil is gone from Cuba. Flights between SA and The UK being quite infrequent and expensive means getting to Rio or Buenos Aires may also be my only options here.
>Route B
UK -> Lima (few days) -> Cusco (2months; accommodation will cost £200) -> Machu Picchu -> La Paz -> Potosi -> Uyuni Salt Flats -> down to Santiago -> Mendoza -> Cordoba -> Buenos Aires (have friends here so accommodation could be taken care of) -> up to Rio -> home
>>1117294
bump for interest
I have no advice for you mate just stopping by the say I might see ya there. Gonna be doing a chunk of South America over 3 months with my fiancé.
>>1117515
Sweet mate, what's your travel plan looking like?
Anyone?
I wouldn't bother going to Rio. Overpriced city with overcrowded beaches.
If you want to visit Brazil, go to the southern or central states. Hell, or even Minas Gerais if you want to stay in the southeast region, but don't waste time in either Rio or Sao Paulo.
Can't help with the rest of SA. I've been to Buenos Aires, but saw nothing interesting, just some overpriced shit (for the locals at least, for foreigners, it's not that bad). But that was before Macri started his term so things could be totally different now.
>>1117294
Flights are cheap long distance buses are even cheaper and if time ain't an issue you can get from Cusco to Santiago for about 40€ by bus.
If you want to fly buy a one world pass...
London - Madrid - Havana - Lima - Santiago - Sao Paulo - London.
For the rest Latam or Aerolineas Argentinas take you for small money around the entire continent. Just make sure to fly with BA from Sao Paulo to London as TAM (JJ flights) suck dick for anything over 3 hours.
>>1117294
>Potosi -> Uyuni Salt Flats -> down to Santiago
If you're going to take this route, check it with some anticipation since the distances are large and the towns sparse.
There *should* be some buses doing the Uyuni-Calama route but not sure. From there you can take a plane to Santiago. If you want to go by bus, it's a 20h travel through Atacama desert, not much to see from the road to be honest.
For air travel within Chile you have LATAM and Sky. Sky is cheaper and you can buy a ticket without much anticipation and just for the Calama-Santiago trip without the return (The same in latam will cost you an arm).
>>1118014
fwiw I've heard quite a few stories of tourists being robbed at Uyuni town, apparently it's not a city to stay too long.
