Latin America Travel Guide and Tips
From the snow-capped mountain peaks of the Andes, to the salt flats of Bolivia, to the unique and diverse wildlife of the Amazon forest, Latin America is truly a place that you must experience.
Whether or not it is your first time traveling, you will find that Latin America has more to offer than just its landscape. What lies within these beautiful natural wonders are people whose culture is as old as time.
With all the countries that you can visit in Latin America, how does one decide where to go and what to do? And how can you get the most out of your trip to Latin America? With our travel guide, you can be sure that you will have a memorable trip to Latin America.
Here are some tips from one of the best online travel guides for Latin America:
- Read and research a little about Latin America
- Bring just enough cash
- Hire a tour guide
- Learn the local language
- Prepare for the weather
What makes this a pre-trip necessity is the fact that by learning more about the places you can visit in Latin America, you will be able to decide where you want to visit. Note that with limited vacation time, you will not be able to visit all the best destinations in Latin America. That is why it is important for you to learn about them and base your choice on what you have learned.
You do not need to bring a large amount of cash. Doing so will only give you a headache if something goes wrong and you lose all that money. In more urbanized places, ATMs should be readily available. It is also important to bring with you cash in both your currency and the local currency. Some establishments do accept foreign currency and it may just be cheaper to transact as such.
While this is optional, it is recommended to hire one. A place as vast as Latin America can be hard to traverse and you will more than likely need the expertise of a local guide. Do remember to hire only a trusted guide to avoid unnecessary hassle.
You don’t need to be fluent, you just have to learn bits and pieces of the local language. Let’s face it, not everyone in Latin America can speak and understand English. Learning a bit about their language will help you connect with the locals.
Latin America is a big place. Weather conditions in different places vary, and you do not want to be caught off guard. Bring with you gear and clothing for different weather conditions.
Places to Visit in Latin America
Some of the world’s top tourist attractions are located in Latin America. Being a place where some of the world’s earliest known civilizations lived, Latin America has some mysterious ancient archaeological ruins that are hard to believe existed unless you see for yourself!
If you are having a hard time deciding which places to visit in Latin America on your next trip, here are some that we definitely recommend:
- Cancun, Mexico
- Machu Picchu Peru
- Galapagos Islands, Ecuador
- Uyuni Salt Flats Bolivia
- Easter Island, Chile
- Cartagena, Colombia
- Atacama Desert, Chile
- Perito Moreno Glacier, Argentina
- Amazon Forest
Cancun is a city in the Yucatan Peninsula across the Carribean. Its shores are lined with beautiful white sand beaches with numerous resorts. If you are looking for a raving nightlife with beautiful Latin women, Cancun, Mexico is the place for you.
Machu Picchu is an ancient ruin of a citadel in the Andes highlands built by the ancient Incas. The stone buildings are perfectly aligned in neat patterns and some buildings are even made to align with heavenly bodies at certain times of the day. The mystery that the Incan ruins offer is more than enough to attract hundreds of visitors to trek to the top of the Andes.
The Galapagos Islands were made famous by the great naturalist and biologist Charles Darwin himself. He based some of his ideas for his famous Theory of Evolution on the wildlife on the Galapagos Islands. What makes the animals on the island unique is the fact that most are endemic species, meaning they are unique to the Galapagos only and cannot be seen anywhere else in the world. Visiting the Galapagos will give you a peek at what wildlife looks like without the interference of humans.
Have you ever gone to a salt flat? Do you even know what a salt flat is? The Uyuni Salt Flats in Bolivia is one of the world’s largest salt flats. It used to be an 11,000 square kilometer lake that dried out over time. All that is left is a bright white sheet of salt that spans the entire lake area. How exciting is it to see up-close?
The Easter Island in Chile is one of the many mysterious wonders of Latin America. No one really knows why hundreds of large stone statues are lined up throughout the island. It is even said that these statues are several feet taller had they not been buried halfway under the ground!
Though Cartagena has become highly industrialized and developed, many of the structures that were built during the Spanish conquest still stand within the city. Beautiful churches, theatres, and the famous Torre del Reloj give us a glimpse of the beauty of Spanish architecture during the colonial period.
So you thought deserts can only be found in the Middle East? Atacama Desert is a well-known desert in Latin America that stretches over a 1,000 km strip of land in Chile. It is one of the driest places in the world. The desert plateau is located somewhere west of the Andes.
From deserts to glaciers, what’s not to like? Perito Moreno Glacier is one of three glaciers in the world that is constantly growing. Seeing the gigantic glacier in person – parts of it breaking off the sides – is an awesome sight to behold.
The Amazon Forest produces more than 20% of the world’s oxygen. It is a dense rainforest that stretches through several countries in Latin America. Several uncontacted tribes even live within this amazing forest. Who’s to say there are hundreds of undiscovered species of animal and plant life within these lush forests? See for yourself the beauty of the Amazon.
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