What South American country is cheapest to fly into from the US (Wisconsin)?

Question

My sister and I are planning to backpack around Some South American countries, so I was wondering which country is usually the cheapest to fly to. We would rather not fly to Columbia, but other than that we're open to any place on the main continent.

Answer 1

The cheapest airport in Wisconsin to fly from is of course Milwaukee (MKE). I tried to check fares for some dates in the summer to find the cheapest major destinations in South America. The result is this:

1. Bogota, Colombia

2. Cali, Colombia

3. Quito, Ecuador

4. Guayaquil, Ecuador

5. Georgetown, Guyana

6. Barranquilla, Colombia

7. Caracas, Venezuela

8. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

9. Bucaramanga, Colombia

10. Lima, Peru

Answer 2

Since you're open to any place in S.A. (minus MAYBE Columbia) and out of the other million questions you could have asked, you only request the cheapest flight, it sounds like even your scheduling is pretty much open.  In that case think of the possibility of flying "stand-by."  Last minute hop-on flights are definitely the cheapest, especially since you're not tied down to a time-table or even a country!