Upon your arrival at the International airport in Buenos Aires you well be welcomed and escorted to your hotel. Here you will be briefed on all your travels during your stay in Argentina. You will then have the rest of the day free to spend at your leisure after a long flight. Buenos Aires is a cosmopolitan and energetic city with an intense cultural life. Should you wish you can explore the one of the areas around your hotel in the afternoon such as La Recoleta. It is within this famous Cemetery that Evita Peron – along with other notable characters of local political and social life in Buenos Aires – is to be found. The cemetery in Recoleta is stunning and it seems to coexist peacefully with the surrounding string of Parisian-style cafés, pubs, restaurants and the art and craft market that takes place during weekends. In the evening we would be glad to make reservations at one of many fine steak-houses such as Cabana las Lilas, Mirasol, or Piegari. A number of other fine international options are available well.

After enjoying a delicious breakfast at your hotel you will be collected for a fascinating tour of the elegant turn-of-the-century districts that earned Buenos Aires the label of the Paris of South America. The tour will lead you through the Italian district of La Boca to the charming cobbled alleys and colonial architecture of San Telmo through towards the Plaza de Mayo with its many outstanding buildings: the neo-classical Cathedral, the colonial Cabildo, the old town-hall, and the Government Palace. The tour then leads to the elegant residential Barrio Norte quarter with its French architecture ending with a tour around a residential neighborhood in Palermo. You will have lunch at one of the fashionable restaurants in Palermo Soho. In the afternoon you will proceed north of Buenos Aires for a one hour boat ride along the Parana River Delta. In the evening we suggest a Tango experience at Esquina Carlos Gardel, Rojo Tango, or Viejo Almacen.

(Meals - B, L)

This day is left free for you to enjoy the city of Buenos Aires at your leisure. Many of our optional extra tours are highly recommendable to fill this time and experience the city better. One of the more interesting options includes a colorful day spent at an estancia on the outskirts of Buenos Aires. Lunch is included within this excursion and consists of a traditional Argentinean asado – or barbeque. Huge slabs of prime beef are slowly grilled to the meat lover’s perfection during which you may enjoy some fine Argentinean wine. Following lunch you will be invited to partake in a number of traditional Guacho activities. If this day is free on a Sunday you may wish to take a tour of the San Telmo Flea Market. Another very worthwhile optional extra is the day trip to Uruguay and Colonia del Sacramento. With lunch included this tour visits Uruguay’s most charming town and leads you though its most spectacular sites including the old quarter of Oporto or Lisbon and the Puerta de la Ciudadela.

(Meals - B)

Following breakfast in your hotel in Buenos Aires you will be transferred to the airport for your flight to Puerto Iguazu – the town close to the spectacular Iguazu Falls. Upon arrival in the small town you will be met and transferred to your comfortable hotel in the area where you will be briefed about your travels in the region. The falls themselves consist of 270 separate cascades that stretch in white veiled patches for over 2.7 kilometers with vivid green jungle sprouting spectacularly between the waterfall segments wherever it can. The rest of the day is set aside for you to enjoy at your leisure. In the evening you may dine in anyone one of the many fine restaurants in Puerto Iguazu.

(Meals - B)

CAT Tip – Make the Most of Your Trip: For five evenings a month visitors to Iguazu are able to take advantage of the opportunity of visiting the largest waterfall – the Devil’s Throat – by moonlight. This is a truly unforgettable experience which is followed with a dinner at La Selva Restaurant. Please ask your Destination Specialist for more information.

After enjoying breakfast in your hotel you will commence a guided tour of the Argentinean side of these incredible waterfalls. With an upper and a lower trail to follow the Argentinean side of the falls brings you much closer to the action of the falling water than the Brazilian side does. In the center of the Argentinean Falls is the fabled San Martin Island where the panoramic views of the falls on all sides are falls are spectacular. Following the tour you will be invited to enjoy a delicious lunch at the Sheraton Hotel overlooking the falls. The food here is excellent, and the view is spectacular. Following this it is recommendable that you choose the additional option of riding in a boat with an experienced driver who takes you right up and under the falling water of the cascades. For more information please see our Extra Options. Later you will be returned to your hotel where the rest of the day is free for you to spend at your leisure.

(Meals - B, L)

After breakfast you will check out of your hotel before crossing immigration into Brazil. You will then continue on towards the Brazilian side of the Iguazu Falls. While the falls are impressive up close on the Argentinean side, they are equally impressive from a far on the Brazilian side where amazing panoramic views of the spectacle give one a clear indication of their immensity. Following the tour you will proceed to the airport for your flight to Rio de Janeiro. The rest of the day is free to spend at your leisure getting to know the Marvelous City with beaches like Ipanema, Leblon and Copacabana, and restaurants and boutiques in the boulevards nearby. Sunset in Rio is a spectacular time as the Cariocas head for the beaches while the mountains cast long shadows under a pink and golden sky. In the evening you are free to sample some of Brazil’s tropical food and drink.

(Meals – B)

**Special Note: Please keep in mind that US citizens along with the nationals of a few other countries need a visa to enter Brazil. Visas can be obtained at the Brazilian Consulate in Buenos Aires and usually take 2 to 3 days to issue. Please feel free to ask your Destination Specialist for more information.

After breakfast you will begin a full day’s tour of Rio de Janeiro. You leave for Cosme Velho and the train-ride up to the top of Corcovado, the 710m high mountain on top of which sits the iconic 38m statue of Christ the Redeemer. From the top, the views of Guanabara Bay, Sugar Loaf Mountain and the beaches ringing the city are spectacular. The tour heads alongside the lagoon and the beaches for the historical city center, with the cathedral, theater, library and Assembly buildings before you finish with a cable car up to the summit of Sugar Loaf Mountain, 395m directly above the sea! The views of the city, dwarfed by jungle-covered mountains and framed by the beaches and Guanabara Bay, are absolutely stunning. The tour lasts for around 7 hours and includes entrance fees. A tasty lunch is also included. After being returned to your hotel – the evening is free for you to spend at your leisure. CAT offers many exciting extra options including a Rio by Night Samba Show or dinner at Porcão Rio.

(Meals – B, L)

The day is free for you to enjoy Rio de Janeiro as you wish; whether this is spending time on the beaches, spending money in the boutiques, or spending the day on one of our optional tours – you get to decide. You can visit Petrópolis, the historic mountain town used as a summer escape from the city by the Emperors of Brazil. If you’d prefer to be at sea, we have a schooner tour of the beaches, or a trip around the islands of Angra dos Reis, with their exotic bird and animal life. You can relax in beautiful tropical surroundings of white sand beaches and turquoise waters. Lunch is included on both trips. Feel free to explore our Extra options.

(Meals – B)

CAT Tip - Make the most of the trip: Extend your trip in Rio by a day in order to enjoy more time on the city’s many amazing beaches.

Following breakfast you will be transferred to the international airport in Rio de Janeiro for your flight home or on to your next exciting travel destination. Class Adventure Travel offers a number of other exciting Latin American destinations should you be interested to continue your trip further.

(Meals – B)