Stretching from the Caribbean to the chilly southern oceans, and from deserts to rainforests via the Andes, South America’s climate pattern defies easy description. Throw in an array of vibrant festivals and a superb choice of wildlife viewing, and you soon realise that whatever combination of cold, quiet, hot and hectic you prefer there’ll almost certainly be somewhere to suit your tastes at some point in the calendar.
With two thirds of the continent lying in the tropics, much of it sees little seasonal variation in temperature, with lows seldom below 20ºC. Rainforest areas have a maximum average of around 30ºC, though humidity can obviously be high. Southern South America can be a bitterly cold but beautiful place from April to October, while some of the world’s driest regions lie between the Andes and the Pacific.
It almost goes without saying that in Andean countries the weather will depend as much on altitude as latitude. In the mountains of Peru there is heavy rainfall from December to March, though this is also the time when Macchu Picchu is quietest and the scenery at its most verdant).
The south of Chile becomes a paradise for skiing from June to September with abundant snowfall that may block roads, and you may get four seasons in one day and be at the mercy of microclimates in Andean Ecuador.
February sees the continent’s two greatest cities explode in festivals of song, music and dance. Buenos Aires in Argentina abandons itself to the seductive tango, while Rio de Janeiro in Brazil surrenders to the samba during its famous Mardi Gras carnival.
The unique wildlife of the Galapagos Islands can be visited all year round, with each month having its own spectacles and attractions, while Antarctica cruises operate from November to March.