Camping in South America - yes or no??
 

So I’m in Colombia & about 2 month away from starting my trip from Medellin to Ushuaia & back.

I bought all my camping gear, which fits easily in my 40L mosco duffel & weighs about 10kg

Some are telling me it’s essential, others are telling me not to bother & stick to hostels/hotels/AirBnB’s

Couple of things worth pointing out:
1. I am a total fair weather camper - if it’s cold or wet forget it
2. I can afford NOT to camp - it’s not a money saving exercise
3. I like camping, I don’t love it
4. I am looking to camp primarily in Chile & Argentina

Your thoughts please, ladies & gentlemen

It is a while since I was in South America but camped quite a lot in Argentina and Chile, particularly in the south there was not always a hotel so definitely take your tent.

Bring a tent, as my namesake said. There will be times you pull into an otherwise-unremarkable town in Argentina or Chile and find all the hotel rooms are taken by festival-goers or conventioneers or attendees at some other unpredicted event. The Dakar is no longer held in South America, but you’d be amazed how many obscure holiday celebrations there are.

There are also times when camping is worthwhile in its own right—Torres del Paine, say, or at one or another spot in the high Andes. I also tented at Angel Falls, and was the only person in my party who didn’t end up covered with mosquito bites from sleeping in hammocks. But I don’t think I even considered camping in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Brazil, Uruguay, French Guiana, Suriname, or Guyana.

Hope that’s helpful.

Mark

Argentina has a lot of camping. Chile too but not so much. The campsites aren't that great either. They're more like car parks with asado grills in them. But very cheap.

Apart from that, it's pretty rare in South America. Guesthouses and pousadas are pretty cheap and available everywhere. But if you want a private room then your accomodation bill will start mounting up.

You say you don't even enjoy camping that much. So I don't think you should expect to do too much of it on your trip. Camping in the tropics isn't that pleasant. It's hot, sweaty, full of bugs and it rains a lot.

However,

I do suggest you do take some camping equipment. Just in-case you're invited to a camp over, meeting, find a great place to stay wild for a night or just get stuck next to the road for whatever reason.

Go for a really small 1 man tent. Pack a 1-2 season sleeping bag. Which is a good idea anyway for some hostels anyway. Don't bother with cooking equipment unless you love camping. Most campsites are near town or a small shop.

When I camped in Argentina I just bought salami, cheese, bread and wine. And found a coffee on the road.

I don't remember camping once outside of Argentina/Chile at all. It's just not done. Some guest-houses had hammocks if you prefered outdoor life.

South America is not a wild place unless you really go looking for the wilderness. Which you can easily. But 90% of travellers don't.

the southern part of brazil has the best camping in south america and for meeting locals it's a unique possibility

camping
 

If you see a lot a small motor homes large or small then id say it is safe to camp at a RV park or a dedicated camping site with security
Its popular in Chile
this is Arica international airport Chile but you need a AAttachment 25901aircraft and its free

Camping and cooking equipment take up a lot of space and weight on the bike. I would skip bringing that stuff since it sounds like you would barely be using it if you brought it. You only want to carry things on the bike that you will be using often.

When I did my trip down to Argentina I took camping gear, but only ended up using it a hand full of times.

Stealth camping in Latin America is harder to do than in the USA. There are a lot of remote roads in North America, but that is not the case in Latin America. In general, if there is a road in Latin America, then there are people living up and down it everywhere. I can't tell you the number of times I picked a camp spot that looked secluded and woke up in the morning with 10 people walking around.

My advice is to just take one of those emergency bivvy bags. They barely take up any space in your luggage and if you are in a situation where camping looks good, you have a solution.

If you do take a tent, then I would just get a $30 amazon cheapo tent. That way it is not big deal if you decide to gift it to someone or throw it away because you are not using it.

20 kg is a considerable amount of weight for something you are hardly using. If you are riding mainly paved roads it probably isn't a big deal.

Hello

Camping is a good way of keeping the cost of the trip down.
It is also a great way of travelling when you love it.

In your case I'd say, leave the tent at home.
You will find hotels when you look for them, lots of people travel by hotel.
In case of spending a night on the side of the road after a breakdown, don't worry, you have gear that keeps you warm and dry up to windspeeds above 150 km/h, the stuff you wear on the bike.

sushi

You can find inexpensive posadas/pousadas with good facilities in all of South America - Brazil is more expensive, but still not bad. The campsites in USA, Canada, Europe, and Australia are more expensive than posadas in most of South America. When we travelled on our longest trip we camped only a few days (Monte Roraima and Angel Falls).

As you already have there gear with you and can carry easily I would take it, if you didn't then could always buy when you get to Chile if you felt the need. They have some good brands there I bought some doite gear in Santiago was well priced.

Plenty of places to get and some of the second hand clothes stores can be good also, in Puerta Natales, Arenas, Ushuaia etc

You won't NEED to camp but definitely some cool spots do do it if you have the gear and as mentioned above makes it easy when town is booked up.

Sent from my CPH2069 using Tapatalk

I camped quite a bit in southern Chile and Argentina and also a few nights in Bolivia, Equador and Colombia. Actually I regret I didnt camp more than I did.
On the other hand finding cheap accomodation via Airbnb, Booking.com or through advice on the www were seldom a problem.

But if you dont like to camp very much and economically dont have to camp - I guess maybe you shouldnt.

The most negative about camping imo is that it is so time consuming to set and break camp. Its valuable time one could have been riding and exploring in stead of trying to get that freakin tent into its waaay too tight bag!

My tent is 4lbs add another 3lbs for dawn sleeping bag and inflatable pad. Add a pack of hand warmers to toss in in case if night is cold. IMO <10lbs is acceptable weight penalty even if you end up not using it but it is hellova nicer than sleeping on the ground next to your bike. Never know what will happen and where/when you get stuck.

Completely agree on cookware with few exceptions it's complete waiste cold food is still food.

I traveled for 9-months, from New Jersey to northern Argentina and back via Jamacia and Cuba on the Stalratte. Here are the times I used my tent:

• Playa La Flor, Nicaragua - watching turtles bury eggs on the beach under a full moon
• In a very small town in central Guyana when I didn't have cash for a hotel (NOTE: the only international ATM is in Georgetown)
• Watching the Dakar Ralley (2013), one night in the desert

I enjoyed these rare moments of camping out. I did not attempt to cook. Breakfast was cold cereal with powdered milk, instant coffee...

Hostels are cheap. Come with warm showers and usually wifi, sometimes breakfast. The downside, the backpackers in hostels, but that is a topic for another post.

I have toured all over Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru and never once thought about using a tent.

You have so many accommodation options at all price points, why deal with the hassle of carrying and pitching camping equipment?

camping SA
 

Dont bother a good hotel can cost as little as ten bucks with secure moto parking
of course not in big cities I stayed in Manaure Laguajia Colombia for 33,000 pesos less than 10 bucks with aircon wifi and my moto was parked in front of my room in a secured concrete parking lot like a Motel in which I changed the rear sprocket a 4 beer job ,to do a lot of sand riding.
If you like camping go to the Yukon they raised the price to 15 bucks this year it was 12 bucks for the longest time and fire wood is free.
Best place to camp in the world in my opinion