Brazil and Bolivia...

travel mad chic

Hi, im off to South America in April for four months of backpacking and have a couple of questions i need a bit of help with. Firstly can anyone recommend a good hostil in Rio? Sumwhere in a good location and somewhere thats a bit lively and maby where some of the staff speak english:) Also i will be spending some time in Bolivia on my trip and i read somewhere that Irish travelers need a visa for entry to Bolivia! Is this true and if so how, where and when do i get one?

RATM

Hiya, Im heading to Bolivia myself this summer and from what I can gather in the Lonely Planet is that you dont need a visa for Bolivia unless you are traveling on a U.S. passport. Your passport must be vaild for 6 months beyond entry and they will give you a tourist card on entry which you must keep till you exit. Depending on where you enter it is valid for either 30 day or 90 days. An extension is possible at a fee of $21. That said email the Bolivian embassy in London just to double check this before you go as visa rules can and do change frequently and my Lonely Planet was published a year ago.

Another thing to bear in mind is a yellow fever vaccination card. You might be asked for one if travelling from Bolivia to Brazil or vice versa. There are doctors on some borders to admister the jabs but it best to get it done at home and then you have peace of mind. I think the jabs are valid for 10 years which is good.

re Rio, I havent been there since 2001 so cant really comment. All hostels near Copacabana will have english speaking staff, look up www.hostelworld.com to check for the most popular ones by other travelers ratings.

travel mad chic

Thanks for that, i think ill try e mail the london embasy just to be sure. Oh and i already have the yellow fever vac so thats one thing i dont need to worry bout.

p to the e

in Rio i stayed in a place called Bamboo Rio which was decent. don't worry about people speaking english. anything that involves tourists is all in English aswell. the hostel is close to the beach and teh staff are friendly. also they can organise trips for you there. make sure and do the favela tour. it's safe and very entertaining. you have to get on the back of a moped. as for Bolivia don't worry about visas or anything. you will have to fill otu visa cards as you go but these will be handed to you. just hold onto them so you can get a stamp that says you left the country. then you pay an exit fee and away you go. if you need anymore info just let me know by PM

Naked Lepper

travel mad chic wrote: »

Hi, im off to South America in April for four months of backpacking and have a couple of questions i need a bit of help with. Firstly can anyone recommend a good hostil in Rio? Sumwhere in a good location and somewhere thats a bit lively and maby where some of the staff speak english:) Also i will be spending some time in Bolivia on my trip and i read somewhere that Irish travelers need a visa for entry to Bolivia! Is this true and if so how, where and when do i get one?

heading to rio on wednesday

the yellow mellow hostel is widely regarded as the best in brazil, and south america.

thats where i am staying for the first five days

Zillah

travel mad chic wrote: »

Firstly can anyone recommend a good hostil in Rio? Sumwhere in a good location and somewhere thats a bit lively and maby where some of the staff speak english:)

Mellow Yellow. Great atmosphere, bar on top floor, English speaking staff and it´s in Copacabana. Showers are a bit crap but...meh.

Also i will be spending some time in Bolivia on my trip and i read somewhere that Irish travelers need a visa for entry to Bolivia! Is this true and if so how, where and when do i get one?

All lies, no visa needed, I just left Bolivia a week ago.

Gone West

Do not go to a specifically english speaking hostel.
It is not what south america is about. You might as well just go anywhere.
All the well-known places with english websites are full of english speakers, few of whom will actually see anything real in south america.

And IMO the favela tours is not positive tourism.
We made some friends, and visited their parents house one evening, which happened to be in the "slums", and it was a much more real and worthy way to spend a few hours, than on the back of a moped zipping through the favela.

IMO most places to eat or drink or stay thats mentioned in LP are ruined.
Being in LP means they get lots of business.
This means, that they can increase prices, and not put as much effort in as they once had to.
You will probably notice (if youre living on LP's SA on a shoestring) that most places prices are higher than they were when the book was written.
I ditched the lonely guide a wee while ago. Its good, but all the places to stay are full of other gringos and the like.

I found that many popular places in LP, the owners didnt even speak spanish and treat you like a wallet.

Ah yes, and no you dont need a visa for almost everywhere these days if you have an Irish passport, its great