Guatemala

We have the best showers in all Guatemala." You wouldn't think this would be a hotel's biggest selling point, but as much as we loved this country, our enthusiasm for weak, cold showers was, if you'll forgive the pun, dampening.

"Plus the lake water is 100 per cent clean, you can hire the kayaks free of charge, take any books from the library you want to keep and I'll be damned if mine isn't one of the finest restaurants in the whole damn country."

Roy, you had us at the showers. The Yankee owner of Rio Dulce's El Tortugal floating resort could have saved his breath. Plus we'd heard stories of a nearby waterfall unlike any other and we knew this place would do fine as a base to explore.

And it was the first time I'd slept at what amounted to a floating hotel.

Perched above the warm waters of Lago de Izabal with jungle looming on the shore, El Tortugal is a series of open wooden dormitories with spiral staircases and thatched roofs. Each dormitory is linked by wooden walkways that pass above the water, as well as marshland thick with tropical plants that sometimes form canopies.

The view from the top of our dorm of the masts of visiting American yachts (this is a calm spot during hurricane season), the postcard shimmer of the lake and the dark green of the trees on the shoreline reminded me of the island suburbs of Miami, minus the celebrity homes.

Make no mistake, this is not a poor corner of Guatemala. Indeed, after Mexico, Guatemala is the second-wealthiest country in Central America. That doesn't mean there isn't poverty and that the average family doesn't get by every year on what we might make in a month, but it's not out of the ordinary to find the sort of setting we found in Rio Dulce. And that setting included luxury yachts, perfect weather, anchored sunbathing rafts, jungle holiday homes and controversial kayak races.

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Ewan McGregor's next project...

A South American road trip with his dog.

The Hollywood star said he is aiming to bike across South America next, and may opt to shun human company.

"I might go on my own. I got a dog, Sid. I've trained him to ride in my side car and I thought we could do a trip together," he said.

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Peru: Pachacamac

The temporary closure of Peru's greatest wonder will mar many an itinerary. But traces of Peru's Inca and pre-Inca heritage can be found throughout the country. As the Pan-American highway heads south out of Lima, a small hill becomes visible to its left-hand side, rising out of the sandy rock that begins to dominate the landscape as the shanty towns of the capital thin out. Unremarkable from a distance, this was once the most breathtaking landmark on the Peruvian coast – an object of an important pilgrimage for many centuries, and now an important archaeological site.
This was a sacred city dedicated to Pachacamac. That might sound like a proprietary make of wet-weather gear for Peru's rainy season, but in fact Pachacamac was a powerful god who could predict the future. Pilgrims came from all over the Andean region to ask for advice.

The site was occupied for some 1,500 years by a succession of tribes, including the Wari, the Ychsma and, finally, the Incas. All left their mark on the place, building ever more elaborate temples to supersede those of their predecessors.

Until the buildings of the modern capital began to encroach, this was a remote, inaccessible place; for the modern visitor, it is the cliff-top location, overlooking the ocean, that impresses. Geography has always been important here: as well as being a strategic coastal site, Pachacamac is located in the valley of the Lurin River. This position helped to ensure food, in the form of fish and farm produce, for the gods. But for the pilgrims who had made the long, often arduous journey through mountains and valleys, it was not the natural landscape but the temples that would have made the strongest impression.

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Colombia

Sarah Baxter presents a quick guide to Colombia.

It’s worth visiting, then? Most definitely. Few other countries boast this level of diversity: dreamy Caribbean beaches, soaring Andean peaks, cowboy-galloped plains, the critter-infested Amazon. And don’t miss colonial gems such as pastel-painted Cartagena. In addition, the whole place is infused with a luscious Latino energy thanks to a population eager to welcome. Or perhaps they’ve just had one too many 100 per cent Colombian coffees from the street vendors – just 6p a pop.

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Havana - Cuba

'Cubans learn to walk and then they learn to dance,' British director Stephen Rayne whispers as we sidle into the theatre mid-rehearsal.

On stage, members of Havana-based dance company Ballet Rakatan are working on Manicero, a street scene about the city's peanut-sellers. When it ends, my lone applause rings hollow around Teatro Municipal, a rundown, draughty venue that, like much of the Cuban capital's architecture, has seen better days.
I've flown to Havana to watch Stephen and Cuban choreographer Nilda Guerra put the finishing touches to Havana Rakatan, a high-octane dance show that launched last week at London's Peacock Theatre and is enjoying a month's run as part of the Sadler's Wells season.

It's a tough remit. The show strives to explain the history of Cuban dance in a two-hour nutshell, no mean feat considering the 'Sugar Island' has been dancing since the 15th Century.

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Uruguay

Simon Calder selects Uruguay as on one of the best places for "Latin Passion".

Font size isn't everything, but Uruguay's self-esteem may be challenged by the succession of travel guidebooks that shout "ARGENTINA" and follow up almost apologetically with "& Uruguay" in much smaller type. The nation (which, since you ask, is nine times the size of Wales, and 90th biggest in the world) seems destined to be merely an appendix to a trip to mighty, beautiful Argentina.

Which is how I first arrived. The ferry 'cross the Plate leaves every hour or so from a smart steel-and-glass terminal close to the centre of Buenos Aires. The Argentinian capital likes to parade its supremacy over the rest of South America, with some economic and cultural justification – and it remains the only capital on that continent with a direct flight to Britain. But in sporting terms? Well, the fast passenger ferry sails from a nation that has won football's World Cup twice to :a nation that has won football's World Cup twice.

The Channel might be murky, but it is nothing to compare with the liquid mud of the River Plate. And while the white cliffs of France frame the traveller's arrival in Calais or Boulogne, low-lying Uruguay creeps over the horizon sporting colours barely discernable from the estuary. But at the end of the 33-mile crossing, you clamber ashore to a nation out of time.

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Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

The famous Christ the Redeemer statue that stands guard over Rio's harbor is getting a face lift.

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Latin America hotel roundup

This week, a look at the most popular hotels in five South American cities - Buenos Aires, Rio de Janiero, Santiago, São Paulo and Bogotá.

Next week, thousands of revelers will flock to Rio de Janeiro's famous Copacabana beach to celebrate the Rio Carnival, one of the most famous shows on the planet. Throughout February, special activities and parades pack the beach including the Samba School Parade, a collection of the best Samba schools in the world.

Tourism in Latin America overall is booming. Between 1995 and 2007, the area experienced a rise in arrivals from a rise in tourist arrivals from 14.3 million to 27.9 million (about 49 % growth), and even throughout the recession, Latin America has fared fairly well by global standards. According to the UN, visitor numbers fell by 3 percent between 2008-2009, considerably less than the percentages for North America (6 percent) or Northern Europe (8 percent). This year, the UN World Tourism Organisation expects even more of a boost.

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Machu Picchu closed

The Inca site of Machu Picchu will be closed to tourists for at least three weeks – and shut off from all but the hardiest of visitors for almost two months – as Peruvian authorities assess the damage caused by the recent floods along the Urubamba river.

Cuba

I felt it beneath my feet. A tiny grumble: an echo of something much bigger, far away. It passed quickly, though, and I wouldn't have given it another thought. It was a truck, perhaps, grinding past in the green valley below and carrying a cargo of sugar cane, tobacco, livestock – or people, swaying in the back. There are plenty of big trucks in Cuba and most have seen better days, belching black smoke and engine noise in equal quantities. But the caretaker of the Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Cobre – she was an old lady, wrinkled, with a deep tan – glanced around at me, her hands fluttering. "Temblor," she said. A tremor.

The graceful shrine at El Cobre lies 20km north-west of Santiago de Cuba, the island's second-largest city, on an isolated hill encircled by higher peaks. A visit here brings you 100km due south of the tourist enclave of Guardalavaca on the north coast: almost the full width of Cuba. Eleven days ago, as the earthquake devastated Haiti, a faint tectonic ripple was also felt across Cuba's deep, dry south. A tsunami alert was issued and coastal attractions were closed.

Cuba escaped with barely a wobble. Yet this is a country well used to being at the mercy of external forces. Hurricanes Gustav, Ike and Paloma wrought enormous damage in 2008, shattering buildings and constricting the island's already meagre food supplies for months. And then, of course, there's the delicate matter of being a communist country just 140km from Key West at the southern tip of Florida.

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Buenos Aires - Argentina

Contemporary Argentine history is a roller coaster of financial booms and cracks, set to gripping political soap operas. But through all the highs and lows, one thing has remained constant: Buenos Aires’s graceful elegance and cosmopolitan cool. This attractive city continues to draw food lovers, design buffs and party people with its riotous night life, fashion-forward styling and a favorable exchange rate. Even with the uncertain economy, the creative energy and enterprising spirit of Porteños, as residents are called, prevail — just look to the growing ranks of art spaces, boutiques, restaurants and hotels.

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Chiapas - Mexico

On a high curb of a cobblestone street, a Chamula women sits to hike the blue blanket holding her baby higher on her back.

Three women with her wait as patiently as her shadow, each similarly dressed in a long skirt of black wool with fine red stripes, a headdress of the same material folded square on her black hair.

This mountain town, still so Mayan in spirit, is not a world of individualism but of the tribe, the strong sense of belonging that the alienated might envy.

For the Indian descendents living in the southern state of Chiapas, questions of identity are not answered with hours of solitary angst.

They're settled with a quick glance at the clothing that is different for each of the region's three main tribes, Chamulas, Huistechos, Zinacantechos, and at the small detail of ribbon or sleeve that marks a person's particular village.

Most of the people are no less firmly placed in the rich Mayan culture that connects their world view and values to the great ancient civilization that stretched from Honduras to Chiapas.

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San Juan - Argentina

In search of some of the oldest bones in the world, I head north on highway 40, moving from Mendoza's famed vineyards into the parched deserts of San Juan province, the high mountains towering to the West.

Grapevines spring miraculously from the near-desert conditions. Families picnic along the shaded banks of giant canals that channel life-giving water from the mountains.

With the last vineyards passing from sight in the rear-view mirror, I enter a driver's paradise with long stretches of open road that flow like a roller-coaster. The blazing wind from the open window blasts me with its scorched breath.

Somewhere in these dry desert hills, there's supposed to be a mysterious pilgrimage site, a place of miracles. I find no obvious signs of this religious shrine and continue on my solo journey.

As the final light falls behind a small cluster of hills, I arrive in San Agustín in the Fertile Valley, an ideal springboard to visit the dinosaur park of Ischigualasto.

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Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

Whether you're sunning yourself next to the beautiful people on Ipanema Beach, admiring the spine-tingling views from Sugarloaf Mountain or dancing samba in the ocean of colour that is the Rio Carnival, it's hard to deny that Rio de Janeiro deserves its moniker, the Cidade Maravilhosa (Marvellous City).

Unbeknown to many tourists, however, Brazil's most exciting metropolis is also the capital of Rio de Janeiro state, a region dotted with quaint colonial towns, classy beach resorts and gorgeous tropical islands.

When the big, bustling city gets too much, look no further than these laid-back gems, which are all within easy reach of the city and are sure to further your appreciation of this stunning part of the world.

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Santiago - Chile

Wandering around the central city is always a delight, partly thanks to all the interesting things to see, but mainly because it's such an easy city to walk in.

For instance, right in the heart of the downtown area is the hill of Santa Lucia, which serves as a combination historic hilltop fortress, memorial to many of the city's greatest citizens, viewing platform and tranquil park, which is always a joy to visit. The craggy peak is where Pedro de Valdivia, the Spaniard who conquered Chile, formally founded Santiago in 1540 and it is still covered with battlements, towers and arched gateways as though forever ready to defend itself against invaders.

These days, however, most of the invaders are camera-toting tourists or young lovers looking for somewhere quiet, though there is still a cannon, which is fired daily at noon.

Along the winding paths up the hill are fountains and statues, plaques and mausoleums, among them the tomb of the mayor responsible for developing the area as a park. From the summit you get great views over the city and, during a brief period when the smog drifted away I even caught a glimpse of the snowcapped mountains that encircle Santiago.

At the bottom of the hill is the Santa Lucia Artisans Market with stalls selling everything from handmade ponchos and shoes to lucky charms and snail oil cream - good for your skin, apparently - to carvings and ceramics.

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Patagonia

Susan Ellicott in Patagonia

Never at any stage of my trip am I lonely. Instead, I feel wonderfully, powerfully alone. What inhibits the fulfilment of a dream, I tell myself, is not circumstance but state of mind. I’ve moved my body and soul for less than the cost of another woman’s trip to a luxury spa.

Nowhere do I feel more alive than on a part of the trip for which I haven’t planned at all: several days in Tierra del Fuego, the hemisphere’s rugged tip. In the gap between one cargo ship being cancelled and the other arriving, I luck out by arriving at Punta Arenas airport in Chile an hour before the one daily flight to Puerto Williams, the southernmost year-round inhabited town in the world.

It is winter here in the Beagle Channel, where Charles Darwin marvelled at icebergs 176 years ago. Restaurants are closed until spring. The only nightlife to speak of is a bar for yachties on a rehabbed sunken frigate.

In this remotest of spots, I rent a mountain bike for $5 and cycle the 40-mile round-trip on a dirt track to a Yagan cemetery. On the far side of the channel is Argentina. It is a day of all weathers and terrain. I see what I think are Magellanic penguins huddled on a rock in the swell. I see birds of prey, seabirds, beaver dams, moss, reeds, kelp.

Suddenly, it hits me. This, the all-time perfect day of my life, is my dividing line. All that has gone before – divorce, grief, devotion to my children at the expense of some of my dreams – all of that is my past. Today is the start of my future. For the last hour of this magical day, I cycle under a full moon. When I finally get off the saddle, I can barely walk.

So, how was it? Everyone asks me the same question on my return to London. The best few weeks of my life, I reply. So far.

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