Bolivia: La Paz, Uyuni & Colchani

Arrive at La Paz International Airport, where your trip begins with a scheduled pickup. After landing, you will be met by a representative who will assist you on arrival, helping coordinate the next step of your journey and making sure your airport transfer is handled smoothly from the start.

This first day centers on arrival arrangements in La Paz. With assistance provided at the airport and transport already organized, you can move directly on from the terminal without needing to arrange your own local transfer, making the transition from arrival to the beginning of the trip straightforward and well supported.

La Paz is widely recognized as one of the highest administrative capitals in the world.

At 8:00 am, you are picked up to begin the 6-hour Tiwanaku excursion, 72 km from La Paz. This antique pre-Inca archaeological city was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000. You visit the Ceramic Museum, Akapana Pyramid, Semi-subterranean Temple, Kalasasaya Temple beside the Gate of the Sun, the Ponce Monolith, and Puma Punku, where volcanic stone blocks reach 7 meters and weigh more than 100 tons. On the return to La Paz, there is a small stop to see crops of potatoes and quinoa. Transportation, an English or Spanish-speaking guide, entrance fee, 1 bottle of water, and coca candies are included.

At 3:00 pm, your 3.5-hour city tour begins with pickup for the traditional markets of La Paz and sightseeing of San Pedro Jail. You then ride the cableway for panoramic views before continuing to Moon Valley, 10 km from downtown. Neil Armstrong gave it this name after the 1969 moon landing, and its clay formations were shaped by wind and rain erosion. The route then continues through the Historic Center with visits to the Witches' Market, San Francisco Church, Murrillo Square, Executive Palace, Legislative Palace, Metropolitan Cathedral, and Killi Killi Viewpoint, before returning. Transportation, an English-speaking guide, and entrance fee are included.

Tiwanaku is one of the most important pre-Columbian archaeological sites in Bolivia and is closely tied to the cultural history of the Andean region.

After breakfast, you transfer to the airport in La Paz to board the flight to Uyuni, with transfer out in La Paz by driver only. On arrival, you transfer to Uyuni city. At 9:30 am, the full-day tour starts in a 4x4 truck. You visit the train cemetery, with old steam locomotives once used to transport minerals, then continue to Colchani to observe salt processing through drying, grinding, and packaging, with time to purchase handicrafts made of salt. The route also includes the salt mounds, the Eyes of water where groundwater flows to the surface, the Salt Museum built from salt, and Incahuasi Island, a rocky island in the middle of the salt flat with giant cactuses, some more than 100 years old, and broad views from the top.

Lunch is served in the center of the salt flats in the dry season only. You then continue to Coquesa to visit the famous mummies, dated from 700 b.c., which preserve part of the skin, hair, and fingernails almost intact, followed by a small walk around the viewpoint of the Tunupa volcano to observe flamingos in the wetlands. 

Transport by 4x4 truck, an English-speaking driver-guide, 1 bottle of water, entrance fee, lunch, and a first aid kit are included. The dry season runs from April to November and the rainy season from December to March. In the rainy season, it is not possible to visit Incahuasi Island or the town of Coquesa, including the mummies and Tunupa volcano. For comfort, the recommended maximum is 4 people per truck.

The Salar de Uyuni is the world’s largest salt flat, and Colchani is one of the main communities linked to local salt processing.

After breakfast, you are picked up and transferred to the airport to board the flight to La Paz city. This final travel day is focused on your return from the Uyuni and Colchani area, with the transfer and flight arranged as part of the itinerary so the morning sequence stays clear and direct.

On arrival in La Paz, you will be assisted by our representative to board your international flight. This assistance marks the final step of the trip, connecting your domestic arrival with your onward departure and bringing the services for this 4-day Bolivia journey to an end.

Uyuni serves as the main aviation gateway for access to the Salar de Uyuni region, while La Paz is the country’s main international air hub.