There are some great values to be had. Plus, no jet lag.

Don’t let the Euro-Dollar exchange rate convince you to stay home. Look southward to Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and Brazil. Argentina is one of the few countries in the world where the US dollar is still strong; in the other three, prices aren’t as high as they are in Europe, so a buck goes farther.

Six Things to Know to Get the Best Fares

1. Published 50-day advance fares are all over the map.

SkyTeam: The best fare I found for a non-stop is Atlanta-Santiago at only $2,670 round-trip on Delta. From other major US cities, Delta has fares to Santiago in the mid-$2,000s, and to Argentina and Brazil in the low- to mid-$3,000s. Continental is playing the Competitor’s Hub Game—with Delta, offering fares to many South American destinations for $2,300 from Atlanta. Forget about Continental on other routes: after surveying hundreds of markets, we found most everything else is $6,000+.

Oneworld: American offers the lowest fare to South America I found, at $2,053 Atlanta-Santiago—for most other routings, $6,000+.

Star Alliance: US Airways doesn’t fly to South America, so the only option is United, which has good fares to São Paulo only: $2,122 from Dallas, $3,000+ from many other US cities.

2. Two-for-ones are hit and miss.

American Express’ International Airline Program membership (available to Platinum and Centurion card holders) can net you free companion tickets with Continental to Brazil from its hubs (Cleveland, Houston, and Newark), and with LAN Airlines to Argentina and Chile.

3. It’s a great time to use miles to upgrade on American and United.

By now you know how bad Delta’s mileage-upgrade program is. American’s isn’t as bad because the $600 surcharge may net you the schedule you want, and is available with low, discount fares. Many of United’s applicable, upgradeable fares are good, too.

4. It’s an even better time to use miles for First Class.

If you’re not enslaved to an airline’s elite status program and have a flush mileage account, you can afford to forego earning miles on this trip, choosing instead to go for the brass ring: First Class (on a three-class cabin). Only American and United offer these seats to South America.

5. Remember Cathay Pacific’s program

I always keep about 60,000 miles in this account, just for times like this when I want to splurge on a loophole. In this case you can upgrade American’s lowest discounted Business Class fare using Cathay miles (saving thousands)–while American doesn’t allow AAdvantage members to do this.

6. South American routes don’t offer the the most comfortable seats.

And that’s because there are fewer carriers flying to South America than to Europe and Asia. American’s 767s and Continental’s 777s lead the pack together with LAN. Fly with Delta only for the price, as its Business Class seat is just 18.5 inches wide and only reclines 160 degrees.