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1. Rock sliding at Cachoeira do Tobogã, Brazil
Just outside the beautiful village of Paraty, Brazil, lies Cachoeira do Tobogã – a wide, flat, and incredibly smooth rock formation covered in shallow water. It forms a natural slide, allowing the brave to slide across the rock face, accelerating down the slope, then plunging into a deep blue pool below the waterfall. Even if you're not keen on the challenge, watching the local kids slide down the rock and perform daring somersaults is entertaining enough.
2. Crossing the last Inca suspension bridge in Peru
Preserving and conserving Q'iswa Chaka, the suspension bridge near Cusco in Peru, is a long-standing tradition of the inhabitants of the Apurímac Gorge region. Every June, the bridge is repaired and rewoven using ancient Inca techniques that have become part of the...mit'a(A mandatory community activity in the Inca Empire). Measuring 46 meters in length and spanning the riverbed at a height of 18 meters, crossing this masterpiece of woven grass is a thrill you will never forget.
3. Stay in Montaña Mágica, Chile
Montaña Mágica in southern Chile is designed to blend seamlessly into its surrounding natural environment – a nature reserve called Huilo Huilo. Shaped like a volcano, the hotel features water gushing from its summit and cascading down into the rainforest below. Montaña Mágica is at least a two-hour drive from the airport, but the experience of staying in a cozy, wood-paneled room reminiscent of a hobbit hole is well worth it.
4. Explore the salt flats in Bolivia
Located at an altitude of 3,000 meters above sea level, Salar de Uyuni is the world's largest salt flat, covering an area of 11,000 square kilometers.2These vast, white salt flats were once a prehistoric lake, now dried up, leaving behind a surreal and desolate desert landscape. It's best to visit Salar de Uyuni during the rainy season, from January to April, when the mist creates a mirror-like effect, reflecting the endless blue sky and fluffy white clouds above.
5. Swim in the rainbow river in Colombia.
Between June and November, the Caño Cristales River in Meta, Colombia, undergoes a kaleidoscopic transformation. When the water level is just right and sunlight can reach the riverbed, an aquatic plant called macarenia clavigera blooms in deep red and yellow, giving the river the nickname "rainbow river." Visitors must fly to a small airport in La Macarena, travel to Serranía de la Macarena National Park, and then ride horses to the river. If you plan to swim, don't apply sunscreen, as any foreign chemicals can harm this delicate, vibrant plant.
6. Sandboarding in Peru
In the middle of the Peruvian desert lies Huacachina, a small oasis built around a lagoon, which locals claim has therapeutic properties. But the main reason visitors come to Huacachina is to experience sandboarding. You can drive your pickup truck to a beautiful spot and slide down the golden sands. Afterwards, you can order a glass of sour pisco, Peru's national drink, at a bar by the lagoon and watch the sunset.
