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TRAVEL SOUTH AMERICA: Research your South America vacation travel plans with us!
Facts About South America
A triangular-shaped continent, South America is bordered on the east by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by the Pacific Ocean, and on the north by the Caribbean Sea. It is connected to North America by the Isthmus of Panama. The fourth largest of the continents, South America has an area of about 6,878,000 square miles (about 17,814,000 square kilometers), or about one eighth of the land surface of the Earth. In the mid-1980s the population was approximately 280 million.
South America was once part of the ancient landmass known as Gondwanaland. About 150 million years ago it broke away from what is now Africa and began to drift westward to its present position. This movement was accompanied by the rise of the Andes Mountains at the western edge of the continent. Geologically the oldest rocks are found in the Brazilian Highlands, where Precambrian formations are exposed. Most of the lowland regions are filled with sedimentary materials of more recent origin.
South America is a beautiful, diverse continent. Home to rugged mountains, exotic animals and pristine waters, South America is a wonderful place to enjoy a vacation. Travelers can add to the uniqueness of their experience by traveling by ship. Now you can visit places that you've always read about in books or pictured in your mind. The best part about taking a cruise is that the transportation is in someone else's hands and you may visit several exotic places in a short period of time.
South America is the fourth largest continent, the southern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. It is divided politically into 12 independent countries— Argentina , Bolivia , Brazil , Chile , Colombia , Ecuador , Guyana , Paraguay , Peru , Suriname , Uruguay , and Venezuela — and the overseas department of French Guiana . The continent extends c.4,750 mi (7,640 km) from Punta Gallinas, Colombia, in the north to Cape Horn, Chile, in the south. At its broadest point, near where it is crossed by the equator, the continent extends c.3,300 mi (5,300 km) from east to west. South America is connected to North America by the Isthmus of Panama; it is washed on the North by the Caribbean Sea, on the East by the Atlantic Ocean, and on the West by the Pacific Ocean.
Popular places to travel in South America:
- Brazil: For hundreds of years, Brazil has symbolized the great escape into a primordial, tropical paradise, igniting the Western imagination like no other South American country.
- Rio De Janeiro: The beaches of Rio, Ipanema, Leblon, Botafogo, Flamengo, Vidigal, Pepino, Barra de Tijuca Leme, Arpoadorm and the most famous Copacabana, are a way of life for the carioca, the resident of Rio. There's always something happening at the beach. Sprawling between lush tropical mountains and the exquisite beaches of the Atlantic, Rio natural beauty and the warmth of its people will win your heart.
- Chile: Imagine a long, thin slice of California with a patch of the Sahara desert glued onto the north. Carve some of New Zealand's fjords into the south. Press all of this against a spine of tall, rugged mountains. This would be Chile, which has some of the world's most varied and dramatic landscapes.
- Peru: Lake Titicaca, which straddles Peru's border with Bolivia, is the highest navigable lake in the world - and one of the most beautiful. The Inca ruins of Machu Picchu, which would be stunning anywhere, are truly spectacular in their Andean setting, high above the Urubamba River.
- Argentina: It had been forecast for some time: Argentina is effectively bankrupt. This economic meltdown has led to both political and social unrest. In one two-week period in late 2001, the country had five presidents. Citizens took to the streets, banging pots and pans, demanding change.
- Bolivia: Bolivia can bring plenty of adventures. Bolivia sits in the middle of South America, bordered by Peru and Chile to the west, Brazil to the north and to the east, Paraguay to the southeast and Argentina to the south. The geography of this landlocked country is highly diverse, ranging from towering mountains and high deserts to steamy lowlands.
- Columbia: Colombia's mist-shrouded mountains capped with snow, charming colonial cities, golden-sand beaches and vast green stretches of rain forest.
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