Top Cuba, Colombia and Argentina holiday destinations with VPN for travel: The VPN can’t see what you’re doing online. And a VPN with a ‘no logs policy’ doesn’t retain any information about your internet usage. They only see information about where the encrypted data came from and where it’s to be sent. Not what it is or who either parties are. If the VPN company has an independently verified ‘no logs’ policy you can be guaranteed they don’t record what they see. So they can’t give information about you to anyone. Without a VPN all your information and online activity can be accessed, harvested and aggregated into a unique profile of you. Find extra details at Digital Nomad in Argentina.

In central Argentina, a five-hour drive from Buenos Aires, Córdoba is the country’s second-largest city and is often used as a stopover on trips into the Andes. Most of the city’s finest old buildings date back to the early colonial period of the 16th century. Explore the historical center of the city around Plaza San Martin, now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Here, you’ll find the beautiful Cathedral of Córdoba, a splendid mix of Baroque and Neoclassical styles that can trace its roots back to the original Roman Catholic church built here in 1580. Highlights of the structure, much of which dates from the 18th century, include an ornate interior with exquisite 20th-century frescoes and murals painted by leading Argentinian artist Emilio Caraffa, a native of Córdoba. Note also the unique silver altar and an important collection of gold votive offerings. Below, the crypts are the final resting place of a number of important Argentinians. One of the favorite things to do in Argentina is learn to tango, and you can take classes at the Cabildo, a cultural center, and mix with locals who go there to dance.

If there’s one man who lingers large over Colombia’s recent history, it’s the billionaire drug trafficker Pablo Escobar. What few people realize is that you can actually visit the lavish estate built and owned by Escobar in Puerto Triunfo, about 110 miles east of Medellin. The sprawling complex, known as Hacienda Nápoles, fell into disrepair in the decade after Escobar’s death in 1993. But the local municipality took control of the property in the mid-2000s and turned it into-of all things-an ever-growing amusement park with an eclectic mix of themed zones, hotels, a water park, and safari-style zoo. The amusements and hotels are new, and signs of Escobar are now limited. The ruins of his former mansion were bulldozed, and one of the Cessna planes he used to smuggle drugs to the US that used to be perched atop the entry gate is gone (as is the gate). The only thing remaining is a small museum that grapples with his legacy and some of his antique car collection rusting peacefully in the sun.

A haven for birders and nature lovers, the Peninsula de Zapata is a remote, sparsely populated area of Cuba with diverse landscapes and one of the largest wetlands in the Caribbean. The Cienaga de Zapata, or the Zapata Swamp as it is affectionately known, is a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, home to approximately 150 different species of birds, including waterhens, parrots, and heron. Crocodiles are also common. One part of the peninsula is a designated nature reserve, the Gran Parque Natural de Montemar, where you can see some of these creatures in their natural habitats. At the mouth of the Bay of Pigs (Bahia de Cochinos) is Playa Giron, the famous site of the 1961 Bay of Pigs Invasion. You can explore this fascinating history at the small Museo Giron. At the top of the Bay of Pigs, Playa Larga is home to a long beach backed by lush vegetation. Avid divers can explore the underwater wildlife at numerous dive sites here along the reef. Boca de Guama is the peninsula’s tourist center, and its main attraction is the Criadero de Cocodrilos, a crocodile farm.

Picture the Amazon, and Colombia may not be the first country to come to mind – which is odd, because about a third of the nation is blanketed in its thick (and often impenetrable) jungles. The capital of the vast Amazon Basin is the small frontier town of Leticia, which sits along the banks of the mighty Amazon River, right where Colombia bumps up against Brazil and Peru. Leticia makes a great base for eco-tourism, wildlife safaris, or hikes into the Amazon to learn about the Indigenous tribes that call this area home. The only way to arrive here is by plane from Bogotá, and you can continue onward by boat either downriver to Manaus, Brazil, or upriver to Iquitos, Peru.

In Cuba I had a friend I’d studied International Affairs with at the ANU in Canberra. And Cuba was looking a lot warmer than Europe by that point. With that visa I bid Jimmy farewell during another all night drinking session and over far too many pints. And I hoped a train to Frankfurt where I thought I could get a flight to Cuba. Buying the first available ticket I hopped a plane to Havana in mid 2021. And landed straight into Cuban Hotel Quarantine. After 2 weeks of locking me in a hotel room, feeding me something vaguely resembling food, shaking me down for cash everyday and randomly appearing at odd hours to shove a stick so far up my nose it tickled my brain, the Cubans finally let me out into the big wide world of their tiny little island. See additional info on https://inlovelyblue.com/.

At the southern end of Argentina, Patagonia is famous for its spectacular landscapes: a dramatic mix of the Andes and long stretches of plains and plateaus. Most adventures here start in Ushuaia, the world’s southernmost city. Established as a penal colony in the early 20th century and now a popular jumping-off point for trips to Antarctica or around Cape Horn, this town on Beagle Channel is surrounded by a unique landscape of mountains, sea, glaciers, and woods on the edge of the Tierra del Fuego National Park, with its spectacular scenery and diverse flora and fauna. Popular places to visit include the San Juan de Salvamento Lighthouse – also known as the End of the World Lighthouse – built in 1884 on the Isla de los Estados, and the End of the World Museum. Here, you’ll find exhibits relating to the region’s natural history, aboriginal life, and early penal colonies. The Maritime Museum of Ushuaia is housed in the town’s notorious former military prison, is worth visiting for its many maritime artifacts and scale models of famous ships such as Darwin’s Beagle. Named for Darwin’s ship, the Beagle Channel cuts through the heart of the national park, and you can board a boat in Ushuaia to cruise through this historic waterway.

Cuba, the Caribbean’s largest island, drips with history, culture, and a captivating mystique. Live music wafts through the cobbled squares in Havana’s World Heritage-listed Old Town, vintage cars still cruise the streets, and the beautiful old buildings in Cuba’s colonial cities evoke the feel of a country frozen in time. Cuba also abounds in natural beauty. This vast island has more than 5,000 kilometers of coastline, much of it rimmed by dazzling beaches. Coral reefs glimmer in the turquoise waters, and Cuba’s lush countryside and sublime islands have played host to presidents; provided refuge to revolutionaries; and inspired writers from around the world, Hemingway among them.