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I am considering doing a six to eight week trip around South America when I qualify as an accountant next year. Could anyone advise me on how much I should budget for, for the whole trip, taking into account flights and that I will happily stay in the cheapest of hostels available and eat in cheap restaurants. I really want to see Brazil but am wondering what other countries to see and things to do?
Many thanks
Scott

Flights will be the most expensive thing on your trip - save money by getting a return to one city e.g. Rio de Janiero, and taking long distance buses when you want to explore. It takes a bit longer but is a better way to see the countries and a lot cheaper. Brazil has got one of the best coach networks in the world, so it's cheap and easy to explore.

Depending on when you travel and if you aren't too fussy you can get cheap flights (www.cheapflights.co.uk) from around £430-600.

The rest of your whole budget depends on where you go, as some countries (like Brazil and Chile) are far pricier than others. Even if you spend a lot of time in Brazil, you can live on £100 a week if you're really careful. Budget for around £5 a night for a shared room in a cheap hostel in Rio (like the Surf N Stay) maybe a bit more in Sao Paolo and on the coast - say around £350 at the very most for the whole trip.

For Brazil you can't beat Rio and the Iguazu Falls between Argentina and Brazil are a major highlight.

Although you will pay to see some sights, like the Sugar Loaf Mountain in Rio, there are free guided tours of the public buildings in Brasilia and the Itaipu Dam.

In Rio, go to Casa de Matriz - an amazing club in an old house. Go out in Lapa - full of bars spilling out into the street - and stay in Ipanema. If you have to do something touristy, go hangliding over the city for about $15. Don't go on an arranged tour of the Maracana - they cost about four times the price of just going on your own. I found it totally safe to do so.

Go to local 'por kilo' restaurants for lunch. They're buffets that weigh your food and you pay for what you eat.

Go to Uruguay or Bolivia if you want to leave Brazil - both are relatively untouched and untouristy. Montevideo in Uruguay is an underrated city and is only a few hours to Buenos Aires - I stayed in the Red Hostel for around £8 a night.

In Bolivia head to the Rurrenabaque - it's great for a trip up river with loads of wildlife, including Anacondas.

At Potosi take a trip down the Silver mine, it's still fully working and definitely not for the faint hearted but an experience you'll never forget.

La Paz is the highest capital city in the world and the starting point for the 'Worlds most dangerous road' - you can cycle down it if you dare.

Salar de Uyuni is the largest salt flats in the world, and the four day tour there is absolutely amazing. Or visit Lake Titkaka, the highest altitude lake in the world, and Isla del Sol at the centre is the birthplace of the Incas.
I am so jealous - I wish I could go back!
Sissi, London

Air tickets in Brazil are very expensive. We are beginning to see to some changes but the price are very high. So my advice is to shop well before you make any decision.
Antonio

I returned from a nine week trip around South America only last week, and I have to say Brazil absolutely blew me away. I stayed in Rio de Janeiro for a week longer than planned, thus leaving myself only two days in Buenos Aires - a terrible crime according to many people I met afterwards! Brazil is a must-do. While there explore the beautiful Ihla Grande, Parati and Trinidad. I travelled through Foz Iguazcu on the Brazilian side, taking in the Iguazu Falls and then through to Puerto Iguassu, in Argentina - where the Falls are at their most magnificent. You could fly into Sao Paulo then travel east to the coast and up north to Salvador. If you're after a jungle experience you can fly from Salvador to Manaus and take a four day trip into the heart of the Amazon. Flights will probably cost £650-700 from London, bear in mind that Brazil is the most expensive country in South America, and that South America is an expensive continent when it comes to flights. You can sleep in perfectly good hostels for £10 a night. Food comes in pretty cheaply, but don't expect anything fantastic. If food's your thing, head to Buenos Aires - the gastronomic capital of South America!

Chile (Patagonia, Luna Valley), Peru (Machu Picchu) and Bolivia (salt plains) are also amazing. I managed to do all these countries (plus a mistaken trip to Paraguay) in nine weeks. It's definitely manageable, it depends how long you want in each place. Regardless, you'll want to go back and see more!
Megan Agnew

My partner and I went on a longer trip to South America (six months) back in 2005 and had a budget of £600 a month which in most places meant we could see everything we wanted to see, eat well and stay in reasonably comfortable hotels.
You could easily use up the whole of your six to eight weeks in Brazil. We spent a month just in the south of the country and regret not exploring Salvador and other places in the north and inland. I would definitely recommend Rio, Paraty, Ihla Grande and Iguazu Falls.
If you wanted to extend the trip to include a couple of other countries you could cross the border into Uruguay. Check out the beach resorts, the lovely capital Montevideo and charming Colonia de Sacramento. From here you can catch a ferry to Buenos Aires in Argentina. After checking out the Argentinian capital I would recommend you head north and west from here for a flavour of a different South America. Check out the smart and friendly wine town of Mendoza and Salta and the surrounding area - there are even some small Inca ruins near the beautiful village of Tilcara and a museum with pre-Inca artefacts in Salta.
And if you wanted to blow your budget add Patagonia to your itinerary (Ushuaia, Perito Moreno glacier and Torres del Paine in Chile are all recommended).
Enjoy your trip
Jo

I am from Argentina and I have travelled around South America a bit. I actually met my British husband while traveling there 10 years ago.
South America is a very big place, you need to know what kind of things you would like to see and do before deciding where to go. I don't think you can do all of it in six weeks, although you can do a few nice things.

Apart from Brazil, which is massive, you've got Uruguay with lovely beaches although it's expensive in the summer and also it is worth visiting Colonia and Montevideo, (especially if you happen to be there during the Carnival).
In Argentina (I won't try to be objective here) there are a few things to do a visit. Iguazu Falls and Perito Moreno Glacier being the two main spectacular attractions. Perito Moreno is down south in Patagonia at the bottom of the continent and, although extraordinary, is quite expensive. Iguazu Falls, on the Brazilian border is astonishing and not too expensive.
Of course Buenos Aires, if you like city life and great night life, would be a great option, although I don't enjoy it myself, finding it too big. Salta and Mendoza are the two other places to go specially if you like wine. Mendoza is famous for it, although Salta is now producing fantastic wine. Salta would be cheaper and I would say more beautiful, with lots to do: the famous Tren a las nubes (Train to the Clouds) Valles Calchaquies and Quebrada de Humahuaca. The city itself is wonderful.

Bolivia: I love it. It is quite undeveloped and it is fantastic. Contrary to what many people think it is very safe, although of course you always have to be sensible and never take silly risks. La Paz is mind-blowing, and the train trip from Villazon is quite an experience. The most dangerous roadtrip to Coroico is truly scary, but wonderful. Lake Titicaca, Copacabana and Isla del Sol are something you must do when there as it is so beautiful and peaceful. For me the way to go in Bolivia is the train. There are two lines running, one from the Brazilian border and a second one from Pocitos on the Argentinean border. These two lines go to Santa Cruz in the east of the country. Santa Cruz itself is not nice, but from there you can go to the jungle in the north, or you can go to Cochabamba. Two fantastic places nearby are La Chiquitania, where there is a circuit of old churches and communities, and the other is a place called Samaipata and the Parque Nacional Amboro. In Bolivia you can also travel in a camion. This is the way locals travel in the countryside. It is literally a lorry where people cram in the back and pay the driver a minimal fee for the trip. It is an experience I recommend!

Peru: well, obviously Cuzco and Macchu Picchu, but Arequipa, Pisco, and the deserted beaches in the south and the north of the country are fantastic. If you like the jungle a good place to start is Pucalpa, where you can take a boat along the river (buy a hammock there) and get all the way to Iquitos in the heart of the jungle where the Amazon river "is born".

Ecuador: it its such a beautiful country and small and friendly. Beaches are fantastic, as are the jungle and the mountains. Vilcabamba in the south is so incredible. This is where I met my husband! When in Quito, I recommend a visit to "Fundacion Guayasamin" a brilliant museum.

Lastly, Chile: Atacama desert is just fantastic, Valparaiso, Arica, Santiago, La serena, and the south, especially the countryside. The crossing of the Andes, (between Argentina and Chile) by bus is an incredible journey.
There are many many other places, you really have to think what kind of things you like and from then on you can decide.
Cheap hostels can be found, (around seven or eight pounds) and always look for local transport and not tourists packs and you'll save a few bobs.
I hope it helps!
Consuelo

Ive also planned seven weeks in South America ending in Brazil. I booked the majority of my trip with STA travel although I do have a bit of room for flexibility. I am starting in Peru and doing the Inca trail, moving into Bolivia and visiting the amazon rainforest and river. From there I have a week or so to do either Chile, Uruguay or to go straight to Buenos Aires and spend some time there. Either way I will end up in Argentina and party in Buenos Aires for as long as I can. Then I'm heading to Antarctica for 11 days departing from South Argentina. When I get back to Argentina I'll head to the Iguazu waterfalls and then on to Sao Paulo and finally end in Rio. I'm due to arrive back in the UK on Christmas Eve.
I wont be looking forward to Christmas this year!
Chris Pallaris


My sister and her boyfriend just returned from a two month trip to South America. They spent about £3000 each, travelling on buses and staying in private rooms in hostels. Near the end though they did run out of money and had to sleep in dormitories. They visited Brazil - mostly Rio, with some time in the rainforest and at Iguacu Falls, Argentina - they say Buenos Aires is unmissable and Peru, where they hiked the Inca Trail.
Grace