Tourism in Bolivia - travel tips

CITIES

• La Paz - Capital (seat of government);
• Sucre - (legal capital and seat of judiciary)
• Santa Cruz - the second-largest, and most affluent, city.
• Cochabamba - the country's third-largest city, with a pleasant climate and the best food.
• Potosí - once one of the wealthiest cities in the world due to its silver mines.
• Oruro - famous for its carnival
• Tupiza - is a small town in Bolivia close to the border with Argentina.

OTHER DESTINATIONS

• Samaipata - ancient ruins 2 hours east of Santa Cruz
• Riberalta - an interesting town with a serious frontier-like feeling, set in the northern Bolivian jungle.
• Tiwanaku - ancient ruins, a UNESCO world heritage site
• Uyuni - starting point for trips to the spectacular Salar de Uyuni (the largest slat flats in the world) and the Laguna Colorado and Laguna Verde
• Copacabana - a small resort town on Lake Titicaca
• Coroico - set in a jungle valley, and accessible via the World's Most Dangerous Road
• Rurrenabaque - a popular base for jungle and pampa trips.
• Madidi National Park - located a few miles North of Apolo, is one of the world’s most extensive biodiversity reserves. Its humid tropical climate has spawned one of Bolivia’s richest woodlands.
• Chacaltaya - The world's highest ski resort 25 km from La Paz.
• Huayna Potosi - A very popular mountain about 30 km from La Paz.
• Sorata
• Villa Tunari a town between Santa Cruz and Cochabamba known for the volunteer organisations inti wara yassi and angels of hope

Popular Bolivia destinations

LA PAZ

La Paz

Nuestra Señora de La Paz or Chuquiyapu ("chuqui", 'gold', "yapu", 'farm') is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of La Paz Department. As of the 2001 census, the city of La Paz had a population of around one million.

La Paz is situated in the valley of the Choqueyapu River below a plateau with an altitude of 3,600 meters (11,811 feet). At this elevation it is the highest administrative capital in the world. Atop the plateau is the city of El Alto, where the El Alto International Airport is located (elev. 13,313 ft.). Transportation links between the two cities have improved in recent years. The city is located at 16°30' South, 68°8' West (-16.5, -68.1333). Its name is translated into English as "Our Lady of Peace"

COCHABAMBA - CBBA

A view of Cochabamba down Ayacucho Avenue

Cochabamba is a city in central Bolivia, located in a valley bearing the same name in the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cochabamba Department and is the third largest city in Bolivia with a metropolitan population of more than 800,000 people. The name derives from a compound of the Quechua words qhocha, or lake, and pampa, or open plain. Residents of the city and surrounding areas are commonly referred to as Cochabambinos. Cochabamba is known as the "City of Eternal Spring" and "The Garden City" due to its spring-like temperatures year round.

SANTA CRUZ DE LA SIERRA

Aerial view of Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz de La Sierra, commonly known as Santa Cruz, is the capital city of the Santa Cruz department in eastern Bolivia. With a population of 1,528,683 inhabitants (2006 official estimate), Santa Cruz is the largest city in Bolivia.

The city of Santa Cruz de la Sierra is located in the eastern part of the country (17°45', South, 63°14', West) at 416 m above sea level. This city is part of the province of Andres Ibañez and it's the capital of the department (state) of Santa Cruz Bolivia.

COPACABANA

Cathedral of Copacabana

Copacabana is the main Bolivian town on Lake Titicaca, from where boats leave for Isla del Sol, the sacred Inca island. The town has a large 16th-century shrine, the Basilica of Our Lady of Copacabana. Our Lady of Copacabana is the patron saint of Bolivia.

The town is a destination for tourism in Bolivia. The town is also known by its famous Basilica, home of the Virgin of Copacabana, its trout, and its quaint atmosphere. The town is built in between Mount Calvario and Mount Niño Calvario. The town has approximately 6,000 inhabitants. Copacabana's religious celebrations, cultural patrimony, and traditional festivals are well known throughout Bolivia.

The name is derived from the Aymara kota kahuana, meaning "view of the lake".

POTOSÍ

Potosí

Potosí is a city, the capital of the department of Potosí in Bolivia. It is at an altitude of 3,967 meters (13,015 feet) and has about 115,000 inhabitants. It is claimed to be the highest city in the world. It lies beneath the Cerro de Potosí — sometimes referred to as the Cerro Rico ("rich mountain") — a mountain of silver ore, which has always dominated the city. Cerro de Potosí's peak is 4,824 meters (15,827 feet) above sea level.

It is currently believed that the etymology of Potosí is Quechua. But in Quechua the phoneme p'otoj does not refer to a thunderous noise, whereas it does in Aymara. Thus, if Potosí encompasses the idea of a thunderous noise, the locution would have an Aymaran root rather than a Quechuan. The actual sharp structure of the term is contrary to the nature of both Aymara and Quechua.

SUCRE

Sucre

Sucre (population 247,300 in 2006) is the constitutional capital of Bolivia, seat of the Supreme Court (Corte Suprema de Justicia), and capital of the Chuquisaca department. Located in the south-central part of the country, Sucre lies at an altitude of 2,800m (9,200ft). Historically the city has also been known as Charcas, La Plata and Chuquisaca, resulting in the nickname of "the City of Four Names" or "la Ciudad de Cuatro Nombres." As most of the colonial buildings in the city centre are whitewashed, the city also enjoys the nickname of "the white city" or "la ciudad blanca."

The city attracts thousands of tourists every year thanks to its well-conserved downtown with buildings from the 18th and 19th century. Nestled at the foot of the twin hills of Churuquella and Sika Sika, Sucre is the gateway to numerous small villages that date from the colonial era, the most well-known of which is Tarabuco, home of the colourful "Pujllay" festival held each March. In these outlying villages, one is as likely to find a descendant of the Spanish conquest as members of an indigenous group that still dress in their unique native clothing they use not only to preserve their cultural identity but also to let others instantly know what town or region they are from.

COROICO

Vista panoramica

Coroico is a town in Nor Yungas, Bolivia.

Coroico viejo (Old Coroico) was founded at the springs of the Coriguayco River (which means "golden corner" in Aymara). The town lived from mining gold, but the massive attacks by Indians left the first settlers in search of protection.

Coroico emerald (esmeralda) green surroundings have become a welcoming sight for travelers tired of the harshness of the altiplano. The views of the surrounding hills are lovely, the nearby hiking trails are picturesque, the bars and restaurants in town are pleasant, and there are some worthwhile excursions. Here in this tropical town, you'll find fruit orchards, twittering birds, coca fields, endless greenery, oxygen-rich air, warm weather, and friendly locals.

New highway: On a part of the road from La Paz to Coroico a new highway has been opened at the end of 2006, and the old death road is now only for bikers. This 'death road' is also called the Yungas Road.

ORURO

Oruro is a city in Bolivia with a population of about 248 000 (2000), located about equidistant between La Paz and Sucre at approx. 3710 meters above sea level. It is the capital of the department of Oruro.

The city was first founded in 1606 as a silver-mining-center in the Urus region. At the time, it was named Real Villa de Don Felipe de Austria after the Spanish monarch Philip III. It was eventually abandoned as the mines became exhausted, but was reestablished in the late nineteenth century, this time as a tin-mining-center. For a time, the La Salvadora tin-mine was the most important source of tin in the world. Gradually, this resource was also exhausted, and Oruro again went into a decline. The city does manage, however, to attract tourists to its carnival, the Carnaval de Oruro, considered one of the great folkloric events in South America for its masked "devil-dances".

Oruro was named after the native tribe "Uru-Uru".

RURRENABAQUE

Rurrenabaque is a smaller town in the north of Bolivia, on the Beni River. It has in recent years become popular with international tourism as it is an easy gateway for visits to Madidi National Park (within the Bolivian rainforest), as well as the surrounding pampas. Locals commonly refer to the town by its shortened nickname, "Rurre".

Rurrenabaque is reached by bus, 410 km from La Paz (18 hours), or by airplane (1 hour). The bus from La Paz pass through Coroico, 70 km from La Paz. On a part of the road from La Paz to Coroico a new highway has been opened at the end of 2006, and the old 'death road' is now only for bikers. This 'death road' is also called the Yungas Road.

Rurrenabaque is on the east bank of the Beni River. It is expected that a bridge will be built over the river to connect with the town San Buenaventura on the west bank. The project has begun in 2006. It will considerably broaden the economic relationship between the two towns, which has been traditionally stunted by limited and expensive transport by boat. Since the river simultaneously widens and shallows at the San Buenaventura section, the top current becomes much stronger than on many sections of the river. Most boats and motors capable of crossing the stretch of river represent an investment beyond the means of most individual Bolivian families, but a bridge will allow San Buenaventura to enjoy the same accessability as that enjoyed between Rurrenabaque and the neighboring town of Reyes.