Must see places in Central and South Am

[compressor stall]

In the future I may have the chance to fly friends on an ultimate tour of Central and South America. It would be over a 6 month period, and as such time is not of such a huge importance.

What I am after are accounts of:

1. Sights to see from the air
2. Out of the way airports (bush airstrips included)
3. Any 'must do' ground based activiites accessible from said airports
4. Any other pertinant information!

The thrust of the tour is getting to remote and rarely visited locations.

Thanks in advance for your replies...

CS

[Doudou]

Hi, how lucky you are!
There is a lot to see and to do in Latin America, with really nice people. I visited a little of Central America, but not by plane, so I'm not to aware of the airports.
Of what I know or heard about:
- Tikal, an antique mayan site in Guatemala has an airport not so far
- The cayos in Belize
- In Belize alos, there is, i don't remember the exact name, a big deep blue hole ins the sea, lot of sightseeing there, might be interesting to check
- The big falls (don't remember the name) in venezuela (the highest of the world if i don't make mistake)
- Ushuaia in Argentina
.... and many more, enjoy

[nungry]

Have a read of Jimmy Buffet's book "A pirate looks at fifty" - he's pretty much doing the same as you're going to do, but in a Grumman Albatross. I've got a copy here in CS if you want to read it. :cool:

[compressor stall]

Nungry

thanks mate,

I'd love to have a read. Bring it down next time you do a CKN x-hire charter for us! ;)

P.S. love to see those pics!

Doudou

Thanks for that info, added it to the dossier.

Keep em coming!

CS

[mkeelan]

lots of beautiful flying in Belize. the blue hole, 1000 foot falls waterfall, beautiful little islands, jungle, and great small/narrow/ unimproved strip experience. if you go there you should contact one of the airlines and get a hold of a pilot so you could get all the co-ordinates for the different sites. if i have the day off i'll go with ya! on the ground there's great diving, snorkelling, fishing, cave tubbing and mayan ruins.
also tikal in guatemala is a must see. and the little town of flores is a great place to stay.
in honduras the bay islands are a must see also. great diving and cheap prices. copan (nearest the san pedro sula airport) is supposed to be spectacular, but i have yet to go there myself.
hope this helps
safe flying

[Always Moving]

I live in Costa Rica for a couple of years, there are volcanos all over the place and in the middle there is an active one, get as close as you want the view is magnificent, but fly early in the morning!
PS: check with local authorities (Aviacion Civil) for permits for IN-Costa Rica Flying and plan to land in one of the international airports in San Jose "Pavas" or "Juan Santamaria" beeing the latest the big one.
Have fun, is beautifull to visit!!

[compressor stall]

Chilie, Bolivia, Peru, Arg, Brazil, Uruguay, Suriname, Fr Guyana, Ecuador etc...??? Anyone? :)

[Squawk7777]

The Yucatan penisula of Mexico...

The closest airport you want to land at is Chichen-Itza (MMCT) or Chetumal (MMCM). I am not sure which of them has customs. Chetumal is really close to the Belizan border.

You cannot afford to miss Chichen-Izta! It is probably one of the most (and fairly well-kept) attractive archeological sites in Mexico. I want to go back again, it is fascinating! I also met a lot of interesting people there ...

The bitter side of flying in Latin America is that you need to carry a lot of cash. Various authorities expect to get tipped and you better show up with the national currency - especially after border crossings. But if you are the adventures type - no worry! But you should know Spanish fluently.

If you have a chance to visit Bolivia.... there's a small airport/dirt strip near the village of Vallegrande. What makes it special is that it was the burial site of Ernesto "Che" Guevara. I have no information if there's a little memorial site or not - it is another historical site if you are interested in more "modern" Latin American history.

[Panama Jack]

Don't forget to fly the length of the "ditch" in Panama. The only place in the Americas where you can brag that you did a round-trip, non-stop, transcontinental flight in a Cessna 152 in 45 minutes . . . sightseeing included!

[Doudou]

I would disagree with squak 7777, you can "tip" the authoarities with green bills, wherever I've been, they barely refuse out of the small villages (just take small ones, cause you will never get change for B.Franklin).

[losbol]

hello compressor stall,
I really envy u.
But let's get down to business. I have lived in Suriname and have also visited Guyana and Curacao. I am not familiair with the aviation business in Guyana, and Curacao but i do know alot about Suriname. I guess u already know where it is located( Nort east of South America). This country is a must if u enjoy nature. U can go around speaking dutch ( first language), but dont panic;)almost everybody understands english. The two big airports where u can land are Zanderij ( international airport) Zorg en Hoop ( in Paramaribo). There are almost 50 airstrips in the interior of which Palemeu , Kwamelasamutu, and the Raleigh falls are breath taking
I would not try to go around tipping people, cause u could get in serious trouble( allthough some lads would certainly accept it). I suggest u take a trip (or maybe more) with the local flying ( aeroclub Suriname) club when u get there. Because u need certain skills to land at these short( some times steep) airstrips u will need to take checkride if i am correct. I am not sure what kind of a/c u guys will use, but it certainly has to be stoll( short take off and landing) if u want to get to the interior cause there are no long or hard airfields inthe interior. For the bigger airports it is no problem. Authorities are also very srtict with foreigners because of the drugs trafficking that is going on in the interior.

check out www.metsresorts.com , and www.surinametourism.com here u can find basic info on different locations and about Suriname. If u need some cheaper adresses just contact me or post a message and i will let u know.

De groeten, Losbol

[broadreach]

CS,

Hope I'm not too late in offering some suggestions. I live in Rio and have spent a fair amount of time (well, going on for 40 years...) in Brazil and Peru. Here goes and please forgive me if I'm preaching to the converted.

1) Learn as much Spanish and Portuguese as you can. If your travel companions are definite it might be good for one of them to concentrate on Portuguese and you on Spanish. The farther off the beaten track you go the more you'll need the language.

2) Make those six months September through March or November through April.

3) In Peru, the "Callejón de Huaylas" (Huaylas Canyon) north of Lima and nestled between the Blanca and Negra mountain ranges. Also the Nazca Lines south of Lima.

4) Leave Brazil to last. You'll probably all be better prepared for the language difference and after all those mountains, deserts and plains you'll probably be more than ready for good beaches. In the interior of Brazil, the Pantanal, Chapada dos Veadeiros and Chapada Diamantina. On the coast, Jureia (between Paranagua and Santos), Angra dos Reis, Buzios, the Parnaiba Delta and the Lencois Maranhenses. Look them up on Google for pics.

5) Be paranoid about drugs and, at least in Brazil, don't underestimate the intelligence of the police. Federal Police, I mean; learn to tell the difference between them and state or municipal police. Make sure your aircraft can't be stolen and that access panels are accessible only to you.

6) Make sure Aeroboero knows you're planning this.

If I can be of any assistance drop me a private line.

Cheers, and Happy New Year,
broadreach

[justcurious]

In Chile,

Arica in the Atacama Desert is superb, try the Hotel Arica, but eat at the Seafood Restaurant with the palapa roof 500m east of the hotel.

Puerto Montt half way down the country is curiously bavarian in appearance, but with snow capped volcanoes nearby, as well as being just down the road from Vin~a del Mar where most of Chile's wine is produced- GREAT tours!

Punta Arenas down at the bottom is better suited to low winged aircraft, as really high winds can flip Cessna-types. Close to los glacieres and torre del paines national parks. Quick hop to Teniente March base in Antarctica if you're in an otter, if not DAP could take you in theirs.

In Ecuador, the taxi ride to the Hotel Oro Y Verde will forever cure you of EVER being scared in a car again!

[Dakota Queen]

Hi There

You helped me out with my query on NZ/Aus so I'll give you what little advice I can on Peru and bolivia. I did not not do any private flying but loads of commercial. Lanperu had nice jets but some of the other carriers fleets looked old and rusty!

Peru:
Must do the Inca trail - a 4 day hike near a city called Cuzco - which is 1 hour east from Lima by 737. Its very high up though so you'll need to take that into consideration for flying. Cant remember how high but I got a bit of altitude sickness - my 6 friends were all fine though. the trail is fantastic, 4 days 3nights camping and walking to the lost city of the incas. Alos we went to a place called Arequipa, 1 hour south of Cuzco - lovely city and close to the Colca Caynon - biggest canyon in the southern hemisphere and home to giant condors. Would be amazing from the air I'd say. However dont do the one way trip as the journey by land takes 6 hours - it was a nightmare. Do the 2 day trip.

Bolivia:
Preferred this to Peru, had only a few days there but was great. La Paz is cool - DEFINETELY do the mountain biking trip - a one day thing down the worlds most dangerous road, fast and risky. Irecommend using a company called gravity

www.gravitybolivia.com

Also, i'd check lake titicacca out, didnt have time myself but hear its worth going to.

Have a great trip

DQ

[Jorge Newberry]

I have to disagree with Dakota Queen. I think the the Inca trail and, even more so, Macchu Piccu are touristified farces. Cuzco is a very nice city though and I adore Arequipa.