With climates and areas ranging from humid lowlands to tropical rainforests to chilly highlands, when to cruise South America depends completely on each specific itinerary and location.
However, the continent can be divided into a few sections with general rules for traveling times.
Photo by Beth Conway
Amazon
Travelers can embark on an Amazon cruise year-round. Rain, heat, and humidity should be expected no matter the season. Wildlife viewing and weather patterns only have subtle differences from one season to the next. School holidays bring larger crowds with children.
Exploring the world (Stephen Krupnick)
Southern South America
Including Patagonia, the Falkland Islands, southern Chile, and Argentina, has similar summer and winter weather to North America, however, the months are opposite due to the hemisphere difference. That is, summertime in these regions (December and February) is similar to summer in North America: warmer and dry. The shoulder months of October – November, and March-April have cooler temperatures and smaller crowds.
Penguins gathering on the shore
Antarctica
Winter months (May through September) are cold and travel is limited, particularly for cruises that include travel to Antarctica. For more information on the best travel times for Antarctica cruises, please see our When to Go: Antarctica link.
Puerta Valiesco Ibarra and the welcoming committee (Kerry Wohlstein)
Northern South America
For travel in Northern South America, including Peru, Ecuador, and the Galapagos, the weather can generally be divided into two seasons: wet and dry. Temperature is most impacted by elevation: the higher you go, the cooler it becomes. The coastal region of Peru is fairly dry year-round, with its warmest, most humid months from December to March. These are also the wettest months; however day-long rains are very infrequent. Instead, there are rainstorms interspersed with sunshine. For further information on touring Ecuador and the Galapagos, click here.
For further details on when to take a South American cruise, please contact our travel specialists to help you determine the best time to travel based on climate, wildlife viewing, and popularity of the season.
Our team is waiting and ready to talk with you about your next adventure.
So go ahead and book an appointment with one of our specialized trip planners.
Adventure Life helped me achieve my bucket lists on this trip. With the help of Claudia and Ghezzel, I was able to enjoy my trip without a hitch. All the hotels were good, the tours that were arranged were fantastic, all the flights were on time. I had an amazing time and would recommend Adventure Life without hesitation.
Mona Mathieson
7 months ago
Claudia Corona, the travel agent, was extremely helpful, friendly, and knowledgeable. She always made it a point to return my call and to answer my many questions. She made my decision to use Adventure Life for my trip to South America quite easy.
Mona Mathieson
10 months ago
Every detail is discussed and thoughtfully executed. We are lucky to have Jess Heurmann take us through beginning to end, plus the local planners are always in touch.
Tiffani LoBue
10 months ago
The communication and planning stage with Jess is seamless and stress free. Emails are answered in a timely manner.
Matt Hunter
1 year ago
Cassandra is a very personable professional who has personal experience where we were going
