Are you looking to spend several months travelling in South America? This article is for you! In June 2014 we left Europe for a trip of a lifetime, exploring South America. It took us 222 days to go “From the Caribbean to the end of the world“. It was magic.
Highlights of 6 months in South America
This is always a difficult question: what did you like the most in South America? Impossible to pic one thing but here is a list of few experiences that make it to the “top list”.
- Meeting the welcoming Colombians
- Climbing in the Andes
- Getting face to face with wildlife in Galapagos
- Exploring Inca ruins and indigenous culture
- Strolling through unreal landscapes: Salar de Uyuni, Atacama desert, Iguazu Falls
- Get caught by the rhythm of Brazil
- Trekking in Patagonia
- Tasting the meat in Uruguay and Argentina
I am sharing here the itinerary of the trip in details, I hope it will give you ideas to plan your own adventure! You can click on the destinations in blue to read more about them.
| Destination | Country | Days | Month |
| Cartagena | Colombia | 4 | June |
| Taganga | Colombia | 5 | July |
| Ciudad Perdida trek | Colombia | 4 | July |
| Tayrona National Park | Colombia | 2 | July |
| Taganga | Colombia | 1 | July |
| Medellin | Colombia | 3 | July |
| Guatape | Colombia | 2 | July |
| Salento | Colombia | 4 | July |
| Cali | Colombia | 2 | July |
| Mindo | Ecuador | 3 | July |
| Otavalo | Ecuador | 3 | July |
| Quito | Ecuador | 4 | August |
| Latacunga | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Quilotoa Loop | Ecuador | 5 | August |
| Cotopaxi volcano | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Quito | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Tena | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Laguna Limoncocha (Amazonas) | Ecuador | 4 | August |
| Banos | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Puerto-Lopez | Ecuador | 3 | August |
| Montanita | Ecuador | 2 | August |
| Guayaquil | Ecuador | 1 | August |
| Galapagos | Ecuador | 10 | August |
| Guayaquil | Ecuador | 1 | September |
| Lima | Peru | 3 | September |
| Nazca | Peru | 1 | September |
| Cusco | Peru | 3 | September |
| Salkantay trek to Machu Picchu | Peru | 4 | September |
| Cusco | Peru | 4 | September |
| Sacred valley | Peru | 3 | September |
| Cusco | Peru | 1 | September |
| Copacabana | Bolivia | 1 | September |
| Isla del Sol | Bolivia | 2 | September |
| La Paz | Bolivia | 4 | October |
| Huayna Potosi climb | Bolivia | 3 | October |
| Coroico | Bolivia | 2 | October |
| La Paz | Bolivia | 1 | October |
| Sucre | Bolivia | 2 | October |
| Potosi | Bolivia | 2 | October |
| Uyuni | Bolivia | 1 | October |
| Salar de Uyuni | Bolivia | 3 | October |
| San Pedro de Atacama | Chile | 3 | October |
| Salta | Argentina | 1 | October |
| Road trip around Salta | Argentina | 2 | October |
| Asuncion | Paraguay | 2 | October |
| Ciudad del Este | Paraguay | 1 | October |
| Iguazu Falls | Argentina | 2 | October |
| Sao Paolo | Brazil | 3 | November |
| Parati | Brazil | 3 | November |
| Rio de Janeiro | Brazil | 6 | November |
| Ilha Grande | Brazil | 3 | November |
| Sao Paolo | Brazil | 3 | November |
| Florianopolis | Brazil | 2 | November |
| Punta del Diablo | Uruguay | 2 | November |
| Montevideo | Uruguay | 1 | November |
| Valdence (ranch) | Uruguay | 2 | November |
| Colonia del Sacramento | Uruguay | 1 | November |
| Buenos Aires | Argentina | 7 | December |
| Mendoza | Argentina | 4 | December |
| Santiago de Chile | Chile | 3 | December |
| Valparaiso | Chile | 2 | December |
| Santiago de Chile | Chile | 1 | December |
| Pucon | Chile | 4 | December |
| Chiloe | Chile | 3 | December |
| Bariloche | Argentina | 5 | December |
| El Bolson | Argentina | 5 | December |
| El Chalten | Argentina | 5 | January |
| El Calafate | Argentina | 3 | January |
| Puerto Natales | Chile | 2 | January |
| Torres del Paine | Chile | 8 | January |
| Puerto Natales | Chile | 1 | January |
| Punta Arenas | Chile | 1 | January |
| Porvenir | Chile | 2 | January |
| Punta Arenas | Chile | 1 | January |
| Ushuaia | Argentina | 4 | January |
| Buenos Aires | Argentina | 2 | February |
If we would do it again… We would probably spend a few days less in Ecuador (41 days is a long time!), and stay a bit longer in Colombia and Uruguay. With more time and a bit more money we would have added a trip to the north of Brazil – a domestic flight is needed.
A few things to consider for your South America itinerary
Distances. Distances are huge in South America! Long distances buses will be your main way of transportation if you are backpacking on the continent. Be ready to get a journeys of more than 12h on a frequent basis.
Seasons. There are mainly two ways to explore South America: from North to South or from South to North! A choice mainly based on when you start your trip.
If you want to go trekking in Patagonia, plan to get there between December and March or be ready for the worst!. Note that the rest of the year you will be really limited in terms of transportation. The rainy season in the Andes is supposed to be around January and May, but many people we met said it would not do much difference.
Mountains vs Beaches. We love hiking more than relaxing on paradisiac beaches and you can see it on our itinerary: more than half of our trip was focussed around the Andes and just in Patagonia we spent 39 days. If you are not a huge fan of trekking, you won’t need so much time there. The beaches fans should research about little paradises on Colombian, Ecuador and Peruvian beaches on the Pacific Ocean as well as in the northern part of Brazil.
Budget. Some countries are more expensive than others. For example, you will probably spend 3 times more in Brazil than in Bolivia. You may also want to read How much does it costs to travel 6 months in South America
Now it’s your time to combine your South America itinerary and to get on the roads!
Hi, I’m heading to South America soon. Flying into Chile to start. For your travel plans through Chile and Argentina were you able to do that all by bus or did you have to rent a car at some points ?
Hello Alfy, on that trip I was able to do the all thing just by bus (except Galapagos and a flight between Colombia and Ecuador). Especially in Chile and Argentina buses are a great way to travel, they are also really comfortable. We rented a car once for a mini two day road trip around Salta (upcoming blog post, stay tuned) but it is because we wanted to do a road trip not because there was no bus reaching our destination. Have a fun trip!
Hi Amadine. My boyfriend and I are hoping to go to South America this year but we are a little confused as to when the best time of year to go is as everywhere seems to recommend different times. We plan to fly into Colombia in September and work our way south finishing in Patagonia in Feb. We both like to hike but don’t want to get caught in the rainy season that would make travel/hiking tough. What would your advice be? Thanks!!
Hi Becky, Thanks for stopping by.
Exciting that you have 6 months of travel upon you! Indeed, it is not so easy to try to plan according the season in South America – and there is no perfect way to do it either. Overall I think your plan looks great!
If you like hiking it is definitely a good idea to keep Patagonia for the end of the trip (Dec/Jan/Feb) as it can be really cold and snowing – and you could be really miserable so I would mainly plan according to that. Most of the other countries have a variety of climates and altitudes so the rainy season of the lowlands can be a problem, but it may be ok in altitude.
I think starting with Colombia early September you should not be in the core of the rainy season so it should be all right. Then try to make the most of the weather you get in Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia (for this last one try to avoid December). You can be in Brazil around early December – then it is not too hot yet. Also remember that rain itself is not a problem – if you go to the Amazonas area, it rains everyday at least for a few hours but the warm temperature make is viable to still hike.
I can guarantee you that you will have fun whatever :-). When you travel for a long time, your brain is much less picky about the weather because you don’t just have 10 days to do it all, and you can sometimes slightly adjust your next day activity to make the most out of good weather.
Last tip: Make sure you invest in quick dry hiking pants – better than rain pants in my opinion when you are backpacking- and a good rain jacket. You can check the equipment I use here http://little-big-explorations.com/packing-list-trekking-equipment/
Have fun planning!
My husband and I are planning a very similar trip to the one you’ve just described. My question is about planning- how much should I figure out, plan, book, etc here while I’m still at home in the States, versus planning a few weeks at time while we’re down there. Any suggestions would be helpful!
Hi Molly,
Sounds exciting! Obviously it depends your type of personality and how much of a control freak you are ;-). Personnally, I would recommend having an outline with key places you want to visit and a rough timeline. This will be depend on seasons etc and also allows you to check if the key activities you want to do require booking in advance.
Also, usually I like to book my first night when I arrive, this valid for the first night of the trip but also when you have a long journey and arrive fairly late so that you are not too stress. Once there, it is easier to have accurate and local information – also tips form other travelers are good and you can plan a few weeks at the time.
Also make sure you always have an extra day here and there – both to recover, if something unexpected happen or just for things you discover once there!
Have fun!
Hi, love your blog! My boyfriend and I are planning on doing 7 months in South America this year. Was just wondering how many internal flights you took and where they were to/from? We are trying to plan which is the cheapest & easiest route.
Hi Hannah,
We only took 2 internal flights – it was lots of hours in the bus but really enjoyed travelling that way 😉 This was possible only as we started north to south
First one was between Cali (south of Colombia) to Quito. Reason was we flew from Europe to Colombia and it was recommended/officially mandatory to have a transportation ticket out of the country so we bought that ticket in advance.
The second one was much later, it was once we made it all the way down to Ushuaia, to fly back to Bueno Aires. We booked this one 2 months before, once we had the return ticket (from Bueno Aires back to Europe).
We also took a return ticket to the Galapagos Islands which we book a few weeks after starting the trip.
I wouldn’t change much as it is quite an experience to travel by bus. It forces you to take the time and you can avoid the big cities. It is usually quite cheap (you can see the blog post about the budget) and bonus point it is more environmental friendly! Also you need a bit less planning, most of the long distance bus tickets you can buy just a few days before (except for the holiday period) which always you to remain flexible.
If you would want to go to the north of Brazil you will probably need an extra flight.
Have a lovely trip!
Hi there
Love your post!! Its the most useful I’ve found online so far! My husband n I are planning to go to South America around late April or early May. We planning to fly into Chile then work our way to Colombia then brazil back down to Chile. This will be our first big trip backpacking style. Do you have a packing list or anything essential to have. Any info would be great! 🙂 Thanks
Hi Dorothy,
I hope the trip is going well. I actually never published our full packing list it is true – maybe an idea for an upcoming post. I think 5 years later and with all that experience I would do things differently!
This article might be useful though it is not a full list… littlebigexplorations.com/packing-tips-for-active-travelers
Happy travels!
Hey Amandine,
Through various life situations I am now faced with the fact that at the end of they year I can do a ski season in Europe and then go the SA for 6 months – I estimate I will have at least 5K GBP for this adventure and I cannot wait. I really enjoyed your posts and wondered if you can reco a good book or site to help me plan this adventure x
ATB
Steve