From fleeting festivals to rare natural wonders, five Aracari trips are defined by timing.
Some of the very best journeys ask for time — to plan, to imagine, and ultimately, to get right. These trips tend to be once-in-a-lifetime. Not because they’re out of reach, but because they hinge on something irreplaceable: timing. A fleeting season. A natural spectacle. A cultural moment that can’t be rushed or replicated.
South America, in particular, holds space for these journeys. And at Aracari, they’re among the most rewarding to plan.
From the pulse of Carnival in Rio to the slow-motion courtship of the waved albatross in the Galápagos, to the brief Antarctic summer before the continent disappears into polar night — these are experiences that can’t be booked last-minute. They require foresight, deep local knowledge, and the will to wait.
In this guide, we spotlight five journeys that take a year to get just right — and remind us why they’re worth it.
1. Patagonia: A Journey Best Made in the Quiet
Patagonia isn’t a single destination. It’s a vast, cinematic sweep of terrain, shared by Chile and Argentina, where granite peaks puncture the sky, winds whip across glacial lakes, and the scale of nature feels almost mythical. Planning a journey here means navigating enormous distances, unpredictable weather, and an increasingly coveted handful of extraordinary places to stay.
For Aracari travelers, the sweet spot lies in Patagonia’s shoulder season: October–November or March–April. These months bring crisp light, fewer crowds, and landscapes still touched by snow or tinged with autumn gold. The weather may still be wild, but that’s part of the beauty. This is a region that’s never truly tame — and shouldn’t be approached as such.
Getting Patagonia right requires time and precision. Routes must be carefully sequenced — to connect distant corners, to pair cities like Mendoza or Santiago with the remoteness of the south, to allow breathing room between treks and travel days.
And perhaps most importantly, to secure the region’s standout stays: from the low-slung luxury of EOLO, set in the steppe outside El Calafate, to the considered design and striking location of Explora Torres del Paine, deep within the Chilean national park.
These lodges are more than places to sleep — they’re anchors in the wild. But with limited space and growing global demand, the best rooms vanish fast. Which is why we recommend looking at Patagonia at least a year ahead — not just to secure the best availability, but to give this epic place the time and space it deserves.
2. Galápagos: The Waved Albatross in Courtship
The Galápagos is a place of constant movement — mating, migrating, nesting, hatching — where nature plays out in its purest form. But even among the archipelago’s many marvels, few experiences compare to witnessing the courtship rituals of the waved albatross.
From April to June, these remarkable birds return by the thousands to Española Island, their only known nesting site. The display is as theatrical as it is intimate — a symphony of honking, bowing, and beak-fencing, echoing across the island long before the birds come into view. For Marisol Mosquera, Aracari’s founder, it remains one of the most unforgettable spectacles she has witnessed on the continent: “You can hear them before you see them — this flurry of sound and movement, completely unbothered by your presence. It’s pure magic.”
To see it properly, timing is everything. But so too is the choice of vessel. The best cruises run carefully timed departures to Española during the peak of the season. These fill quickly, often a year out, especially those with exceptional naturalist guides, whose ability to interpret behavior transforms what you see into something unforgettable.
Planning ahead isn’t just about securing a space — it’s about ensuring the experience lives up to its potential. That means selecting the right route, the right guides, and the right rhythm. In the Galápagos, those details matter — and when it all aligns, the result is a front-row seat to one of the most astonishing courtships in the natural world.
3. Rio de Janeiro: Carnival with a Sense of Place
Rio’s Carnival is a dazzling collision of color, choreography, and uncontainable energy. The most iconic Carnival in the world — the Carnival — lives up to every superlative: stadiums pulsing with samba, streets alive with music, dancers in full feathered regalia, and a city lifted entirely out of the everyday.
There’s no real “escaping” it — and nor should you try. At Aracari, we help travelers embrace Carnival on their own terms, balancing front-row access with moments of quiet, cultural depth.
That might mean staying in Rio’s Southern Zone, where the energy is still electric, but the pace can be more manageable. We often recommend JANEIRO hotel in Leblon — a refined retreat in one of the city’s most residential, beachside neighborhoods. While nowhere in Rio is entirely untouched by Carnival, this corner of the city offers a welcome breath between parades and blocos.
Planning ahead is essential. Carnival takes place in February, and the best rooms are booked well in advance. Restaurants fill quickly, Sambadrome seats vanish, and access to behind-the-scenes experiences — percussion workshops, visits to samba schools, private viewing boxes — requires expert coordination. With Aracari, you’ll have more than a ticket; you’ll have insight, access, and a curated lens on Rio’s most thrilling week of the year.
And when the music fades? We’ll carry your journey forward — perhaps to Peru’s Sacred Valley or the stillness of Lake Titicaca. Because sometimes, the perfect counterpoint to Rio’s electricity is the quiet grandeur of the Andes.
4. Antarctica: The Ultimate Southbound Journey
New for 2026, Antarctica is Aracari’s most southerly offering — a region we’ve often had requests for and have now brought into our fold through trusted partnerships and meticulously curated voyages.
This is a place that needs no embellishment: sculptural icebergs drifting across open water, penguin colonies clustered on rocky shores, seals and whales surfacing in slow, deliberate arcs. But this is also a place that demands forward planning — not only because it lies at the edge of the world, but because the chance to visit is so fleeting. Between late November and early January, the Antarctic summer reveals its clearest skies, calmest waters, and richest wildlife activity. After that, the continent folds once more into polar darkness.
One 2026 departure is timed precisely to this window — a 12-day expedition beginning in Ushuaia and crossing the Drake Passage before tracing the frozen edge of the Antarctic Peninsula. Days unfold through zodiac excursions, kayak routes, and glacial hikes, led by expert naturalists. Evenings bring a different kind of quiet; windless, blue-lit, and complete.
Antarctica may be a new destination for Aracari, but the approach is familiar: deeply bespoke, intentionally paced, and often woven into a wider journey. For many of our travelers, it will follow time spent in Patagonia — contrasting the wild intensity of ice with the windswept stillness of the steppe.
As with all extraordinary journeys, the time to plan is well ahead of departure. Our 2026–2027 voyages are already in high demand, and securing the right vessel, route, and expert team makes all the difference. For those with Antarctica on their horizon — this is the moment to begin.
5. A Cultural Start to the Year in Cartagena
There are few better places to begin the year than Cartagena, on Colombia’s Caribbean coast. January here hums with warmth and vitality — sun-drenched days, sea breezes curling through cobbled streets, and a calendar packed with cultural intrigue. The Hay Festival, held each January, draws global writers, thinkers, and artists for four days of conversation and creativity, while the International Music Festival of Cartagena brings classical performances to courtyards, cloisters, and open-air stages across the city.
But it’s not all orchestras and literary salons. Cartagena at this time of year is at its most alive — the festive pulse of a city that knows how to celebrate, tempered by its colonial beauty and laidback coastal charm. And just offshore, a quieter side of the story unfolds.
We arrange stays in private villas on the nearby Rosario Islands or the beaches of Barú — hidden homes with sea views, private chefs, and breezy terraces where time expands. Here, you’ll have your own space to relax and recalibrate, but with the color and energy of Cartagena is just a short boat ride away.
Because these are private homes, and this is high season, early planning is essential. The best properties — the ones we return to year after year — are spoken for quickly. But get the timing right, and the reward is a moment that lingers: Colombia in full color, January at its finest, and a journey that begins not with a checklist, but with a feeling.
Travel That’s Worth the Wait — Start Planning Now
These are the kind of journeys that have to begin long before takeoff. They start with an idea, shaped slowly into something singular — timed with precision, built on insider knowledge, and brought to life through longstanding local relationships. These five destinations reward that kind of planning: the kind that takes time, care, and a little patience.
So whether you’re dreaming of the icebergs of Antarctica, the rhythms of Rio, or a quiet villa off the Colombian coast in January, we’re here to help you start now — to craft a journey that’s not only worth the wait, but demand it, and rightly so.