Hola! Around South America on LAN

[RooFlyer]

Following in the footsteps of, and inspired by a number of AFFers (hi JohnM, dr.ron/mrsdr.ron, kpc and others ) I'm going round (western) South America for a month, mostly on LAN, but a bit of Avianca and even TAME.

The schedule is:

HBA-SYD VA Y
SYD-AKL-SCL LAN J
Overnight Santiago Novotel
SCL-GYE-UIO LAN PE
4 nights Quito Mercure, seeing the city and touring the volcanos to the south (although the weather forecast is lousy)
UIO to Coca TAME Y
3 nights at Sacha Lodge, a rainforest lodge in the eastern Ecuadorian rainforest
Coca to Quito TAME Y
UIO-GYE-GPS (Baltra, Galapagos Islands) Avianca Y
7 night cruise on MV Eclipse around Galapagos Islands (northern circuit)
GPS-GYE-UIO Avianca Y
UIO-LIM-CUZ LAN Y
5 nights organised tour to Sacred Valley, Machu Picchu and Cuzco
CUZ-LIM-IGU (Iguassu Falls, Brazil side) LAN Y
2 nights in Belmond Hotel des Caratas (in the park, overlooking falls :mrgreen. Many G&Ts on the terrace.
Hotel to IGR (Iguassu falls Argentine side) via a tour of the Argentine side of the falls)
IGS-AEP LAN Y
1 night in Buenos Aires (I've been there before)
AEP-MDZ
2 nights in Mendoza, or rather a small family hotel in the Valle de Uca wine region. Much wine tasting.
MDZ-SCL in LAN Y
1 night in Santiago
SCL-SYD QF J

Its amazing what happens when you decide to do a simple Galapagos cruise but there is altogether too much in Y for my liking . Although I got SYD-SCL-SYD in J for $4K in a Qantas sale some time ago, the rest of the budget blew out all over the place, so whY it is.

I'm going to endeavour to do the TR as I go, but may be a bit busy, and internet I think will be absent on the cruise (thank goodness )

Currently in AKL awaiting the LAN leg to SCL. Only about 8 people in the ~30 strong J cabin on the leg from Sydney.

 

[TomVexille]

I was hoping that you would be doing a report for this trip

 

[JohnM]

I was hoping that you would be doing a report for this trip

For RF, a TR is a given . But I'm still going to curse him at every post....

 

[TomVexille]

For RF, a TR is a given . But I'm still going to curse him at every post....

I had no doubt that he would

As will I, especially when he starts to get through the Malbecs

 

[JohnM]

I had no doubt that he would

As will I, especially when he starts to get through the Malbecs

Now I'm cursing you :!:.

 

[TomVexille]

Now I'm cursing you :!:.

Ooops

 

[PLANT]

Hola this free VPN or a trip report?

 

[juddles]

...2 nights in Mendoza, or rather a small family hotel in the Valle de Uca wine region. Much wine tasting....

Up until this point I supported you, I took pleasure from the indulgences of a fellow frequent flyer. But here I snapped into a far simpler feeling. Of Jealousy!! Damn you !!

 

[JohnM]

Hola this free VPN or a trip report?

¿Qué quieres decir?

 

[LadyC]

Sounds like an amazing trip! Very jealous. Can't wait to read more

 

[snabbu]

Another RooFlyer trip report, bring it on!

 

[JohnM]

Sounds like an amazing trip! Very jealous. Can't wait to read more

It will be! He's treading paths I've taken. That's why I'm cursing him - I want to be there again myself!

 

[Milboo]

Watching this very closely as we are in our planning phase for our July trip. We thought we had a plan then we got derailed and then we thought about the Galapagos...

A couple of questions on your plans if I may?
- how did you narrow down all the choices for Galapagos? It's driving me crazy! I have looked at the Eclipse several times though.
- Machu Picchu tour - which one was this? I'm looking at one through Natural Focus at the moment that uses the Belmond properties.

With Sacha Lodge - friend went last year and loved it!

 

[JohnM]

Watching this very closely as we are in our planning phase for our July trip. We thought we had a plan then we got derailed and then we thought about the Galapagos...

A couple of questions on your plans if I may?
- how did you narrow down all the choices for Galapagos? It's driving me crazy! I have looked at the Eclipse several times though.
- Machu Picchu tour - which one was this? I'm looking at one through Natural Focus at the moment that uses the Belmond properties.

With Sacha Lodge - friend went last year and loved it!

I did a two-week cruise around the Galapagos (combination of N & S circuits) and certainly glad I did (see: http://www.australianfrequentflyer....s/up-the-amazon-around-galapagos-62232-2.html). However, I think the full monty may be a bit unusual.

The company I used also had a Sacha Lodge tour that neatly slotted in prior to the Galapagos cruise, so it was a no-brainer. Not sure what their current offerings are, but PM me and I'll let you know who I used (it's an Australia-wide adventure-style tour company) if you want to follow it up. Couldn't fault it.

The Galapagos boat had 16 passengers which is the maximum tour 'unit' per guide - so we had one guide on our boat. Nice and personal.

For Macchu Picchu, I didn't do a tour. Just flew into Cuzco (great place) and went from there. I did book my one-day train trip to Macchu Picchu in advance to ensure I would get it. For the Sacred Valley, I just booked at a local operator in Cuzco.

 

[kpc]

Having been to Sth America 4 times, I'm much looking forward to this TR as it will be like going down "memory lane" for me!! (the only 2 places you are going to that I havent been are Mendoza and the eastern Ecuadorian rainforest)...I reckon you might be a little tired at trip's end though....BUT WHAT A GREAT TRIP IT WILL BE!!!

 

[JohnM]

Having been to Sth America 4 times, I'm much looking forward to this TR as it will be like going down "memory lane" for me!!...I reckon you might be a little tired at trip's end though....

Nah - he's putting his undies on the outside of his colourful caped suit in the LA J toilet now as we jostle for front-row positions . Have you ever seen a mountain the RF can't leap in a single bound while wielding his camera and flair for TR prose? Huaynu Picchu will be a doddle .

 

[kpc]

Huaynu Picchu will be a doddle .

That little mountain nearly killed me...I now know what the symptoms of terminal cardiac failure feel like:shock:....was bit short of breath in Cusco as well:evil:

 

[JohnM]

That little mountain nearly killed me...I now know what the symptoms of terminal cardiac failure feel like:shock:....was bit short of breath in Cusco as well:evil:

OK - I'll raise you: How old were you when you did it and how long did you take?

 

[kpc]

OK - I'll raise you: How old were you when you did it and how long did you take?

I think you are the same age as cove so I was a lot younger than you when I did it (45)...took me 1.5 hours to get to the top, and 1 hour down...my +1 took a video of me climbing and I wasn't able to string a full sentence after an hour of climbing...I blame the altitude...I got terrible altitude sickness in Cusco and had to "beg" the hotel for oxygen after 2 days:shock:

 

[JohnM]

I think you are the same age as cove so I was a lot younger than you when I did it (45)...took me 1.5 hours to get to the top, and 1 hour down...my +1 took a video of me climbing and I wasn't able to string a full sentence after an hour of climbing...I blame the altitude...I got terrible altitude sickness in Cusco and had to "beg" the hotel for oxygen after 2 days:shock:

Cove is a kid compared to me - by a whole two months :mrgreen:. I was closing on 57 and I did it up in about 1h 45m, IIRC. Again, IIRC, 20-somethings were doing it in about 1h 15m. I wasn't racing.

I had very marginal AS in Cuzco. 5000m in the Atacama last year needed some care, compared with Cuzco at 3300m. I'm glad to say the vehicles I've taken to those altitudes have shown AS more than me .

AS is a strange phenomenon - it seems to have very little to do with fitness or age; you either cope well or it hits you like a sledgehammer.