Chronicles of Planning a Trip to South America: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

After footing the initial cost, my girl friends and I were surprised to know how much it will cost to go on a trip to South America.  So we considered to explore South Africa instead and push our South American trip in 2014, in time for the world cup. The former will costs about $3,500, for 2 weeks, while the latter costs $5,000 for 3 weeks.  But on a per day basis, it's just about the same.   South Africa has been on our wish list for years while South America, popped out only recently.  However, after getting insights about South America, South Africa becomes less interesting.  At the end of the day, we have agreed to go for South America while we are still young and single and vow to live frugally in the next 9 months.  So I continue to google...

Sao Paulo is the capital of Brazil, but there is not much to see there but high rise corporate buildings.  If there's one place to visit in Brazil, it must be Rio de Janeiro.


A typical day tour in Rio de Janeiro would be:

Chronicles of Planning a Trip to South America from the Philippines - Flights

I never thought planning a trip to South America from the Philippines can be so complicated. We're eyeing on visiting the countries of Peru, Argentina, Brazil and if time permits, Chile.

Visa is not required for Filipino Citizen to enter Brazil and Peru while it is necessary for Chile ($30) and Argentina.  Surprisingly, American Citizens are required to get a visa for Brazil at $140 for reciprocity.

Flying into South America is pricey and is uber long haul.

• There is no direct flight to South America from the Philippines.
• Flights from the Philippines costs at least $2,000; almost double the price to any destination in the USA or Europe.
• Travel time will be at least 29 hours (upto 48 hours) including layover with 1 to 3 stops.
• Entry points shall be Lima, Peru, Buenos Aires, Argentina, Sao Paolo, Brazil, or Santiago, Chile.

Kayak.com  has been my companion in searching for flights.  So far, here are what I've found.

Chronicles of Planning a Trip to South America: Iguazu Falls, Argentina

WHAT TO SEE

• 4 miles (23km), 275 of deafening waterfalls plummeting into a 230-foot (20m) giant gorge declared a World Heritage Area by UNESCO in 1984. 

WHAT TO DO

• Explore the waterfalls on your own
• Iguazu Jungle Explorer http://www.iguazujungle.com, the tour operator inside the park offers the following tours:

Chronicles of Planning a Trip to South America - Machu Picchu, Peru

This probably is the most helpful post I have found about visiting Machi Picchu on your own. Taken from http://www.perutreks.com/machu-picchu-by-train-1-day.html

Peru Treks & Adventure
Machu Picchu by Train (1 day)

     

Chronicles of Planning a Trip to South America: Peru

WHAT TO SEE

• UNESCO World Heritage Sites Cuzco City
• UNESCO World Heritage Site Machu Picchu
• Amazon Rainforest

Here's an excerpt of the suggested itinerary by Frommer's for a week in Peru.