Ilha Grande - The South American Experience

Ever wanted to explore South America but were nervous doing it on your own? Worried about arriving in Rodovaria's late at night or finding your own hotel in a strange town?

Well, this professional and impressive tour company takes all the pressure away as it runs a hop-on-and-hop-off bus around Rio de Janeiro and Bahia states for a very reasonable price. You can go trekking in the rainforest, lay out in the beach, visit coffee plantations, go rafting along rivers, and visit Imperial palaces . . . all for under £66 (US$100).

I can't recommend them enough. One of the best things about this tour is meeting up with other travelers. It becomes an adventure as you travel along the Costa Verde (Green Coast) with like-minded people, getting off when you want to. 

They recommend a minimum of eight days to do the entire circuit and, if you like the look of a place, you can stay there until the next bus arrives two days later. Accommodation isn't included, but is usually on the affordable side and bus organizers will phone ahead before you arrive to secure a room for you. The tours are aimed at those on a limited budget but with plenty of time. The passengers seem to be from around the world.

It is based on the famous Oz Experience that whizzes around Australia, and its sister, the Kiwi Experience, which does the same for New Zealand (although this one is not boozy like the other two). This tour is in its infancy and is due to expand. It currently just does two tours: a) Route Copacabana, which moves around Rio de Janeiro state, and b) Route Capoeira, which does the same for the more northern Bahia state and based upon exotic Salvador de Bahia.

It starts each Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday from its offices on Rua Raimondo Correa. From Rio, it heads west to Angros dos Reis, where people catch the ferry to Ilha Grande, then onto the Portuguese colonial town of Paraty, up into the mountains with the Serra Orgaos National Park, and then down to the coast at Buzios before heading back to Rio. They can help with arrangements if you wish to head up to Bahia to continue the rest of the tour. I was so impressed by these people that I am keeping an eye on them. If they expand to Argentina or Peru, I'll be on the next plane out to Lima or Buenos Aires.

If you want to do Brazil but are worried about making the arrangements yourself, then this is a good way of doing it. It won't break the bank and the people are friendly and love showing off their country to foreigners.

And who can blame them: Brazil is my favourite country in the world....

Ever wanted to explore South America but were nervous doing it on your own? Worried about arriving in Rodovaria's late at night or finding your own hotel in a strange town?

Well, this professional and impressive tour company takes all the pressure away as it runs a hop-on-and-hop-off bus around Rio de Janeiro and Bahia states for a very reasonable price. You can go trekking in the rainforest, lay out in the beach, visit coffee plantations, go rafting along rivers, and visit Imperial palaces . . . all for under £66 (US$100).

I can't recommend them enough. One of the best things about this tour is meeting up with other travelers. It becomes an adventure as you travel along the Costa Verde (Green Coast) with like-minded people, getting off when you want to. 

They recommend a minimum of eight days to do the entire circuit and, if you like the look of a place, you can stay there until the next bus arrives two days later. Accommodation isn't included, but is usually on the affordable side and bus organizers will phone ahead before you arrive to secure a room for you. The tours are aimed at those on a limited budget but with plenty of time. The passengers seem to be from around the world.

It is based on the famous Oz Experience that whizzes around Australia, and its sister, the Kiwi Experience, which does the same for New Zealand (although this one is not boozy like the other two). This tour is in its infancy and is due to expand. It currently just does two tours: a) Route Copacabana, which moves around Rio de Janeiro state, and b) Route Capoeira, which does the same for the more northern Bahia state and based upon exotic Salvador de Bahia.

It starts each Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday from its offices on Rua Raimondo Correa. From Rio, it heads west to Angros dos Reis, where people catch the ferry to Ilha Grande, then onto the Portuguese colonial town of Paraty, up into the mountains with the Serra Orgaos National Park, and then down to the coast at Buzios before heading back to Rio. They can help with arrangements if you wish to head up to Bahia to continue the rest of the tour. I was so impressed by these people that I am keeping an eye on them. If they expand to Argentina or Peru, I'll be on the next plane out to Lima or Buenos Aires.

If you want to do Brazil but are worried about making the arrangements yourself, then this is a good way of doing it. It won't break the bank and the people are friendly and love showing off their country to foreigners.

And who can blame them: Brazil is my favourite country in the world....