South America is the trail's second act. After Asia, most of the trail heads here for bigger mountains, harder distances, and some of the most jaw-dropping landscapes on earth. It's roughly twice the daily cost of Southeast Asia and the buses are ten times longer, but the payoff is Machu Picchu at sunrise, the salt flats at dawn, and Patagonia at the end of the road. It also asks more of you: some Spanish, some altitude tolerance, and a slower pace.
Route: Cartagena → Medellin → Lima → Cusco → La Paz
Destinations
Cusco, Peru — Gateway to Machu Picchu and the Sacred Valley.
La Paz, Bolivia — Death Road, witches markets, and altitude.
Medellin, Colombia — Spring weather year-round and incredible nightlife.
Cartagena, Colombia — Colonial streets, Caribbean coast, and ceviche.
The route, in order
The gringo trail runs north to south, and the order matters more here than anywhere else on the route because of altitude and seasons. Start on the Caribbean coast of Colombia, work down through the Andes gaining height gradually — Medellin, then Quito, then Cusco, then La Paz — so your body acclimatises instead of collapsing. From Bolivia, cross the salt flats into the Atacama desert, then choose your ending: straight down Chile and Argentina to Patagonia, or east to Buenos Aires and the beaches of Brazil and Uruguay. Three months is the minimum that does not feel like a sprint; five or six is what the big trip usually takes.
Colombia, 3-4 weeks — Cartagena and the Caribbean coast, Medellin, the coffee region, Bogota. The easiest, warmest, most sociable start — and at sea level, which is the point.
Ecuador, 1-2 weeks — Quito, Banos for waterfalls and adrenaline, the Quilotoa loop. Small, cheap, and your first taste of altitude at 2,800m.
Peru, 3-4 weeks — Lima, Huacachina, Arequipa and Colca, then Cusco: the Sacred Valley, the Inca Trail or the Salkantay trek, Machu Picchu, and Rainbow Mountain.
Bolivia, 2 weeks — La Paz at 3,600m, Death Road by mountain bike, and the three-day Uyuni salt flats tour that ends at the Chilean border.
Chile and Argentina, 3-6 weeks — San Pedro de Atacama, then either the long haul south to Patagonia (Torres del Paine, El Chalten) or across to Buenos Aires and Iguazu.
Brazil, if you have time — Rio, Ilha Grande, and the northeast beaches. Expensive by trail standards and a long way from everything, so most people either commit or skip it.
What it costs
Budget $35-50 a day (as of 2026) across most of the continent — roughly double Southeast Asia. The Andean countries are the cheap part: Bolivia and Peru run $25-35, Colombia and Ecuador a little more. Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil are the expensive part, $50-80 in the tourist south, and Patagonia in season is another tier again. The real budget killers here are not beds and food but the marquee activities and the distances: a trek to Machu Picchu, a dive on the Galapagos, or a flight to skip a 30-hour bus.
Beds — Dorms $10-18 in the Andes, $20-35 in Chile, Argentina and Brazil (as of 2026). Hostels are the backbone of the trail here and most run tours and bus tickets too.
Food — The almuerzo — a set lunch of soup, main and drink — is $3-6 across the Andes and is the single best budget habit. Dinner out is $8-15; supermarket cooking in hostels saves the rest.
Buses — Overnight cama and semi-cama seats $20-60 depending on distance and country. Cruz del Sur in Peru and the Argentine long-haul lines are worth paying up for; the cheapest operators are where the theft happens.
The big tickets — Machu Picchu entry plus train and bus roughly $150-250; the classic Inca Trail permit $600-900; Uyuni three-day tour $150-220; Death Road $80-120; Galapagos a week for $1,500+ (all as of 2026). These are the trip — plan for them, do not economise into a bad operator.
Money — ATM fees are steep in Peru, Bolivia and Chile, so withdraw large amounts. Argentina's parallel exchange rate means cash dollars or the right card can cut costs dramatically — check the current situation the week you arrive.
When to go
The continent runs two clocks. In the Andes — Peru, Bolivia, north Chile — the dry season from May to September is the good season: clear skies for trekking and the salt flats, cold nights, peak crowds. In Patagonia, the far south, the usable window is the southern summer, roughly November to March, and everything shuts outside it. Colombia and Ecuador are close enough to the equator to be fine year-round with two milder rainy spells. That means the classic north-to-south run starting around May arrives in Patagonia just as it opens, which is not a coincidence.
May - September — Dry season in the Andes: the window for the Inca Trail, Salkantay, Huayhuash and the salt flats. Cold at altitude at night — bring a real jacket.
November - March — Patagonia season, and the only time Torres del Paine and El Chalten are properly open. Also wet season in the Andes, when trails get muddy and views hide.
Colombia and Ecuador — Year-round. December to March and July to August are driest on the Colombian coast.
The salt flats, two ways — Dry season for the white hexagons and the horizon; the wet months from January to March for the mirror reflection. They are different trips.
Getting in and around
Most Western and Israeli passports get 90 days visa-free in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay, and 30 to 90 days in Bolivia depending on nationality — Bolivia is the one to check, since some passports need a paid visa and a yellow-fever certificate. Brazil's rules have flipped back and forth on visas for US, Canadian and Australian citizens, so verify before booking. On the ground the continent moves by long-distance bus, and the distances are genuinely enormous: 20 to 30 hours is a normal leg. Budget airlines make a few legs worth flying, especially Lima to Cusco and anything into Patagonia.
Visas — 90 days on arrival for most nationalities in most countries. Bolivia and Brazil are the exceptions worth checking a month out; yellow-fever proof is asked for at some borders.
Buses — Cama seats recline nearly flat and are worth the upgrade on any leg over 12 hours. Book a day or two ahead in high season; keep your bag in sight at rest stops.
Flights worth taking — Lima to Cusco, Santiago or Buenos Aires to Patagonia, and anything crossing the width of Brazil. A $60 flight against a 28-hour bus is not a hard call.
Altitude — Cusco is 3,400m and La Paz 3,600m. Arrive from lower ground, take the first day off, drink water, skip alcohol, and let coca tea do its work. Ascending gradually up the Andes is the whole reason for the north-to-south order.
Spanish — Far less English than in Asia. Two weeks of classes in Medellin, Quito or Cusco pays for itself in the following four months, and every hostel can arrange them.
Safety — Opportunistic theft, not danger: keep your phone off the table, use registered taxis or Uber and Cabify at night, and never leave a bag unattended on a bus.
The scene
The trail is thinner here than in India or Southeast Asia but it is real, and it concentrates in a handful of towns: Cusco, La Paz, San Pedro de Atacama, Medellin and Buenos Aires. You will meet the same faces for weeks because everyone is moving the same direction on the same buses. Chabad houses run Shabbat dinners in Cusco, La Paz, Buenos Aires, Rio, Santiago, Bogota and Lima, and the Cusco and La Paz ones are among the biggest anywhere on the route — open to anyone who books, and most guests are not religious. See the Chabad house guide for the list.
Cusco — The busiest hub on the continent — every trek, every tour, and the crowd you will keep meeting all the way to Patagonia.
La Paz — Death Road, the cable-car network, the witches market, and the last stop before the salt flats. High enough that your first day should be nothing.
San Pedro de Atacama — Where the Uyuni tours end and the Chilean leg begins. Small, expensive, and the crossroads everyone passes through.
Medellin — Spring weather all year, the best hostel scene in Colombia, and the standard place to spend two weeks learning Spanish before heading south.
Practical Info
Budget: $35-50/day across most of the continent (as of 2026) — roughly double Southeast Asia. Bolivia and Peru are cheapest at $25-35; Chile, Argentina and Brazil run $50-80. Dorms $10-35, the set-lunch almuerzo $3-6, overnight buses $20-60. The marquee activities (Machu Picchu, Uyuni, Galapagos) are a separate line item and the one worth funding properly.
Best time: May to September for the Andes — dry season, clear trekking, the salt flats and the Inca trails. November to March for Patagonia, which is closed outside that window. Colombia and Ecuador work year-round. Starting north in May and moving south lands you in Patagonia as it opens.
Getting there: Fly into Bogota (BOG) to start at the top of the trail, or Lima and Santiago if you are entering mid-route. Fares from Tel Aviv and Europe usually connect through Madrid, Lisbon or a US hub. Most nationalities get 90 days visa-free on arrival.
Budget: $35-50/day (as of 2026) — Bolivia and Peru are cheapest, Chile, Argentina and Brazil roughly double them.
Best time: May to September for the Andes; November to March for Patagonia; Colombia and Ecuador year-round.
Visas: 90 days on arrival for most nationalities. Bolivia and Brazil are the exceptions worth checking a month before you fly.
Altitude: Cusco and La Paz are above 3,400m. Arrive from lower ground, take the first day off, skip alcohol, and let coca tea help.
Spanish: far less English than in Asia. Two weeks of classes in Medellin or Cusco pays for itself over the following months.
Safety: opportunistic theft rather than danger. Phone off the table, registered taxis or Uber at night, bag in sight at bus rest stops.
Buses: long but comfortable — pay for cama on anything over 12 hours. Cruz del Sur in Peru, Bolivia Hop along the gringo trail.
Connectivity: an eSIM before you land beats hunting for a SIM at Bogota arrivals — see the best eSIM for backpacking.
Insurance: altitude, trekking and Death Road are exactly the activities cheap policies exclude — see travel insurance for backpackers.
Still weighing it against Asia? We settled the hostel-rooftop debate with actual numbers in South America vs Southeast Asia.