South America was made for travel and adventure. The continent is complex, contrasting, challenging and ultimately exhilerating. Wherever you pitch up, South America embraces and engulfs you, whether you fall for the pulsing rhythms, intense aromas or delicious food and drink.

Iconic cities such as Buenos Aires in Argentina, Cartagena in Colombia and Rio de Janeiro in Brazil provide ideal introductions. Ancient sites such as Ciudad Perdida in Colombia and Machu Picchu in Peru offer iconic alternatives and have world-renowned treks such as the Inca Trail to walk in order to get a more intimate feel for the landscape and the cultures that once thrived here.

Outside of the urban areas, the continent boasts a wealth of natrural wonders, meaning that you're spoilt for choice, whether you explore the Amazon in Brazil, the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Galapagos Islands off Ecuador, Kaletur Falls in Guyana, Lake Titicaca in Peru, the Pantanal in Brazil, Patagonia in Argentina or the salt pans of Uyuni in Bolivia.

With so much to see and do, your biggest challenge will be deciding what to focus on and working out how to cram as much of the continent into your itinerary as possible.