We have our plane tickets booked for Quito Ecuador, we touch down on July 1st. We are looking at this as our starting point for doing South America. We want to know what it's like to live in a place, and as such, we don't plan on moving around a lot persae. Our plan is to stay in one location for 1-3 months, then move on. We want to rent flats/houses as we go, minimizing our stay in hotels and hostels. Shop and eat like the locals, saving money, experiencing life at a local level. We have basic spanish. Our plan is to hit North and south Ecuador (3 months), Peru, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Brazil, then back to Peru and fly home (which, by the way is Mexico). We are expats who want to escape the treadmill. our plan is to be on the road for at least 6-8 months, and if we still have money, even a whole year! So my questions are as follows:

Can we live on $1000 per month, if we find a local flat to rent and shop/eat as the locals do? Is this realistic? Any tips or contacts people can provide us would be much appreciated.

We are not hung up on staying in big urban centres, yet we don't want to be in the middle of nowhere. Any recomendations out there of pleasant mid sized towns we can stay in which aren't too far out of the way?

We plan to use local transportation as much as possible as a car rental is not only scary but out of our budget. Any recommendations?

By the way, our kids are 6, 4 and 3.
Anyone out there think we're crazy yet?We knew that long time ago!

If you're crazy, so am I! I'm taking my kids, 8 & 5, around the world without my husband. Hmmm...

Anyway, I spent almost a year in Ecuador in the 90's, and loved it. Quito is really busy. I lived in Cuenca, which is the 3rd largest city but much, much smaller than Guayaquil and Quito. It has a colonial, charming central area, and it's very walkable. I'd highly recommend it as a base. It has an airport, too, so you can bus (10 hours) or fly to Quito as needed. It is just big enough to have diversity but small enough that you can easily meet folks and find like-minded people.

I remember really liking Banos, but not Ambato, but I can't remember why.

Good luck!

Chrislyn

Thanks Chrislyn, I am hoping to spend part of our time just south of Cuenca, hoping to check it out. I've heard that Ecuador has lots of microclimates which are determined by altitude. What I am really looking forward to is some consistent cooler weather - I live in Yucatan right now and it is HOT.

I haven't been in South America for a long time, so I can't give you any specific recommdations, but I just wanted to write and say,"Good for you for making the decision to do it!" I think way too many people feel that their adventurous days are over the second the sperm hits the egg.

As for budget... We are traveling on bicycles, so our expenses are a bit different from yours. We plan on spending $1500/month, but rarely spend that any more. We did spend it in the USA and Canada, but now that we are in Central America it hasn't cost us that much at all. I don't have exact figures though. I would say $1000 is doable if you are very careful, but be sure to have some extra just in case!

Sounds like a great time! We lived in Ecuador for 3 months, Peru for almost the same amount of time, visited Bolivia, and are now in Argentina.

If you "live like a local" you should be able to live on $1000/month. Our oldest is 13 but eats like he is 25 so our food bill is much higher than your little guys. You can find apartments for $200 to $300 bucks, but again these do not have N. American/European amenities. We rented apartments for about $500 to $600 that included TV/Internet ($50/$50) and had amenities "closer" to what we are familiar with.

Local transportation is VERY cheap is Ecuador/Peru/Bolivia.

We have only been in Argentina 2 weeks but the prices are definitely higher here than anywhere else we have been to in S. America...maybe as much as 50%! My guess is that Brazil and Chile will be comparable to Argentina from the folks we have spoken with.

Anyway, hope this helps. We would be happy to answer any additional/specific questions. You can also contact us directly through our website.

Safe Travels...

Hi -

I hope you are having a great time in Ecuador. Cuenca is a great place, and outside Quito can be nice, too. But I thought I'd be nosey and say that I think its too bad you are skipping Colombia. I am biased, and cannot comment on any other countries besides Ecuador and Colombia, but we have three little kids, too, and have ended up coming back to Colombia every time. We love how family centered Colombians are, and there are so many things to do here with small kids.

Maybe next time, you'll give it a try?

Emily