Buenos Aires to Rio Unplugged

Bienvenidos! Welcome to Argentina.

Your adventure begins with a welcome meeting at 1pm on Day 1.

You can arrive at any time as there are no activities planned until this important meeting; please ask the hotel reception where it will take place. If you can't arrange a flight that will arrive in time, you may wish to arrive a day early so you're able to attend. We'll be happy to book additional accommodation for you (subject to availability). If you're going to be late, please inform the hotel reception. We'll be collecting your insurance details and next of kin information at this meeting, so please ensure you have all these details to provide to your leader.

Buenos Aires must be the ultimate cosmopolitan city. With Latin passion, European elegance and a distinctive style all of its own, this is a city that will steal your heart. The Portenos (the local residents) are justifiably proud of BA, which is comprised of distinct neighbourhoods, each with their own style.

Visit San Telmo for its weekend antiques market and artists displays. La Boca, settled by waves of immigrants who built brightly painted buildings, is home to the world-class Boca Juniors football team. Recoleta is the place to browse museums with Buenos Aires' well-to-do. There are many sights in the heart of the city with churches, cathedrals and historic buildings aplenty.

When you've finished exploring, settle down at one of the many streetside cafes and prepare yourself for a night of tango at one of the many milongas.

Your leader will take you on a walking tour of the San Telmo neighbourhood where you can see the tango being danced in the streets.

Included Activities

    * Leader-led walking tour

Optional Activities

    * Tango show, Buenos Aires - ARS100.00

    * City bike tour, Buenos Aires - ARS90.00

    * Bike/kayak tour, Buenos Aires - ARS165.00

    * Bike rental (per hour), Buenos Aires - ARS35.00

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)

Travel by ferry across the Rio de la Plata to Colonia in Uruguay (up to 3 hrs).

The charming colonial city of Colonia del Sacramento is the oldest town in Uruguay. The World Heritage-listed Barrio Historico is situated on a peninsula and is a great place to get your bearings. Stroll down the cute cobblestone streets and rub shoulders with locals as they go about their day continually sipping from their cup of mate (tea). The Plaza Mayor is especially lovely, with loads of parrakeets in its palm trees. The town has many small museums to poke around in.

Optional Activities

    * Lighthouse visit, Colonia - UYU15.00

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)

Continue on by local bus to Montevideo (approx 3 hrs).

Montevideo is Uruguay's capital and by far its largest city. This is the commercial and cultural hub of the country, but despite all the trimmings of a modern metropolis it retains a laidback atmosphere and has lots of students. Most of the interesting buildings and many good museums are in the Ciudad Vieja, home to the Plaza Independencia with its eerie underground Mausolea Atigas mausoleum. There are good beaches to chill out on or visit the Mercade del Puerto where artists and musicians hang out on Sundays.

There's plenty to see on a stroll around town as well. There's the clash of attractive architectural styles, cafes playing tango music, buzzing markets, pretty plazas and interesting museums to explore.

Optional Activities

    * City tour, Montevideo - USD18.00

    * Gaucho Museum, Montevideo - Free

    * Studio of Casapueblo Carlos Perez Vilaro, Montevideo - UYU70.00

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)

Travel to Tacuarembo by bus (approx 5 hrs). The bus has reclining seats and you'll be provided with a typical Uruguayan snack, although it's recommended you also bring your own food as the bus doesn't stop. From Tacuarembo, it's a further hour by truck and 4WD to the ranch.

Our stay on a local estancia is the real deal as we spend a few days experiencing a working farm. If you are up for it, you can fully involve yourself in the day-to-day jobs (which change according to any given day and the season) and may include herding the sheep and cows (on horseback), branding cattle, and marking and injecting the lambs against worms.

Don't expect luxury: things are simple down on the ranch - the accommodation is dorm style, there's only hot water and electricity for a couple of hours a day and the working day starts at 7.30am (although you are free to laze around and just relax). What you'll get is a warm Uruguayan welcome from our hosts, some of the best home-cooked food you have ever tasted and the chance to experience real farm life.

On the afternoon of your last day at the ranch we travel to Concordia in Argentina to take a 12-hour overnight bus to Puerto Iguazu. The bus has reclining seats, toilets, shows movies and a simple dinner is provided on board.

Accommodation

Hacienda (3 nts), Overnight bus (1 nt)

As soon as we arrive at Puerto Iguazu (Argentina) bus station, we take a minivan to our hotel in Foz do Iguazu (Brazil). This takes about an hour depending on traffic at the Brazil-Argentina border.

Close to the borders with Argentina and Paraguay, Foz do Iguazu is Brazil's gateway to the Iguazu Falls.

At over 2 km long, Iguazu Falls are actually a series of cataracts. There are over 270 falls in all, and with some reaching up to 80m in height, they are wider than Victoria Falls and higher than Niagara. Legend has it that a serpent god intended to marry a beautiful girl called Naipi. She escaped in a canoe with her mortal lover Caroba and in a jealous rage the god chased them, collapsing the river before them so that Naipi plunged over the falls to become a rock, while Caroba became a tree, forever unable to touch his love. A more scientific explanation is that the Rio Iguazu flows over a riverbed of basalt that ends where the lava cooled, leaving the water to fall. The falls were 'discovered' in the modern day by the Spaniard Juan Alvar Nunez who named them Saltos de Santa Maria. The name we know them by today means 'Great Waters' in the Tupi-Guarani tongue.

Bordering Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, there are many different views of the falls.

From the Brazilian side you can see the falls in their full glory with grand panoramas.

From the Argentinean side it's possible to follow a series of boardwalks to get up close to the thundering waters - so close you can almost touch them.

Take a helicopter ride over the falls - a spectacular way to get a feel for the immense size of the waterfalls and a great view of the greenness of the surrounding park.

On our last day in Iguazu, board an overnight bus to Paraty (approx 24 hrs).

Optional Activities

    * Iguazu Falls - Brazilian Side, Iguazu Falls - USD48.00

    * Helicopter ride, Iguazu Falls - USD110.00

    * Bird Park, Iguazu Falls - USD12.00

    * Acquamania Water Park, Iguazu Falls - BRL40.00

    * Iguazu Falls - Argentinean Side, Iguazu Falls - USD68.00

    * Great Adventure, Iguazu Falls - BRL135.00

Accommodation

Hotel (2 nts), Overnight bus (1 nt)

Sitting between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, Paraty is one of the world's best preserved Portuguese colonial towns. This World Heritage-listed town was originally settled in 1531 on the opposite side of the river but in the 17th century the Indians who lived on the current site were driven away and the town moved. Paraty later became a booming port town, famous for its sugar cane liquor but after the abolition of slavery it was slowly forgotten. With the opening of new roads, the town was 'rediscovered' and declared a national monument.

The patron saint of Paraty is Our Lady of the Medicines. Three hundred years ago a wealthy benefactor donated land for a church in her honour. In return, she asked only for an annual mass. Each year a wooden effigy of the virgin, adorned with silver is carried in a procession through the town during the Festa de Nossa Senhora dos Remedios.

At high tide, some of Paraty's cobblestone streets are partly covered in sea water, adding to the rustic, colonial charm. The water of the bay is always right for swimming and the surrounding national parks are filled with trails, wildlife and waterfalls.

Optional Activities

    * Boat trip, Paraty - BRL60.00

    * Trindade excursion, Paraty - BRL3.50

Accommodation

Hotel (2 nts)

Head by local bus and ferry to our island getaway on Ilha Grande (approx 5 hrs).

Ihla Grande is an island untouched by development, a paradise of tropical beaches and virgin rainforest. The island has a fascinating history, as it was variously a pirate's lair, a leper colony and a prison for violent criminals. The oppressive ruins of the prison can still be visited.

Trails through the forest lead to beautiful and remote beaches, like the Praia de Lopes Mendes, reputedly Brazil's most attractive beach. Spend time contemplating the sandy beaches with a caipirinha in hand or snorkelling and swimming in the beautiful warm waters.

Spend a day beach-hopping on a boat tour of Ilha Grande Bay all the way to the Blue Lagoon. There are plenty of opportunities to stop for fresh seafood and to swim and snorkel through the crystal clear waters.

Optional Activities

    * Boat trip to the Blue Lagoon, Ilha Grande - BRL40.00

    * Scuba diving, Ilha Grande - BRL150.00

Accommodation

Hotel (3 nts)

Take a boat to the small port of Mangaratiba (approx 2 hrs), then board a minivan to Rio (approx 2 hrs).

The locals like to say that 'God made the world in six days, the seventh he devoted to Rio'. In this heaving metropolis, set against the luminescent green of Guanabara Bay and surrounded by the slopes of Sugar Loaf Mountain and Corcovado, it's hard not to be caught up in the Cariocas' (residents) passion.

The French were the first to settle here as they logged wood along the Brazilian coast, but they were soon driven out by the Portuguese, who built a fortified town, naming it Sao Sebastiao do Rio de Janeiro and quickly amassed wealth in the gold rush of Minas Gerais. In the 19th century, the Portuguese monarchy fled from the threat of Napoleon in Europe to Rio where they built grand buildings, still in existence today. These days Rio is known best for its contrasting images of favelas (shanty towns) and the glitz and glamour of Carnaval.

Rio is deservedly famous for its live music scene, which encompasses myriad styles such as samba, jazz, bossa nova, hip hop, reggae, rock and many other fusions of regional styles. The neighbourhood of Lapa offers great dance halls where you can join locals in doing some serious dancing - or just soak up the vibe.

For some seriously eye-popping people watching, head down to the white sand beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema - skimpy bathing suits optional.

The northern slopes are where most of the favelas reside, while the southern zone is for the middle classes and the rich. To get oriented, or to just look on in awe, head to the top of Sugar Loaf by cable car for some incredible views.

Another view not to be missed is from the feet of Christ the Redeemer, standing atop Corcovado with arms open wide.

There are no activities planned for the final day and you are able to depart our accommodation at any time. Please check the 'Finishing Point Hotel' section for checkout times and luggage storage possibilities.

Optional Activities

    * Sugar loaf cable car, Rio de Janeiro - BRL53.00

    * Christ the Redeemer lookout, Rio de Janeiro - BRL25.75

    * Favela tour, Rio de Janeiro - BRL65.00

    * Botanical Gardens, Rio de Janeiro - BRL5.00

    * Santa Teresa tramcar, Rio de Janeiro - BRL1.00

    * Maracana soccer game, Rio de Janeiro - BRL80.00

Accommodation

Hotel (1 nt)