Highlights
- Marvel at the mesmerizing white expanse of the Salt flats of Uyuni, a photographer's paradise
- Cruise to the Sun Island on Lake Titicaca, the birthplace of the Incas
- Ride La Paz's cable car network for a unique perspective on the burgeoning capital
The landscapes and vistas in Bolivia are truly matchless. This landlocked Andean nation boasts some of the most extreme, diverse topographies on the planet. At a dizzying 3,650 meters (11,975 feet) above sea level, snow-capped mountains frame La Paz. Pristine Lake Titicaca, the highest navigable lake in the world, is so grand it almost looks like an ocean from its shores. The Salar de Uyuni is iconic in its otherworldly splendor. Bolivia’s rusticity makes it a destination best suited to seasoned travelers, but the rewards are plentiful for those with a sense of adventure. This itinerary, Highlights of Bolivia, takes you through Bolivia’s most incredible sights and is designed to take your breath away.
Daily Summary 7 Days / 6 Nights
Discover more
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A great time to visit La Paz -
The View from Above: Riding the Cable Cars in La Paz, Bolivia -
Trip Report: La Paz and Surroundings -
Gustu Restaurant La Paz -
Explora Travesía Uyuni - The Salar de Uyuni: a blank canvas for the creative traveller
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Trip Report: Desert, Lagoons and the Salar de Uyuni - Highlights of my Peru Bolivia Chile tour
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Aymara New Year: Watching the Sun Rise Over Tiwanaku, Bolivia -
La Diablada: Colorful Dance of La Candelaria Festival in Puno
- Day 1
La PazView on map
Arrival to Bolivia
An English-speaking Aracari representative will greet you at your international arrival with a customized welcome pack, complete with a booklet of your trip itinerary. You will then be accompanied to your hotel in La Paz and assisted with all check-in procedures.
Accommodation options
- Day 2
La PazView on map
City Highlights of La Paz
La Paz is a city where indigenous, colonial, and modern customs all meet all under the watch of the majestic Illimani mountain. Explore the downtown colonial city center in the morning where you can peruse the Witch's Market, visit the impressive Museum of Ethnography and Folklore and ride the cable-car public transport system for panoramic views of the city. You'll get a chance to stop and sample salteñas, a Bolivian specialty snack.
Enjoy lunch at Ali Pacha, serving up a gourmet plant-based menu that champions micro-producers from around Bolivia. In the afternoon, choose from more of the city's highlights depending on your interests. The most popular option is to drive to the surreal Moon Valley on the city's outskirts. A series of polychromatic clay formations, this natural maze of canyons and spires in hues of beige, red and purple is a unique sight.
Alternatively, in the city center, you can visit Salar Galería featuring work by Gastón Ugalde, Bolivia’s most celebrated living artist. Ugalde is referred to by critics as the ‘Andean Warhol’. Or ride the cable car to El Alto district to tour the colorful and flamboyant Cholets buildings in this neighborhood built by famed artchitect Freddy Mamani. Beer-lovers will enjoy the option to visit a craft brewery which produces beers using Bolivian ingredients. A tour of the production facilities is rounded off with sampling the craft beer. Visiting La Paz with an expert guide, your visits will be tailored to your interests.
Accommodation options- Day 3
La Paz – Lake TiticacaView on map
Visit Lake Titicaca and optionally Tiwanaku Ruins
Leave La Paz for the tranquility of Lake Titicaca by road. En route, visit a traditional totora reed boat workshop. These boats are made by the younger generation of the Limachi family, who built the original reed boat used by Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdhal for his Kon-Tiki raft expedition across the Pacific Ocean. Alternatively, drive to Lake Titicaca via Tiwanaku archaelogical ruins, a UNESCO World Heritage site belonging to one of the most important pre-Inca civilizations.
Arrive in Copacabana on the shores of Lake Titicaca. Copacabana is a popular religious pilgrimage site and home to a 16th-century Cathedral. Here you will embark on your speedboat ride across tohe deep blue waters of the lake to the Sun Island. Enjoy a local lunch featuring Apthapi, a traditional Bolivian meal for travelers. Enjoy the scenery from the Sun Island, optionally hiking to Pilkocaina temple of the southern tip, for reaching your accommodation for the night.
Accommodation options
- Day 4
Lake Titicaca - La PazView on map
Visit the Sun and Moon Islands
Waking up on Lake Titicaca, hike to the village of Yumani after breakfast, passing typical agricultural terraces along the way. Descend the “Grand Stairs” - over 200 steps built by the Incas - and taste the water of the Sacred Fountain, believed to provide eternal youth and happiness. After lunch on Sun Island, cruise by private boat to nearby Moon Island. Like on the Sun Island, pre-Incan civilizations constructed sites here that the Incas later added to. Visit the notable Sacred Temple of the Virgins of the Sun, Iñak Uyu; young women were housed on this island to keep an eternal sacred fire lit.
Afterwards, take a boat ride back to Copacabana and return to La Paz by road. In the evening dine at Bolivia's best restaurant, Gustu. Its founder, Claus Meyer, is the Danish chef behind Denmark's acclaimed two-Michelin star restaurant, Noma.
Accommodation options- Day 5
La Paz - UyuniView on map
Fly La Paz - Uyuni Salt Flats
Today you will visit the largest salt flat on the earth, Uyuni. A private transfer will take you to the airport in the morning for your short domestic flight. Your guide will be ready to welcome you to Uyuni to explore the salt flats by 4x4.
The largest salt flat on Earth, Salar de Uyuni affords visitors stunning scenery unmatched anywhere else in the world. Covering 12,000 square kilometers (4,633 square miles) of the Bolivian Altiplano, the vast salt flats are an awe-inspiring natural phenomenon and highly photogenic at any time of year. In the dry season, surreal pentagons of bright white crystalline salt form, while in rainy season the salt flats see a layer of water develop which acts as a natural mirror, reflecting the sky for a fantastic, other-worldly visual display. Enjoy a pop-up picnic lunch on the salt flats during your day's excursion. During your trip to Uyuni you will also have a chance to visit the so-called 'cemetery of trains', which is both eerie and highly photogenic, and Colchani village to see the salt processing production carried out here. In the dry season, you can cross the Salar to a cacti-studded island for panoramic views of the salt flats.
In Uyuni, you can either stay in a memorable hotel made entirely from bricks of salt, or upgrade to a deluxe airstream camper located on the Salar's northern shores. There are a total of three campers on the Salar, each kitted out with a private bathroom with hot shower, heating and mini-bar. A dedicated chef rustles up gourmet food and cocktails.
Accommodation options
- Day 6
UyuniView on map
Full day exploring Uyuni Salt Flats
Continue your exploration of the beautiful salt flats today. In the dry season you’ll traverse more of the Salar, heading north to the village of Coquesa where you can see the massive Thunupa Volcano rising up in front of you at an elevation of 5,321 m (17,457 ft). Enjoy a picnic lunch in the middle of the Salt Flats with more opportunities to take photos that play with perspective on the seemingly never-ending blanket of white. In the rainy season, you’ll instead head south to visit the small lagoons of this area, including Laguna Hedionda and Laguna Negra, home to pink flamingos. A box lunch is included for this route.
In the evening optionally star-gaze with an astronomist guide. Thanks to the remote location, unobstructed expanse and lack of light pollution, Uyuni is one of the most spectacular places to gaze at the night sky.
Accommodation options- Day 7
Uyuni - La PazView on map
Visit Uyuni and depart from La Paz
Today your guide will accompany you to the airport. An Aracari representative will meet you in La Paz to assist you with all check-in procedures and escort you to the departure area for your international flight departure.
Aracari specializes in tailormade travel. Here are just some of our further trip suggestions. Contact us for more bespoke ideas to inspire your travels.
Some optional activities
- Add on a visit to historic Sucre, Bolivia's most beautiful city and one of finest in South America
- Adventurous travelers will love exploring the other-worldly landscapes of Eduardo Avaroa Reserve by 4x4
- Visit the lush Yungas, descending from snow-capped mountains to tropical climes in a day trip from La Paz
Featured Destinations
Journey pricing as of 2024
Basic Pricing - US$6,240 per person
This is a sample journey and can be tailored to your interests and travel style.
- Based on two people travelling together in double or twin occupancy
- Price is per person for this 7-day itinerary
What's Included?
This journey is based on two people travelling together in double or twin occupancy, excluding flights (international and domestic).
- Includes all specified services in the journey description
- All transfers and entrance fees
- A welcome pack on arrival including: a pre-loaded cell phone to contact your travel consultant at any time, a printed booklet packed with insider tips alongside your detailed journey and up-to-date recommendations on dining and shopping
- Hand-selected English-speaking guides
- Specialist guides (where noted)
- 24-hour support from our locally based team
- 6 nights in a hand-picked and personally tested selection of Bolivia’s finest hotels
What's not Included?
- Domestic flights (quoted separately).
- Alcoholic beverages.
- Tips.
- Travel Insurance.
- International Flights and airport taxes.
- Neither personal expenses nor any other service not specified in the itinerary.
Highlights of BoliviaBolivia's most incredible sights - Day 2