November 22, 2004 -- Few cities in the world are more readily associated with their music than Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires, and just as few places reflect the spirit of their music so fully. For weeks upon your return from a trip to Rio, you'll be drumming samba beats on your desktop, or swaying to the bittersweet melodies of Antonio Carlos Jobim, as you dream of Ipanema and Corcovado. Likewise, the melancholic, romantic strains of tango will haunt you long after you've left Buenos Aires, in all its lonely erudition at the near-bottom of the continent, an ocean away from its European inspirations.
But why choose between these two very different, very sexy Southern Hemisphere cities -- polar representatives of Latin American carnality, on the one hand, and Old World elegance and sophistication, on the other? Rio and Buenos Aires are a powerful pair in a number of package deals available now. We may be moving into high season, at the other end of the world, but with the dollar raging strong in South America (the exchange rate at the time of this writing gave 3.3 Argentine pesos or 2.7753 Brazilian reais to $1), and with carnival approaching early this year, from February 2 to 9, there has never been a better time to tango and samba over the course of the same vacation.
If there's one reason to visit Rio de Janeiro -- besides the cariocas' warmth and devil-may-care attitudes, the jade green sea, and the beaches snugged between steamy mountains -- it's their carnival, unrivaled in all the world. Cariocas live for this week, though it's more of a spectacle than the street-level Mardi Gras celebrations in Salvador do Bahia, Venice, or the Caribbean -- where people in the streets, rather than performers on floats, make up the party. Still, the samba competitions, the colors, and the boisterous, public display of flesh are unmatched in just about any mass party around the world, and as good a reason as any to just stand back and sway your hips on the sidelines.
From Washington, D.C. and Chicago only, Fly South Vacations (tel. 800/234-5245; www.flysouthvacations.com) is running five-night carnival packages to Rio starting at $959. The base price houses you in the Savoy Orton Hotel, a three-star highrise in Copacabana. Or at the other end of the rainbow, you can stay where the stars do, at the Copacabana Palace, for the dear price of $2,999. This offer applies to travel departing February 2.
(For all the Fly South deals, see the "Sizzling Savings" section on the home page. Fly South rates include round-trip airfare, daily breakfast, and hotel taxes and surcharges. Taxes and surcharges of up to $180 a person could apply.)
Fly South is also promoting two great pre-Carnival (read: cheaper) packages to Rio. Three nights in Rio combined with three nights in Buzios -- the nearby, former fishing village-turned-resort -- are $699 (for a total of six nights), departing from Newark, New York JFK, and LaGuardia. Basic accommodations house you in Rio's aforementioned Savoy Othon in Copacabana, and a standard, ocean-view room at the Villa do Mar in Buzios. An upgrade buys you an ocean view in Rio, at Meridien Copacabana, and a luxury ocean-view room in Buzios, at Pousada Villa D'Este.
The package includes the usual, plus round-trip passage from the airport to the Rio hotel, and round-trip minibus fare for the three-hour ride to Buzios. Departures from Boston and DC are $25 more; Chicago is $75 more; and San Francisco and Los Angeles are only $125 more. See Website for additional departure cities.
Rio de Janeiro is also one of Go Today's current Top 10 deals (tel. 425/487-9632; www.gotoday.com). Go Today is offering the best prices to Rio with the widest range of hotel choices -- twelve hotels, ranging from $629 to $909 for five nights -- all in the Copacabana beach neighborhood. Slightly higher prices get you closer location to the beach and/or ocean views. Five nights at the Savoy Orton, for instance, start at $629, from Newark and New York JFK, for travel through December 9. (Price rises to $659 from Jan 6 to Jan 25.) For $699, you can upgrade to the Lancaster Othon Ocean Front, right on the beach, with views of the mountains and sea. For $909, you can stay on the beach with ocean views, in the four-star Rio Othon Palace
From the home page, see "Top 10 Deals." Departures from Boston and DC are $25 extra; Chicago is $75 more; San Francisco and Los Angeles are an additional $125. See website for other departure cities. Thirty day advance purchase for full discounts. Tuesday Wednesday travel. Fees up to $180.
The best deals to Buenos Aires come from Fly South Vacations (www.flysouthvacations.com). Six nights at the three-star Waldorf, an intimate, charming hotel near Florida Street, popular with pedestrians, is $579 a person from Newark and New York JFK and La Guardia. Guestrooms are tasteful and of ample size for the budget price. An upgrade to the Kempinski Park Central, a chic boutique hotel downtown with a restaurant showcasing live music and tango shows, is still only $729. And six nights in the five-star Alvear Palace, an elegant, Old World landmark in Recoleta, the city's most tony neighborhood, is $1549.
The discount is good on travel from January 10 to February 22, 2005, with a 30-day advance purchase. From February 23 to March 31, the price rises slightly, to $599. Travel from Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, and San Francisco is $25 extra a person.
Off Peak Traveler's Buenos Aires package (www.offpeaktraveler.com) is also very inexpensive for midweek morning travel from Miami. Five nights at the centrally located Castelar Hotel and Spa, a four-star historic landmark, are $599, good for departures through January 31. From February 1 to June 10, travel is $50 more a person.
The same price scores you six nights in Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires (three nights in each city), from Miami. The price includes airfare, including round-trip flights between Buenos Aires and Rio, daily breakfast, and three nights in each city, at the aforementioned Savoy Othon and Waldorf Hotels. Or for $150 more, you can stay at the Rio Othon Palace and the Emperador.
Rates include hotel, round-trip air, daily buffet breakfast, welcome drinks, dinner in the hotel's International Restaurant, and a full day in the hotel's Turkish baths and spa. Upgrades to superior rooms are also possible after 6pm checkout. See Website for blackout dates.
Go Today (www.gotoday.com) is also featuring a number of combination city packages that pair either Buenos Aires or Rio with myriad other South America cities and destinations. The permutations are too extensive to list, but thirteen air-inclusive packages are available to Buenos Aires and either Iguaz¿, Montevideo, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, Rio de Janeiro, or Santiago, Chile. Here are some sample fares: Buenos Aires and Rio together are $889 for six nights of travel, from January 10 to January 25 and from February 9 to March 31. Fare includes round-trip transfers. Buenos Aires and Montevideo start at $799, for six nights from January 10 to February 22, including sightseeing tours.
Go Today's Rio city combos include 15 trips pairing Rio with the Amazon, Salvador do Bahia, or Paraty. Sample fares include the Rio-Salvador do Bahia package, with three nights in each city for $999, from January 6 to January 23, and from February 9 to March 31. Rio and Paraty, a UNESCO World Heritage site on the coast, starts at $699 for six nights from January 6 to January 25. These packages won't get you to carnival, but the extraordinary destinations in themselves are well worth the fares.