South Americans travel by train

Trains are much less frequent and efficient than South American buses, but if you have a little time to spare they provide a wonderful way to see the countryside and wildlife, as they tend to travel much more exotic routes than the more functional buses.

Typically they are less expensive than the buses, but services aimed specifi- cally at tourists, or those used mainly by tourists can be pricey. Two of the most famous and picturesque routes used by tourists are the track from Cuzco to the start of the Inca Trail in Peru and the breathtaking Serra Verde Express between Curitiba and the coast in Brazil.

There are several types of train, including the fast and efficient ferrotren, stopping at major stations only; the average tren rápido; the slower expreso, which stops at most stations; and the super-slow and amazingly cheap mixto, which stops for every Tom, Dick and Harry – and their livestock too