Places to discover

Best places to visit in Bolivia

To travel to Bolivia is to choose a destination in which mass tourism and all-inclusive package deals have no role to play. And so much the better! Most travellers do, however, combine a trip to Bolivia with a trip to Peru and are happy enough just to visit the area around La Paz. That's such a shame! With its virgin Amazon rainforest, the huge mountains of its Altiplano, and the arid plains in its east, Bolivia has scenery and landscapes unlike anything else in the world to offer. And that's without even mentioning its indigenous culture, which is so much in evidence everywhere in the country and so highly respected. It really is delightful!

What better way is there to get the most out of a travel destination than by swapping tips and ideas about what to see and do there? Evaneos' community of seasoned travellers have provided reviews of both the essential places to see and visit in Bolivia and their favourite off-the-beaten-track and out-of-the-way places.

La Paz, Bolivia's capital, is a charming, atypical and cosmopolitan city, and well worth spending several days exploring. The 4x4 tour of the Uyuni salt flat and Sud Lipez Province is definitely something every self-respecting adventurer should have on their to-do list. On your return, make a stop at Potosí mines, which were once a source of great wealth for Latin America.

To finish off this high-altitude excursion, spend some time in the Amazon rainforest atRurrenabaque, where you'll have the opportunity to see all kinds of jungle animals, including everything from caimans and monkeys to pink river dolphins. And why not reach to this region via the famous 'Death Road', Coroico, perhaps even descending it by bicycle?

Those with enough time on their hands should definitely go to see the giant tree ferns of Amboró National Park in the east of the country, which so many tourists miss the opportunity to visit. Something tourists normally don't miss, however, is the chance to let their hair down and enjoy themselves to the sounds and rhythms of the Diablada at the Oruro Carnival, the most famous in South America after that of Rio de Janeiro, and the opportunity to tour round the Jesuit missions of Santa Cruz de la Sierra.

And when you've done all this, you will no doubt head next for Lake Titicaca and Peru, to visit an area which, with its wonderful landscapes and scenery, really is one of the essential places to see in South America.

What a programme! We'll leave you to browse the Evaneos website and find out more about all these sites for yourself. A word of warning however: they are all so wonderful that you might have difficulty deciding which to visit!

Right in the heart of the Atacama Desert, is the small town of San Pedro from where it is possible to arrange to see many tourist attractions. For great outdoors and adventure lovers !
Laguna Khota Pata is a lake located at an altitude of 14,630 ft in the Cordillera Real range.
The Alcaya archeological site is located in the south of the department of Oruro . This open-air museum houses mommies in a remarkable state of conservation.
A stone's throw from YumaniKalaki is a village located north of Lake Titicaca, not far from the city of Copacabana. It's one of the departure points for the Cordillera Real trek.
Laguna Kacha is a lake located at the heart of the Cordillera Real mountains east of La Paz.
Rio Chachakumani is a river that flows through the Chachakumani Valley in the Cordillera Real mountains, a few hours by road from La Paz.
Laguna Khotia is a high-altitude lake lying three hours from La Paz by bus.
Laguna Wichu Khota is a lake in Bolivia located at an altitude of 15,354 ft up in the mountains.
Laguna Jachcha Khasiri is a high altitude lagoon located in the heart of the Cordillera Real in the region of La Paz.
Also known as Hito Cajón, Portezuelo del Cajón is a border crossing between Bolivia and Chile.
Aldea de Tulor is an archeological site very close to San Pedro de Atacama, in Chili.
Intense climbing in a mountainous setting which is as freezing as it is sublime.
The famous Road of Jewels ("Ruta de las Joyas") crosses the southwest of Bolivia, including the gorgeous Province of Sud Lipez.
The R. P. Gustavo Le Paige Archaeological Museum is dedicated to Atacama's indigenous people. It is the museum with the greatest number of ancient relics in the whole of Chili.
Sat at 3,600 metres above sea level, La Paz is the highest capital city in the world! Yes, Sucre has been upstaged, but it's still the constitutional capital of Bolivia!
100km from Sucre, Amboró National Park boasts 400,000 hectares of rainforest. It's an opportunity to explore a hostile jungle and to discover the astonishing diversity of plants and animals.
An hour by road from the Bolivian capital, Chacaltaya is a mountain in the Cordillera Real range, situated in the department of La Paz.
At the heart of the Cordillera Real, Condoriri National Park is home to around 20 summits, some of which are over 5,000m high.
In the Cordillera Real, the Huayna Potosi is one of the most accessible 6000-metre peaks in the world.
El Choro is a pre-Columbian trail which connects the Cordillera Real to the tropical rainforest of the Yungas.