Which is the best glacier to see in Argentina?

El Calafate in the far south of Patagonia is the starting point - fly from Buenos Aires. The obvious glacier is Ventisquero Perito Moreno, and these days there's a paved road all the way (an hour's drive) - the view point is a series of walkways in the hillside facing the 60m ice face and it seems almost close enough to touch.

In my view, a better option is book an all-day trip on one of the catamarans or hydrofoils (warm inside) which sail up Lago Argentino to the Upsala and Onelli glaciers. These are tongues of the Southern Patagonian icefield - and by the time you reach them, the ship is negoatiating a passage through icebergs as blue as my Windows login screen. The walk through the silent beech forest to Lake Onelli, with three glaciers coalescing beyond is an image you'll never lose.

Santiago or Cartagena?

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Santiago has the barrio Bellavista - slightly bohemian feel, which is all the more unusual because bohemian isn't part of the Chilean psyche - lively restaurants and bars suit both the young crowd and the establishment. And on clear days between June and September you've got really stunning views of the snowcapped Andes - either from the higher floors of the hotels in Las Condes, or from one or other of the two sizable hills (both well over 2000ft) near the city town centre. Plenty of very good wine.

Cartagena is tropical, has beaches and sunshine - and hotels to cater for the trade they attract. The old walled (17m thick) city is fascinating, and romantic both from the springy seats of the horse-drawn caleches and of course for the history of pirates, dubloons and the Spanish main. If you like your hotels steeped in character, the Santa Clara, formerly a 17th century convent, in the walled city is the one for you.

I'd go for Santiago, but then I prefer temperate to tropical

Lima-Cusco direct or take the train?

If you're very short of time, there's no practical alternative to flying. Just allow at least two days in Cusco (3600m) to acclimatise, more if you're planning to walk one of the trails to Machu Picchu. Or go straight on to the Sacred Valley of the Incas or better still Machu Picchu, both of which are much much lower than Cusco.

With a bit more time, route by air via Arequipa, spend a couple of days there, and then fly on to Lake Titicaca and take the train to Cusco.

Overland from Lima to Cusco can be done by bus (48 hours over the high Andes), but not by train - the Central Railway to Huancayo intermittently promises to re-open, but doesn't - and anyway, the Chinese have now built a higher railway to Tibet, so the line has lost even that claim to highest fame. Even when the railway network was fully operational, you could never get all the way from Lima to Cusco - Michael Palin just made it look like that...

Ecuador to Peru - are there still only two routes?

Yes, just two, but by far the most used is Tumbes/Huaquillas (the coastal route). It's the one we use on our Tico Tico Escorted Journey, even though we're travelling south from Cuenca. Going north, it's striking to see how quickly the coastal scenery changes from desert scrub to tropical mangrove and low forest.

Quote from Claire Milner who did Macara a few years ago "Macara, the inland route is much longer, and a beautiful route - in some places the road is so high you are above the clouds. I arrived at the Ecuador border and asked, "where is the toilet please", and the guard brusquely replied, "in Peru." On the Ecuadorian side from Loja you can visit the pretty town of Vilcabamba - it used to be a back-packer hangout because of the presence of some dodgy cactuses, and reported extreme longevity of residents - the scenery around of rolling green hills is stunning".

People often get turned back at Macara if there is border tension. Although it's technically possible to go downstream in the Ecuadorian Amazon region and link up with upstream rivers into Peru, both sides are extremely jittery about anyone travelling in those regions. FCO still advises, eg, against all travel in Ecuador's Sucumbios/Orellana provinces (though jungle lodges at Sacha and La Selva are still OK)

Mugging and pickpocketing - is it widespread in Brazil?

Generally, thieves want to get away without having to confront you or someone else, so mugging usually happens in quiet side streets or back streets - avoid these if you're not familiar with the terrain. But if mugged, don't resist (same advice as for London).

Pickpocketing and bag snatching is more common - usually an accomplice distracts you (a dollop of grease on your clothes; someone asks you identify a coin; or to hold a balloon for moment), the thief makes off in the moment's hesitation. One trick I saw was two tourists sitting on a bench on Copacabana beach, near a tree full of birds. The thief innocently threw a handful of grain towards the feet of the tourists and in the sudden swoop of birds, made off with their bag. Tip: don't sit near trees full of birds.

Chris Parrott is director of Journey Latin America

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