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I think SE Asia is much too far for a one week vacation from the U.S. Between the flights and airport transit you're looking at 20 hours in each direction, not to mention the jet lag. With only only one week, I'd personally look for somewhere within an 8 or so hour flight.
I think SE Asia is much too far for a one week vacation from the U.S. Between the flights and airport transit you're looking at 20 hours in each direction, not to mention the jet lag. With only only one week, I'd personally look for somewhere within an 8 or so hour flight.
Yeah, probably too far for such a short trip. But I find there is a much worse potential for jetlag after a 6 hour flight into a 6-hour time difference, than with 24 hours of flying into a 12-hour time difference - ie, I never had a jetlag after flying to Asia.
If the OP manages to catch the flight to Buenos Aires, it will produce tiredness (a long flight) but no jetlag (I think the difference from NYC and BA was only 2 hours? or maybe even none? When I went to Argentina (Buenos Aires and Patagonia) about a decade ago, I remember the never-ending redeye flight with a layover in TX, I think Houston?, then trying to figure out what Central American cities we were flying over, then falling asleep and waking up to the sight of the tall brown Andes underneath in the morning light - I was tired on arrival to BA because it was a long night flight, but I had no jetlag whatsoever).
Btw, the Buenos Aires airport is VERY far from the center of the city (the city sprawl is unbelievable). There was (presumably still is) a comfy bus called Tienda Leon for the loooooong but direct and convenient trip from/to the airport. You can buy the ticket for that bus with the US dollars (and you can buy in fact most things in Buenos Aires for the US dollars, with fantastically favorable exchange rate, and I assume that's legal since it is so widespread).
I am in favor of Buenos Aires. You can get a seven hour direct flight out of Miami. If you go there, your dollar will do a long way because of the terrible inflation there. You can get excellent food for half or less than what it costs in the USA. The people are friendly and it's the safest city in Latin America to visit.
I do like BA, it's under the radar for most Yanks for some reason. The only problem I have with it is that it is so pleasant & European in atmosphere that I probably would end up going to Spain or Italy instead since that is a shorter flight. But the fact that it is summer down there in December is pretty, pretty good.
My grandfather had an uncle who emigrated to there in the 19th century from Europe and I always wondered if I have distant relations there, he was never heard from after a few letters from there.
If possible stay within +/-2 hour of your time zone. Easier to to get adjusted to on arrival and return.
If you want to maximize your vacation, try and take shorter flights. Panama / Costa Rica. Belize. Colombia ( I loved the country). Ecuador. Peru. All give you good bang for the buck in terms of costs and sightseeing.
Guatemala is undergoing some civil unrest so it is not a good country to visit now.
Puerto Rico is warm and quite different from mainland USA and does not need a passport. Easy to rent a car and travel around the island. Lots to do for a week.
I am in favor of Buenos Aires. You can get a seven hour direct flight out of Miami. If you go there, your dollar will do a long way because of the terrible inflation there. You can get excellent food for half or less than what it costs in the USA. The people are friendly and it's the safest city in Latin America to visit.
If you are a major meat-eater (which I no longer am), you can eat amazing meals for amazingly little $ in Buenos Aires (most restaurants accepted payment in US dollars in 2014 when I was there). Since you can eat so well so cheaply in good restaurants, it probably makes no sense to eat "street food", but I found myself hungry near some food carts on a promenade by the river, so I bought some mystery grilled sandwich called bondiola, which turned out to be a pork shoulder on a baguette - but the thing was ENORMOUS, the biggest piece of grilled meat in the biggest baguette I have ever seen. And they had some lovely condiments with that, like roasted peppers etc. The whole bondiola cost something like $2.50 (plus left me with the personal expression "the whole bondiola", which I now use to describe something big and complex instead of my previous personal expression "the whole shebang" :-). But people in Buenos Aires are uncommonly attractive on average, and I don't remember seeing anyone obese. Maybe they expand all those carnivore calories on tango?
Puerto Rico is warm and quite different from mainland USA and does not need a passport. Easy to rent a car and travel around the island. Lots to do for a week.
I agree.
Tropical island with natural beauty and history not too far from mainland United States.
Just booked a 6-day trip next month to Playa del Carmen in Mexico. I have been to Cancun several times and would like to be in a different place. This is a place warm and a week is just enough, including the surrounding areas.
I am in favor of Buenos Aires. You can get a seven hour direct flight out of Miami. If you go there, your dollar will do a long way because of the terrible inflation there. You can get excellent food for half or less than what it costs in the USA. The people are friendly and it's the safest city in Latin America to visit.
For traveling that much distance, I would spend at least two weeks there.
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