Last spring I spent two months backpacking South America, solo female travel style, with one day pack strapped to my front and another to my back. Here are 19 tips I learned from my eight weeks abroad.

When I tell you that Buenos Aires was the most hyped destination of my trip… I do not lie. I had multiple people in multiple destinations in South America (and before), leading up to my arrival in this curiously European-vibed but South American-infused capital city, raving about Buenos Aires. The amount of “I could live there” and “ugh I wish I could have spent longer” were enough to get me psyched for this change of scenery.

After a week in Peru, I was off to Chile for some time in the desert. If you’re looking to visit Machu Picchu, read my tips before you go here! A friend recommended San Pedro de Atacama as a “must stop” on my backpacking route so, of course, I added it into my itinerary. I ended up meeting up with some friends I met in Ecuador, which made for an even more fun few days, to explore this otherworldly terrain.

The longest and narrowest country in the world covers a lot of climates - from the desert to the mountains of Patagonia and beyond to many glaciers - allowing for a lot to be explored.

If you’re planning a visit to this wonder of the world, I’m incredibly excited for you. Not only does it seem like an impossible feat but the landscape these ruins were built into, is unreal.

Regardless of whether you are planning on no hiking, a little hiking, or doing the complete trek, here are some of my tips from one traveler to another.

This isn’t the comprehensive list we all love and adore BUT I believe it’s just as important of one - it’s the random stuff that you don’t always think to pack but praise yourself when you do. During my two months backpacking South America, these are some items that came in handy during my trip.