Holidaying in Bolivia

Thurston

Thurston

Winger
Anyone on here ever been on holiday to Bolivia?

Thinking of booking and having a long stay over there, looking for recommendations of places to go and hotels etc?
 


Bolivia is great!

But a holiday might not suit all.

La Paz is an amazing city set high in the Andes, well worth a visit.

The place we stayed in had broken glass in the door, electric wires in the shower etc...different world. I loved it but many won't. Do some research first.

There is a very dangerous cycle ride to do if you fancy it too.
 
Thurston said:
Anyone on here ever been on holiday to Bolivia?

Thinking of booking and having a long stay over there, looking for recommendations of places to go and hotels etc?
Click to expand...
Spent a few weeks there, some recommendations (be wary of altitude mind)

- La Paz - cool city
- Death Road - can do this from La Paz (cycle down one of the worlds most dangerous roads - seen in top gear)
- uyuni - salt flats
- if you have time go over to Atacama desert in Chile (can do 2/3/4 day trips from Uyuni)
- Lake Tikitaka (copacabana - not the Brazil one)

If you’re going all that way though I’d recommend Peru or Chile over Bolivia
 
Done the main gringo trail places as part of a bigger trip. It wasn't my favourite country to visit but there's plenty of stuff to see. It's the poorest country in South America (or at least was, I guess Venezuela is now) and it shows. I'd agree that Peru and Chile are better.
 
Not remotely the best country to visit in S America....but some good stuff to see.
Titicaca, Uyuni and the southern desert (loved the desert there) and Sucre.

The whole country looked like a building site when I was there as taxes aren't payable until a building is finished....so they don't bother finishing them.
 
It's absolutely class. Can't recommend it enough. La Paz is very scenic, totally surrounded by the snow capped Andes. Also, best way of transport is by using cable cars. They have 5 or 7 different lines, much as we have tube lines for commuters
The lowest is at about 2,500 metres altitude, you go over people's swimming pools, the highest is going over the street markets in El Alto at over 4,000 metres where the poorer indigenous people live. Women wearing bowler hats and ponchos.
On one route, you're going down the middle of the street, at third storey level or so, and blocks of flats on either side going up seven or ten storeys. Surreal.

Did the death road on a bicycle, interesting, absolutely amazing scenery, but the great thing was that you can spend a few hours in the tropical sun after a few weeks at high altitude.
For me the highlight was the salt flats of Uyuni, but we went that way to go onward to Chile
There's one tour company that you stay in the hot springs at night at, I think about 4,500 metres in the Atacama. We timed it for a night when there was no moon and the tour guide pointed out the constellations with a laser pointer. Incredible
Other companies go to the same place during the day, but don't stay there.
Also other astounding scenery on that trip, red lakes, Andes peaks etc etc.
It's also possible to go to Amazonia in Bolivia.
One of the cheapest countries in SA and for me, the most interesting, but liked Peru as well.
There's a company called Peru Hop, that does a hop on hop off bus that will take you from Lima to La Paz.
It stops at a load of places including Paracas, Nazca, Arecena, Cuzco, Titicaca. It takes a lot of stress out of organising travel, if I was on my own, I probably wouldn't have used it, but made for hassle free travel with the wifey. When you arrive/ depart the town you are staying in, they arrange and pay for taxis to your hotel. It cost about £230 four years ago.
 
One me mates from work went to Cochabamba in Bolivia. Bit of an adventure he reckons, guns pulled out on him in a store, got robbed 2nd night, passport stolen, all his money knicked, and got kicked to fuxx. But apart from all that he literally enjoyed the place and the nice people.
 

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