Major City

Rio de Janeiro, a beautiful & intimidating city offering the best and worst of what South America has to offer, we were both nervous and excited touching down on a new continent.

Island

A supposedly beautiful island retreat a few hours from Rio - due to a fairly bleak looking weather forecast we decided to skip this and move straight onto Paraty.

Coastal Town

A small and lively colonial coastal town set in a bay surrounded by islands and mountainous Atlantic forest. It is also famed for the production of Brazil’s most popular spirit cachaca, the main ingredient in Caipirinhas!

Major City

A monster, São Paulo is home to 20 million fiercely proud paulistanos. We stayed in Villa Madellena and loved the neighborhood feel of the place. Low rise two story buildings in a hilly area with a high rise backdrop lend it a unique neighborhood feel and the limitless cafes, bars, boutique shops & restaurants would rival the offering of any city in the world. Add a sunny warm winter and it's hard to beat.

National Park

The most breathtaking thing we've ever seen. Knowing we'd be tight for time once we got to Argentina, we decided to visit from the Brazilian side and spend a day on either side exploring it from every angle.

Big City

We stopped in Medellin for two weeks to learn Spanish and stayed in the area of Poblado. While a little overrun by gringos like ourselves, it proved to be a very comfortable and enjoyable spot to base ourselves with more bars, restaurants and coffeeshops than we could afford to enjoy and a perfect climate in the mid 20s every day.

Town

Having heard too many good things about Jardin, we used a public holiday in the middle of the week to travel there for a 24 hour trip. It was well worth the visit and probably the most beautiful town we visited in Colombia (with possibly the best coffee too).

Mountain Town

Located in the coffee region of Colombia, Salento is a must visit on any itinerary. Incredible hiking, horse riding, coffee farms, tejo and a picturesque town center surrounded by green mountains.

Day trip

A day trip and welcome escape from Medellin to some accessible swimming spots. A steep ascent up a 654ft granite rock surrounded by water in a man made reservoir in what looks like a natural archieapelago offer wonderful views and the colourful town is worth a few hours exploring too.

Beach Town

We stayed only one night in Santa Marta using it as a base to visit Parque Tayrona, and then went from Parque Tayrona straight on to Cartagena.

National Park

Stretches of golden sandy beach backed by coconut palms and thick rainforest. Behind it all rise the steep hillsides of the Sierra Nevada, the world's highest coastal mountain range. The park stretches along the coast and covers 12,000 hectares of land and 3000 hectares of coral-rich sea. We spent 24 hours here, the best of which were later in the evening and first thing in the morning when we had it almost to ourselves.

Small City

A beautiful Spanish colonial walled city with high-end restaurants and plenty of sights. Undoubtedly Colombia's most beautiful city, well preserved lying within 13km of centuries-old colonial stone walls. Cartagena's Old Town is a Unesco World Heritage Site – cobbled alleys, balconies covered in bougainvillea, and massive churches that cast their shadows across leafy plazas.

Beach Town

We only had a short afternoon here as we passed through on our way to the San Blas islands. We had lunch on the beach front and it was certainly enough to give us a taste of what life on the islands was going to be like. We could happily have spent more time here.

Island

The closest thing to paradise we're ever likely to experience. We spent 4 spectacular days travelling to 6 of the 365 mostly uninhabited islands.

Big City

Another short stop, on our way from the San Blas islands this time. We spent one night and flew straight to Cali early the next morning. We were there long enough to notice how it expensive it could be however.

Small City

Hot and gritty city. We arrived here a little worse for wear after a few days in the San Blas islands and unfortunately weren't fit enough to take part in it's main offering.. Salsa. We didn't manage to learn quite a lot about it nonetheless.

Town

We were fortunate to catch Otavalo in full flow during its famous Saturday market. The entertainment didn't let up with plenty of live music on Saturday evening and hikes around a Volcano on Sunday followed by a local food market.

Mountain Town

One of the most relaxing stops on our entire trip, helped largely due to the fact that we stayed in the incredible Bicok Ecolodge with onsite pool, indoor fire and impressive breakfasts.

Mountain Town

The Quilatoa loop is an incredible self-guided hiking trail, high in the Andes in the Cotopaxi region of Ecuador with great mountain lodge accommodation options along the route.

Big City

We just used Quito as a stop off on our way to the Galapagos. We spent 24 hours here mostly stocking up on supplies. The fact that the bus terminals are split on either side of the city, about 40 minutes drive apart and the airport being 45 minutes away put us off spending any more time here.

Island

We joined an Intrepid trip in the Galapagos and spent the most incredible 8 days with a great group of people. Snorkling every day with sea lions, sharks, marine iguanas, rays, sea turtles and colourful fish that didn't even get a look in.

Small City

A small riverside city full of colonial buildings, cafes and art galleries. The standard of the food we ate here was absolutely excellent and an extremely welcome change from the blandness of the preceding weeks rice & protein options.

Beach Town

A much needed resting spot spent relaxing on the beach. With temperatures in the high 20's, the warmest sea temperatures Peru has to offer and Pisco sours aplenty, it was hard to leave. We stayed in a lovely beach hut and listened to the waves crashing right outside our terrace all day every day.

Major City

3 days mostly exploring the many great bars, restaurants and coffee shops of Barranco & Miraflores. One of the best cities so far on the continent.

Small City

Arequipa is filled with baroque buildings constructed from sillar, a white volcanic stone. It was far more beautiful than we expected, with this stone making up most of the buildings in the large colonial era old town.

National Park

The Colca Canyon is a canyon of the Colca River in southern Peru, located about 160 kilometres northwest of Arequipa. With a depth of 3,270 metres, it is the fourth deepest in the world. We took a 3 day trek down into it.

Small City

We spent 4 days here waiting for our trek to start and adjusting to the altitude. While obviously a little overrun with tourists coming to and from Machu Picchu, the city still had plenty to offer with excellent museums, restaurants, bars and the sun was shining the whole time we were there.

National Park

We did the Lares 2 day trail combined with 2 days of the Classic Inka trek booked through a locally owned and run company called Wayki Trek.

Town

Our first stop in Bolivia and a great option for staying on Lake Titicaca (the highest lake in the world). It's also the closest point for a day trip to Isla del Sol.

Island

The day we planned to travel out to Isla del Sol happened to be the same day as Bolivia's presidential elections. As a result, no boats or buses were running so we spent another relaxing day in Copacabana.

Major City

Eventful nights with protests right outside our hostel and tear gas being fired up and down the street. Our days were spent largely without incident and it was otherwise one of the safest and more relaxing cities on the continent. The Death Road cycle is a must.

Town

We took a 3 day tour from Uyuni with Salty Desert which dropped us in San Pedro de Atacama in Chile on the other side. The sights and changing landscapes along the way are other worldy and make for fascinating 3 days.

Town

Stunning landscape around the laid back town. See it on a horse or bicycle. Geysers, mountains, sand boarding, star gazing (it's one of the best places on Earth to see the stars) and more.

Coastal Town

Small city with a large beach. A short distance from the pisco distilleries and star gazing observatory in Elqui Valley.

Major City

Planned stop. Take in a passionate football match, the vibrant street life, super shopping and lively clubs that party well past dawn. Many travellers view the giant Argentinean capital as their favourite city in all of South America.

Mountain Town

Planned stop. The gateway to Parque de los Glaciares which is where you can visit Perito Moreno Glacier.

Mountain Town

Planned stop. The furthest northerly town in Patagonia. Do the 27km cycle if you can. The Patagonia Brewery is a stop along the way and the views are amazing, as well as the beer. Bariloche is famous for beer and chocolate. Loads of hiking opportunities too which aren’t too far from town (Mount Otto - difficult).

Wine Region

Planned stop. Excellent wine and it’s also not far from Mount Aconcagua, the tallest on the continent. Renting bikes and winery maps, and spend a sunny day cycling to winery after winery.

Major City

Our last stop as we fly out of here. Capital city with so much to do in and around it. Skiing in the Andes, nice beaches and interesting towns all very close to what is the beating heart of this country.

Small City

Held in the embrace of two harbours and built on the remnants of long-extinct volcanoes, Auckland isn't your average metropolis. It's regularly rated one of the world's most liveable cities, blessed with good beaches, wine regions, and a thriving dining, drinking and live-music scene, not to mention subtropical weather. However, it's the rich culture of this ethnically diverse city that makes Auckland stand out on the global stage. Time your visit for any major cultural event, from Pasifika to Diwali, and you'll see what we mean.

Island

Turquoise waters lapping pretty bays, dolphins frolicking at the bows of boats, pods of orcas gliding gracefully by: chances are these are the kinds of images that drew you to NZ in the first place, and these are exactly the kinds of experiences that the Bay of Islands delivers in spades. There are myriad options to tempt you out onto the water to explore the 150-odd islands that dot this beautiful bay. Landlubbers will relish the rich maritime history as successions of visitors arrived on these shores.

Town

Queenstown may be world-renowned as the birthplace of bungy jumping, but there’s more to NZ’s adventure hub than leaping off a bridge attached to a giant rubber band. The Remarkables mountain range provides a jagged indigo backdrop to days spent skiing, hiking or mountain biking, before dining in cosmopolitan restaurants or partying in some of NZ’s best bars. Keep the adrenaline flowing with hang gliding, kayaking or river rafting, before heading to 'quieter' Wānaka and taking your vertigo into overdrive on the via ferrata. https://www.newzealand.com/uk/feature/top-experiences-in-queenstown/

National Park

The spectacular 700-sq-km Aoraki/Mt Cook National Park is part of the Southwest New Zealand (Te Wāhipounamu) World Heritage Area, which extends from Westland’s Cook River down to Fiordland. More than one-third of the park has a blanket of permanent snow and glacial ice; of the 23 NZ mountains over 3000m, 19 are in this park. The highest is mighty Aoraki/Mt Cook – at 3724m, the tallest peak in Australasia. Among the region’s other great peaks are Sefton, Tasman, Silberhorn, Malte Brun, La Perouse, Hicks, De la Beche, Douglas and the Minarets.

Mountain Town

Head to the Glacier Country with one of the worlds most accessible glaciers! Franz Josef is your opportunity to walk on, crawl inside, fly over, skydive over or walk up to a glacier. Get some ideas on how you can take on the glacier here. Nevertheless, theres actually more to do here than glacier gallivanting! Check it out in the list below.

National Park

Here’s nature at its most seductive: lush green hills fringed with golden sandy coves, slipping gently into warm shallows before meeting a crystal-clear sea. Abel Tasman National Park is a postcard-perfect paradise where you can put yourself in the picture, assuming an endless number of poses – hiking, kayaking, swimming, sunbathing – before finally setting up tent at a 'walk-in or boat-in' beachside campground. Book ahead if you want to see it all on the Coast Track, NZ's most popular Great Walk.

Wine Region

Marlborough is the country’s largest wine region, so it’d be sacrilegious not to spend the day making sure that the wine is up to snuff. You can take your pick of the tour options here

Small City

One of the coolest little capitals in the world, windy Wellington is also synonymous with cinema, thanks to local boy Peter Jackson. Residents are also proud of its vibrant arts-and-music scene and special events schedule (from Fringe to WOW), plus dining choices that range from innovative food trucks to high-end gastronomy. But for visitors to the capital, the proximity to mountain biking and walking trails, not to mention a glistening harbour, scores just as highly. Don't miss it.

Major City

Milan is Italy’s city of the future, a fast-paced metropolis where money talks, creativity is big business and looking good is an art form.

Town

Glamorous Cannes sets camera flashes popping at its film festival in May, when stars pose in tuxes and full-length gowns on the red carpet. But the glitz doesn't end there. Throughout the year, as you walk among the designer bars, couture shops and palaces of La Croisette, the wealth and glamour of this city cannot fail to impress. Admiring Ferraris and Porsches and celebrity-spotting on the chic sunlounger-striped beaches and liner-sized yachts moored at the port are perennial Cannes pastimes.

Town

Glamorous Cannes sets camera flashes popping at its film festival in May, when stars pose in tuxes and full-length gowns on the red carpet. But the glitz doesn't end there. Throughout the year, as you walk among the designer bars, couture shops and palaces of La Croisette, the wealth and glamour of this city cannot fail to impress. Admiring Ferraris and Porsches and celebrity-spotting on the chic sunlounger-striped beaches and liner-sized yachts moored at the port are perennial Cannes pastimes.

Big City

Awarded Top 10 city to travel to in 2022 - Cradle of the Renaissance, romantic, enchanting and utterly irresistible, Florence (Firenze) is a place to feast on world-class art and gourmet Tuscan cuisine.

Island

If you approach Santorini from the water, it's hard not to be awed by the sheer cliffs that soar above a turquoise sea, by the fact that you're sailing in an immense crater of a drowned volcano and that before you lies an island shaped by an ancient eruption cataclysmic beyond imagining.

Island

Known for having amazing food and beaches, Paros is a crowdpleaser for couples, groups, and families. Long sandy beaches coupled with plenty of restaurant options and close proximity to its neighboring island, Antiparos, allow for lots of activities and nearby villages no matter where you choose to stay. Large, hilly and fertile island, Paros has been tagged as primarily a ferry hub in recent times. Yet Paros' bustling capital with its ancient remains, the resort town of Naoussa and sweet rural villages are all the more charming for their relative lack of crowds, and there's plenty to do, with good walks, plus excellent windsurfing, kite-surfing and diving.

Island

Mykonos is the great glamour island of Greece and flaunts its sizzling St-Tropez-meets-Ibiza style and party-hard reputation. The high-season mix of hedonistic holidaymakers, cruise-ship crowds, buff gay men and posturing fashionistas throngs Mykonos Town (aka Hora), a gorgeous whitewashed Cycladic maze, delighting in its cubist charms and its chichi cafe-bar-boutique scene.

Major City

With equal measures of grunge and grace, Athens is a heady mix of ancient history and contemporary cool.