Latin America Blog

We know one of the most important parts of travelling is immersing yourself in the destination. This allows you to give back to the communities you visit, whether it's buying fruit from a market in Cusco or supporting a local artist in Rio de Janeiro. South American cities are fascinating, but they can often blur into one if you don't do them properly. With this in mind, we’ve reviewed our tours of cities and towns to see how we can give more of a flavour of the local culture. This means more walking tours and less getting in and out of vehicles. Plus, more visits to markets and neighbourhoods to experience the local colours, tastes and aromas, so that getting to know cities is more than just learning about church after church. Read this blog to find out the improvements we’ve made and the new tours we are offering, from trying local snacks on a walking tour of Cartagena to experiencing the excitement of Lucha Libre wrestling in Mexico City or learning how chocolate is made in Costa Rica.

Showcasing a varied landscape from the soaring Andes Mountains to the Amazon Rainforest and all the way to the coast, Peru has plenty more to offer than just Machu Picchu, full of archaeological wonders which bear testament to a history of vibrant civilisations and architectural mastery. Situated just outside of Cusco, the Sacred Valley of the Incas contains everything from small local ruins to entire ancient cities with UNESCO World Heritage recognition. Elsewhere in the 1.2 million-square kilometre country, hundreds of other archaeological riches can be found. Keep reading to find out our top archaeological sites to visit.

Before I visited Colombia, I had heard very mixed things. People who hadn’t been regarded it as unsafe, and told me to be careful – this was backed up by documentaries and the general preconception that Colombia is dangerous. Meanwhile, friends and family members who had been there told me that it was one of the most amazing places they’ve ever visited, with beautiful scenery, top-notch food and some of the friendliest people they’d met in the world.  I took all this advice with a pinch of salt and as it turns out, of the ten countries I’ve visited in South America, I still regard Colombia as my absolute favourite. Here’s why.

Ecuador is often overlooked by its South American neighbours, and even the mainland of Ecuador is often skipped on a trip to the Galapagos Islands. This is part of its charm – the undiscovered feeling you get when you come across Inca ruins with hardly any tourists, or the indigenous tribes you meet in remote parts of the Amazon Rainforest, accessed only by a canoe. It’s one of the continent’s best kept secrets, and probably doesn’t even come in the top three of most people’s South American bucket lists.

We’ve kept this one simple. Our ultimate top seven picks from Latin America, because once this difficult period of our lives is over, there’s still a magnificent world waiting to be explored. Of course, travel shouldn’t be about ticking places off a list, for us it’s all about the different experiences you get – whether it’s that Peruvian lady who sold you some textiles in a tiny Andean village or that delicious steak you ate with your group on your final night in Argentina. But as clichéd as it might sound, many people are realising now more than ever that life’s too short, and the freedom of travel isn’t something we should take for granted. So if any of these beautiful destinations weren’t already on your list, they should be now!

For a bit of light-hearted fun and distraction from everything that’s currently going on in the world, we've created a special Llama Travel quiz so you can test your knowledge of Latin America. There are five rounds (photos, anagrams, multiple choice, flags and food) with seven questions each and you'll find the answers at the bottom - no cheating though! Let us know your score (out of 35) on the Llama Travel Facebook page. ¡Buena suerte!

Although we can't travel yet, there are still plenty of ways we can fill our time and be inspired for future trips. From books and films to cuisine and music, the influence of Latin America has really taken off across the world, including the UK. Maybe you'd like to reminisce on a Latin American country you've already visited, or perhaps you're dreaming about your next adventure and want to get in the mood. Either way, read our blog for some inspiration. 

Latin American food has become increasingly popular in the rest of the world, including the UK, in recent years. For many people, trying new cuisine is an essential part of travel. Just because you can't go to Latin America right now, it doesn't mean you can't get some inspiration for the future, or recreate fond memories of past trips. Now that many of us have got more time on our hands, it's a great time to get a taste of Latin America by creating some of these classic dishes in your kitchen. You can find recipes for all of them online. 

With over a quarter of the land dedicated to national parks and reserves designed to protect and preserve Costa Rica’s vast ecosystems, it’s hardly surprising that the Central American country has an abundance of natural beauty. Renowned around the world for its conservation and sustainable tourism efforts, Costa Rica is home to 4% of the world’s biodiversity. In Costa Rica, there are 28 national parks, many of which are filled with volcanoes, rainforests, waterfalls and an impressive variety of wildlife. You can spot monkeys and sloths in the treetops by a palm-fringed beach on the Pacific Coast, watch turtles hatching on the Caribbean coast and relax in hot springs with an impressive volcano backdrop.

Beautifully located in the driest desert in the world, San Pedro de Atacama is a small town in northern Chile made up of narrow streets lined with adobe buildings. The town thrives as a tourist hub mainly due to the surrounding area which is full of barren moonscapes, fiery red canyons, vast salt flats, unique rock formations, turquoise thermal lakes and rising geysers. The area is also Chile’s most important archaeological site, with ruins of the pre-Colombian cultures still visible in the desert. Plus, the Atacama Desert is cloudless almost all of the year, sits at a high altitude and lacks light pollution which can interfere with astronomical observations. This makes it one of the best places in the world for star gazing – there are many astronomy tours that can be booked locally. The desert is even helping NASA better understand what life may be like on Mars, as most of the life in the Atacama Desert are microbes, the only living organisms capable of living in such dry conditions. Keep reading to find out how to spend your time in San Pedro de Atacama.