Thorn Tree travel forum

Welcome to the South America branch!

Welcome to the Thorn Tree's South America branch.

The countries covered by this branch are: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile & Easter Island, Colombia (note spelling), Ecuador & the Galapagos Islands, Falkland Islands, French Guiana, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Uruguay, Venezuela.

We hope you find plenty of useful information about travelling to South America here. It is highly recommended that new users check out the some of these useful FAQ threads on this branch before posting a new thread:

• Brazil FAQ thread
• South America FAQ thread

Brazil Frequently Asked Questions

For the benefit of everyone dropping by the Brazil branch for the first time, please read this FAQ first. And I hope there can be some sort of way to moderate the thread to keep it updated and clean. I know there are some AWESOME regular contributors here who enjoy giving advice; I feel this thread can really help to condense the information available.

I'll go first, with some general thoughts from the South America FAQ. Many thank to Apollo for starting that thread and for a great idea. Hopefully we can have a similar thread for Brazil.

1) Use the "Search" function to find out if someone has already asked your question. Many questions have already been asked before, and regular contributors to the forum get tired of answering the same thing over and over again.

2) Read a few pages of posts. The most frequent... more »

Bus from El Calafate

Does anyone know if there is a bus company that does a direct trip from El Calafate to Bariloche? Or what about El Calafate to Los Antiguos? Information on either or both would be much appreciated!

Appropriate Clothing in Remote Ecuador

Howdy Y'all!

I'm heading to Ecuador in less than two weeks! I'm way stoked and while starting to gather things I'm going to need to bring and it dawned on me I am not totally sure of the socially acceptable way to dress in the more remote areas of Ecuador. I'll be there for 3 months and will be traveling to all three bio-regions so need to know what's appropriate in the smaller communities, including indigenous villages. I will be backpacking so bringing as little as possible. Will running shorts that just barely pass the good ol' Catholic school girl 'length of your arm/past your fingertips' test be OK? And how about tank tops and dresses? What about spandex-y type things?

Any feedback would be super helpful and appreciated. Also, anyone looking for a travel buddy in Ecuador should hit me up! elizabethminer@gmail.com

Saludos!
lizzy

Iquitos Jungle Tour. Anyone Interested?

I am taking off on a tour of the Amazon jungle around Iquitos on Feb. 17 with a local guide I found on some travel blogs with amazing reviews. He grew up in a village 260km outside of Iquitos and is an expert on the local flora and fauna. Should be a true adventure.

It will be 5 nights and 6 days in the jungle. There is still room on this tour if anyone is interested.

He started the company in order to support his family and village, as he was frustrated with big agencies bringing in outsiders without paying anything back to the locals.

The tour involves the following:

• Full Transportation: Airport Pick Up – Taxi /River Boat, The Company is liable for any other means of Transport to secure the Clients safely back to Iquitos on the agreed date.
• Nights Accommodation in Private rooms, with mosquito netting & bed
• All meals Throughout the ... more »

Volunteer work in suriname

Hi, I am heading to Suriname in April for a month, and was really hoping to do some volunteer work for stinasu. (Or another organisation.). I have emailed and haven't heard anything back from them, and I really need to know if its going to go ahead before I book my ticket. So 3 questions.

1. Has anyone done any volunteer work for them, what was it like?

2. Does anyone else know of any organisations which would like some help from a hard-working, semi dutch speaking environmental scientist?

3. Does anyone have contact details for stinasu, other than an email address so I can call them.

Thanks in advance!!!

Mobile phone in S.America?

I've been traveling without a phone since Sept, but starting to find it a bit of a pain when trying to meet up with people etc. I touch down in Chile in a week or so, and then travel round Argentina, Bolivia, Peru and possibly Brazil over the next 2-3 months. Just wondering what the best way to get mobile would be - I have a phone, would I just have to buy a sim card in each country? How costly is it in S.America? Many thanks!

Accommodation for carnival Paraty for sale

Hey all,

Have had an emergency come up and looks like I won't be able to go to carnival after all, I have a bed in a 4 bed female dorm with a/c and en suite booked at a hostel in Paraty from 12th Feb for 5 nights till 17th Feb going spare. I paid $48 a night for it so if you're interested and haven't yet booked your accommodation then email me/post a mesage here.

Thanks

Ani

Amazon Rainforest

Would like to take a trip to the Amazon rainforest.

Details:

Trip length (including travel to & from U.S.): 7 or 8 days
Accommodations: Reasonably priced; Needs to be good enough to satisfy wife who would prefer, but does not need, luxury
Internet access: Would like it, as we are leaving young kids behind with the grandparents
Desired activities: Probably typical of such a trip (for example, wildlife hikes/viewing; river/canoe trips; canopy walks; fishing; etc.)
Location: Open to suggestions (Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Brazil, etc.)
When: Late December 2010
Other: Would consider staying at more than 1 place, each for a couple of days

Would like specific suggestions.

Thanks

Accommodation on the W

Hi All,

I've been researching accommodation options for the Torres del Paine W trek and have reached a bit of an information overload at this point! I hope someone can take the time to help me out with a few specific questions which I haven't got 100% figured out yet....

1) (The classic!) How far in advance is it reccommended to book refugios? I'll be doing the trek in late March and I had hoped that since this is the end of the season, I might be able to book them once in Chile (beginning of March), when I have a better idea of exact dates. Is this wishful thinking? Should I book right now -- or am I already too late?

2) If I miss out on the refugios, obviously the other option is camping. The impression I have is that booking at campsites is easier - maybe a few days before setting out?

3) I've read accounts of people hiring camping gear in town before starting the trek,... more »