Amazon Travel Highlight: Top Destinations for Ecotourism

Posted on May 15, 2012 - Category Amazon, Brazil, Destination Highlight, Ecuador, Peru | Leave a Comment

The Amazon Basin is host to an ecosystem that is unmatchable in its biological diversity but also among the most endangered on the planet due to human activity. For travelers seeking to see and inhabit this unique environment while also contributing to its preservation, ecotourism is an increasingly accessible option. Below we highlight the top [...]

South America Travel: Mother’s Day in Latin America

Posted on May 11, 2012 - Category Culture & Traditions, South America | 1 Comment

There is a saying widely used across South America: “madre no hay más que una.” Roughly translated, this means “you have but one mother.” In its larger significance, this phrase acknowledges the one woman who brings you into the world and raises you with great effort and sacrifice. Indeed, in Latin American cultures, mothers are [...]

Argentina Travel News: Iguazu Falls in Concert

Posted on April 27, 2012 - Category Argentina, Travel News | Leave a Comment

Iguazu Falls, a top Argentina travel destination, is the spectacular setting for the International Youth Orchestra Festival taking place from May 21 to 26. The festival will bring together 700 young musicians, including choirs, orchestras, and soloists from countries across 5 continents. The musicians, selected after an exhaustive screening process, will be performing free concerts [...]

Chile Travel Highlight: Santiago, Valparaiso & Viña del Mar

Posted on April 17, 2012 - Category Chile, Destination Highlight | Leave a Comment

Wine tours, ski resorts, fine restaurants, a vibrant nightlife, and some of the best museums in Latin America – all this, and more, is possible on a Chile vacation to Santiago. The capital city of Santiago de Chile, hosting one-third of the nation’s 17 million citizens, is the country’s bustling center of economic and cultural [...]

Costa Rica Travel Tale: A Caribbean Costa Rica Vacation

Posted on April 13, 2012 - Category Costa Rica, Travel Tales | Leave a Comment

Kathleen Sharkey works as Projects Manager and Guest Relations officer in the LAFL office in Cusco, Peru. She is part of the team that greets travelers upon arrival and orients them in preparation for their trip to Machu Picchu. Before joining LAFL, Kathleen had the opportunity to travel to Costa Rica. She particularly enjoyed the [...]

Argentina Travel Highlight: Puerto Madryn, Scuba Diving Capital

Posted on April 3, 2012 - Category Argentina, Destination Highlight | 1 Comment

Puerto Madryn, Argentina, is a mid-size city on the Atlantic coast of northern Patagonia. In the summer months, the city attracts thousands of porteños (residents of Buenos Aires) seeking to enjoy the white sandy beaches while escaping from the heat and humidity of the capital. In the winter, Puerto Madryn attracts a different type of [...]

Peru Travel News: Photographs of Martin Chambi on Exhibit

Posted on March 30, 2012 - Category Peru, Travel News | Leave a Comment

Martin Chambi is without question one of the greatest photographers that Peru, and indeed South America, has produced. Chambi first gained international recognition for his photographs of Machu Picchu, which were published in magazines, in newspapers like Buenos Aires’ La Nación, and in Hiram Bingham’s first book Inca Land: Explorations in the Highlands of Peru [...]

Volcanoes, Nuns, and Condors: The Natural and Historic Wonders of Arequipa

Posted on March 20, 2012 - Category Destination Highlight, Peru | 1 Comment

For travelers to South America, the past and present influence of religious life is evident everywhere, particularly in architecture and culture. One of the highlights of a visit to Arequipa is Santa Catalina Monastery, which was founded in 1540 and received countless women throughout the colonial period. In fact, it was tradition for upper-class families [...]