Welcome to our Latin America

OUR KNOWLEDGE

The expertise of the South America Tourism Office (SATO) has been built on the advice and experience of locals who have worked in the travel industry for more than two generations. Our staff members were born in the southern continent and or/have travelled extensively through both South and Central America, so they can offer a unique perspective on the diversity of attractions and destinations to be discovered. Our team are familiar with the standard and location of the hotels we use, we conduct regular inspections on our visits and keep up to date with new properties in different destinations. Our staff members have undertaken many of the tours we recommend and can often provide handy suggestions for travelling. When you book with us, you can feel confident that our knowledge is based on more than just a guidebook.

PERSONALISED SERVICE

We specialise in custom making itineraries so if you can't find a circuit, tour or program length that fits in with your dates and timeframe, we can construct it for you. Latin America has so many interesting destinations to discover across such a vast area which means a lot of things to consider when travelling; flight schedules, travelling times, when is a good time to travel for the places you want to visit etc.? These questions are best left to the experts and SATO can build creative itineraries from Australia including international and internal flights to figure out the best way to see all your desired destinations and get the most out of your journey.

By travelling independently you will also have more flexibility to tailor your holiday to your needs and preferences. Choose the level of comfort you wish for your accommodation and even how you wish to conduct your tours and transfers.

Our understanding of the places you will be travelling to gives us an added perspective and we will consider many factors when preparing your dream holiday. We will automatically make many suggestions that will make your trip a little more comfortable, e.g. if you will be undertaking long travel times/messy flight connections in getting from one place to another we will suggest breaking this up with an airport hotel in between and won't schedule a tour on your day of arrival. In high altitude areas, we structure tours and services in the best format to try and minimise the possible effects this could have on your health. These small details and suggestions can end up making a big difference on how you enjoy your holiday.

OUR PRODUCTS

As a travel wholesaler with ground operators in most countries in Latin America we have an unmatched range of services to choose from. Our incredible range of hotels and tours allows for a wealth of choice depending on your needs and tastes. If something does not appear on the brochure or website, please contact our team and we can enquire directly to see if we can arrange this for you.
From the popular attractions to the obscure, we are able to offer products to every corner of South and Central America.

COMMITMENT TO QUALITY

As travel specialists we work with a selection of hand picked operators that will act as your trusted contacts on the ground.
We regularly inspect the hotels and properties that we recommend and take note of customer feedback to ensure the standards of our services are being delivered and whether we continue to use certain hotels.
When you book with us you can be confident that you have purchased a guaranteed service from a reputable Australian based company.

OUR SERVICES EXPLAINED:

• Local Guides
  We prefer to use local English speaking guides to conduct your tours and believe you will get an extra insight into the local culture and character from the first hand experience that people living in these destinations can provide.
  Transfers and tours will be conducted in a combination of private and seat in coach basis depending on location and cost.
• Seat in Coach
  Seat in coach services are shared with other tourists from all over the world allowing you to mingle and meet other travellers. This kind of service is the more economical option as the cost is shared with other people and the
  numbers on any given tour will vary depending to the location and dates.
  You will be led by qualified English speaking guides (unless otherwise specified or requested) and in some places, information may also be translated into other languages (such as Portuguese/French/Italian) depending on other nationalities present. Some other languages may also be requested at additional cost.
• Private Services
  Private services are exclusive for you/your travelling companions which means you receive a higher level of personalised service from your guide. The departure time of private tours can be specified, their attention will be completely devoted to you and you can travel at your own pace within the allocated time.
   *Please note that in some remote/more expensive regions, a private driver only service may be used to bring down the costs. This will be specified on our itineraries.
• Hotels
  We generally do not use accommodation that is considered less than a 3 star hotel and our properties all include private bathroom facilities. (In some less developed places, only 2 star hotels may be available but this is rare and even in these cases, they will have a private bathroom.)
  Our philosophy is that location is paramount when you are staying in a city for a few nights, as being central to the attractions and restaurants makes a big difference to your experience.   And as safety is a concern for some of our clients, we can often suggest districts/suburbs they may find more appealing.

* Grading:
The general standard of hotels in Latin America is a little lower than what you would expect by Western standards and while many will claim a higher amount in their own descriptions, we prefer to categorise them closer to what our clients would expect.

Tourist   (3 star)
Good value hotels, clean and comfortable rooms that may vary in terms of size, with local charm and a good location. Hotels have private bathrooms.

Tourist Superior (3.5 star)
Better hotels with extra benefits and are slightly better located that the standard tourist options. Others superior properties may once been considered first class and have a high standard of facilities but may now be a little dated. These hotels will often fall between the categories of 3 and 4 stars in terms of price and standard.

First Class   (4 star)
Great hotels with a high standard of rooms and facilities and excellent service. A lot of these are new hotels or have been recently upgraded and strive to maintain the standard of their facilities.

Deluxe (5 star)
Excellent hotels, often leading properties in their respective cities, either based on world class design or cultural characteristics. These may be based on international or local chains whilst some may be leading smaller hotels.
Ideal for travellers who like to travel in style and prefer a high level of comfort.

Boutique   (BT)
Exclusive hotels with plenty of character, focused on design or special themes, often smaller in size in terms of rooms and offering exceptional service for a unique experience. Perfect for the discerning traveller after a truly memorable journey.

Prices of hotels within these categories will vary depending on service, location and reputation and we have many to choose from in each city.

SOUTH AMERICA TOURISM is a licenced travel agent and member of the Travel Compensation Fund, a body designed to protect consumers in the event of financial collapse of a travel provider. The fund guards against the failure of its members by regularly monitoring their financial accounts and ensuring they have sufficient resources to continue trading as a travel agent.