Latin America Blog

5 January 2016

LLAMA TRAVEL LAUNCHES NEW MEXICO TOURS

HOLIDAYS FROM £1699

Llama Travel is excited to announce the addition of Mexico holidays to our Latin America collection.  A Passage Through Mexico showcases some of the country’s most talked-about points of interest, from ancient Maya ruins and colonial architecture, to meeting traditional local communities and marveling at some of its natural wonders.

The 12 day/10 night Passage Through Mexico tour starts from £1699, including flights from the UK, hotels and transfers.

“So why are you going to Guantanamo??” … This was a question I had to answer several times when I first announced my Central America travel plans, and I was always replying, “No I’m going to  Guatemala, a country just below Mexico!”

You may consider this an unorthodox start for a blog that is supposed to be singing Guatemala’s praises, but for me, the above exchange perfectly sums up one of my favourite things about the country – the fact that it’s that little bit off the radar. Guatemala is not as well-known as its neighbours Mexico and Costa Rica, this make it feel a little less touristy and a bit more adventurous!

One of the great benefits of working for Llama Travel is that I am able to visit some of the most beautiful places in the world, and in my opinion there is no place more magnificent than the Torres del Paine National Park, in the south of Chile.

The park is most famous for the Paine Massif, a towering collection of rocks that rise up to the sky, scraping heights of 2,800m and so creating an incredible sight on the horizon. However, this blog is not about the magnificence of the park itself, if it was it would be a lot longer with a lot more superlatives. It is instead about the Rio Serrano hotel, Llama Travel’s choice of hotel and a personal favourite of mine.

Llama Travel’s Travel Consultant Matt has travelled all over South America, from the dense jungles of the Peruvian Amazon rainforest to the colonial cities of Colombia, but for him, a certain volcanic archipelago in the Pacific Ocean will always be a particularly special place. Read on to see why Matt thinks that the Galapagos Islands are as extraordinary today as they were when Darwin first set foot on them almost 180 years ago.

South America is a land of incredible vistas and astounding cities, but for me, the best thing about South America is the amazing animals that live there. From the long limbed Jabiru stork wading through the wetlands of the Pantanal, to the scuttling red Sally Lightfoot crabs that scamper the shores of the Galapagos Islands, and cheeky capuchin monkeys that swing through the treetops of Costa Rica, South America is a wildlife lover’s dream. The below list of my particular favourites only scratches the surface of the spectacular spectrum of wildlife that call the Americas home.

Brazil, with its beautiful beaches and colourful cities, has much to offer the adventurous holidaymaker. But for a unique and really fulfilling experience, I would recommend delving deeper inland and spending some time in the Brazilian Pantanal.

The region known as the Pantanal fills an extensive area in central Brazil, and is home to the largest wetland on earth. What makes it so special is the amount of wildlife found here: thousands of species live in this ecological sanctuary. The largely open landscape means that wildlife sightings happen all the time: a giant anteater will stumble out of a thicket, its bushy tail trailing through the grass; red and blue macaws launch out of the treetops, gliding in pairs; water birds and red-necked jabiru storks dive into water pools, feeding on trapped fish.

Just about everyone who visits Peru goes to Machu Picchu and loves it. You can visit on a day trip from Cusco or the Sacred Valley, and this is fabulous. It’s a long day (the Llama Travel excursion starts before 6am and you get back to Cusco around 9pm), but very satisfying. This includes a beautiful train journey, an in-depth guided tour of Machu Picchu and a great lunch in the restaurant next to the ruins. As Machu Picchu is quite a compact site, you visit most of the important parts of the ruins on the guided visit. So, given that you can visit Machu Picchu and see many of the significant sites in on a day trip, why would you want to spend a night there? Well, lots of reasons…

Llama Travel’s Sales Manager Graeme has always been a fan of travelling in comfort and style. For his latest blog he has reviewed some of his favourite superior hotels in Peru, from location and facilities to dining and atmosphere, and why in his opinion they are worth every pound of their upgrade supplement!

Llama Travel’s Travel Consultant Charlotte recently had the pleasure of taking her first trip to Argentina and Chile. It came as no surprise to her that the glaciers were vast and beautiful, Torres del Paine was magnificent and awe-inspiring and that Buenos Aires was elegant and thriving. Something that did come as a surprise to Charlotte was just how much she loved the Chilean Lake District. So much so that she has decided to make it the subject of her first blog from her Patagonia travels. Read on to see why Charlotte thinks the Chilean Lake District is more than worth a visit.