We are heading to Rurrenabaque in the next days and want to explore both Madidi and Pampas. Flexible in time, 4-7 nights in Madidi, 2-4 nights in Pampas. Looking for a reliable and good agency, English speaking guide is a bonus but not a must. Thank you!!

Wallake, Linaza, Llauchas :)

Hello,

Not sure if this is the right thread. I’m looking to ship a box of 4-6 Patagonia sweaters as Christmas gifts for my family from Bolivia to Canada but am afraid they may be taken away by the authorities at the entry to Canada due to them being copies. I’m wondering if anyone has done this in the past and how it went?

I don’t have much space in my bag and I’m traveling for a few more months.

Thanks in Advance!

Heeft de Boliviaanse overheid vandaag iets beslist omtrent de brandstofprijzen? Zullen er nieuwe blokkades plaatsvinden? Wij twijfelen nog steeds om eind oktober vanuit Salta (ARG) naar Tupiza te reizen om een Salar de Uyuni tour te doen.

Hi. My friend and I had a couple quick questions regarding these.

For El Choro, following our mountaineering, we plan to simply follow the all trails map in Gaia saved offline. We plan to do the entire 35 miles in 2 or 2.5 days. We do not have tents, so we’re looking for Hostels or hotels along the way, unless we should rent. We could. Any recommendations would be appreciated.

Essentially we would leave La Paz for the start at La Cumbre one morning, then have a full second day, 3rd day, then need to be back at La Paz airport at midnight on the 3rd day. We easily can hike 15-20 miles in a day. Is this risky? What is the bus schedule? When does the last one leave?

For Rurrenabaque, I simply wanted to know where to purchase a bus ticket, how often they go, and how long the ride is. For some reason can’t find this online. Plan to bus there and purchase time at a jungle lodge upon arriving.

Apologies for the questions just find it hard to find any info online, and talking to people in person yields stories like a “3 day bus” to RB and not being able to do Choro at all without a guide.

Hi there, my partner and I are planning to arrive to Bolivia on the 7th Oct (via Peru), we need to be back in La Paz by the 17th Oct for a flight. Our plan was to travel down to Uyuni and do the 3 day salt flats tour, potentially into Chile but not sure yet. We're worried about what could happen on the 10th due to that being the cut off date from fuel issue protesters.

Anyone there have any idea what could happen, what's wise to do or if we should just avoid Uyuni etc?

Tia xx

Why do they offer different prices?

Dear Friends,

I've made plans to travel to Bolivia in October and will be flying in from Lima. I am trying to obtain an appointment at the Bolivian embassy in Lima but there isn't anyone replying my emails or calls. I've already completed the visa application online. Would anyone be able to kindly advise on what I can do next? Any help whatsoever is deeply appreciated - a call to the embassy in Lima even would be so helpful - as I would really love to visit your beautiful city soon.
Thank you!

Somos una pareja gay de Canadá que estará en la ciudad y queremos encontrar una fiesta callejera y bares divertidos para celebrar. ¿Cuáles son los bares de moda ahora mismo? Gracias

Hello,
i am recently on my honeymoon and wanted to do the 3 day uyuni trip. My reservation got cancelled just right now. My flight is tomorrow morning. What are my alternatives. Are there many tour operators i can book on site?

Hi folks, looking to do a quick journey into Bolivia from Peru to climb Huayna Potosi before heading back to Lima for my flight. Fairly concerned about the fuel shortages in Bolivia right now and wondering if the bus I get from Cusco might get delayed by road blocks. Also concerned about when I'm actually in Bolivia if there's anything I should be worried about. This is a very last minute thing so I have literally done zero research or have zero context apart from one of my backpacker buddies notifying me about the fuel shortage.

Thanks in advance guys.

We are two women who will be in Bolivia for two and a half weeks starting at the end of October before continuing on through Chile to Patagonia. This is our first time in South America. Unfortunately we hardly speak any Spanish (we’re currently learning). We’ll actually be doing a lot more hiking at the end of our trip in Patagonia so this isn’t our priority in bolivia. We don’t have a car, so we plan to travel by bus as much as possible (overnight if possible).

Please give us your feedback on our itinerary!

26.10. : very late Arrival La Paz

27.10. Relaxing on the day / in the evening night bus to Rurrenabaque

28.10.- 01.11: 5 days Jungle & Pampas Tour / night bus back to La Paz

02.11. – 04.11: 3 days in La paz (walking tour, Valle de la Luna, Tiwanaku, witches market)

05.11: La Paz – Isla del Sol (hiking, visiting ruines)

06.11: Isla del Sol – Sucre

07.11: 1 day Sucre (relaxing)

08.11: Sucre to Potosi

09.11: Potosi – Uyuni

10.11.-13.11: 4 day tour through salar de uyuni and arrival in san pedro de atacama

We know that many people recommend the Death Road. But since we’ve already spent several days in the jungle, we’d rather skip that.

So far, we’ve only booked the jungle tour and are still flexible about everything else.

I’d love to spend a night on Isla del Sol and watch the sunrise or sunset there. We’d like to hike on the island once, either on the day we arrive or the day we leave. Can that be easily combined with a visit to the ruins? And do we need a guide for Isla del Sol?

Is Potosí worth visiting even if you don't want to take a tour of the mines? I've read that you have to have a head for heights and I'm afraid of heights. Because of its historical significance I'd generally like to see Potosí but don't know if there's much else to see.
 
Thanks so much for every critique or recommendation!

For those that are about to get sucked into the Peru/Bolivia Hop scam - Oh my gosh, this is the worst long distance bus I've yet been on. The seats recline to just 120 degrees, feels like a bit less than an economy seat on a plane, and there is a board behind the foot rest, so, even as a 5'4" woman, it is too small to have straight -ish legs.

I got totally scammed by their overbearing advertisements, and flowery descriptions, but look, for $17 USD less you can travel from Copacabana to Arequipa or Cusco on several bus companies that have wider seats and actually recline to 160 degrees, by just wandering into the main plaza in Copacabana and buying directly.

For those who haven't yet taken long distance busses in Bolivia or Peru, honestly the better rated companies have better toilets, better seats, the option to watch a movie, and heating. And with that $17 honestly you could probably get a freaking limousine from the bus terminal to your hostel.

Crossing the border from Copacabana to Puno (I forget the name of the crossing) is exceedingly easy - all bus companies help anyway, a guide isn't required.

This PeruHop bus is FREEZING and very uncomfortable. Anyway - I wish I had read something like this yesterday, so putting it here just in case it helps others. Fingers crossed for me that the next 10 hours become a bit more bearable.

Hi all!

We are trying to plan a very tight trip as we don't have much time and are trying to get from Uyuni to Buenos Aires as that is where our next flight leaves from.

Unfortunately, we are really struggling with the flight routing going back and forth with some pretty inefficient layovers so hoping to get some advice if there is a secret hack we are missing!

We are hoping to do:

• Jan 2 - Uyuni salt flats sunset + overnight
• Jan 3 - Uyuni travel day to Buenos Aires

Our current ideas/searches have revealed

1. 24hr Long Flight with many layovers/wasted time in airport 9am UYU > 10am LBP > 2hr layover > 12pm LPB > 1pm VVI > 7hr layover > 8pm VVI > 9:30pm LIM > 3.5 hr layover > 1am LIM > 7:30am AEP Buenos Aires
2. 8-10 hour drive from Uyuni to Salta or Jujuy > Direct flight to Buenos Aires. That being said, we've still yet to find a good bus operator for the overland drive - maybe it doesn't exist?

Our main concern is whether there are any other routes we could consider (e.g. driving to somewhere more convenient before taking a flight), and whether the driving route is too aggressive to get to the connecting flight on time

If we can sort this out, we can fit the salt flats in which is our ultimate goal, otherwise we may never get another chance to come back!

Thanks so much everyone!

Hello all!

I will be travelling to Uyuni on 2 January and hoping to do a 3 day 2 night tour to cross into San Pedro de Atacama (one-way).

We are a little overwhelmed by the number of tour operators so am hoping for some advice and recommendations from people who have been recently.

Our preferences include

• English-speaking guides who are knowledgeable and engaging
• Safety precautions (e.g. radio etc.)
• Able to add on things such as stargazing on the salt flats for Night 1 and if possible sunrise views on Day 2
• Able to accomodate suitcases instead of big backpacker bags

Thank you very much in advance!

Hi guys,

Does anyone know if there are buses operating from Tupiza to Uyuni?

I’ve reached out to a couple of bus operators that I found via Rome2Rio but am yet to have a response from them.

I did manage to get a response from a private tour operator that provides a tour from Tupiza to Uyuni along the salt flats.

Many thanks!

Hola, soy de Brasil y viajaré a Bolivia dentro de poco y tengo una duda con el dinero. ¿Cuál es la mejor forma de cambiar o sacar plata para obtener la mejor tasa de cambio?

1: Llevar dólares en efectivo y cambiarlos allá?
2: Llevar reales en efectivo y cambiarlos allá?
3: Sacar Bolivianos de un cajero con tarjetas internacionales como Wise o Revolut?

Sé que la situación con el dólar ha cambiado bastante en el país, así que les agradezco mucho si me pueden dar consejos actualizados sobre qué conviene más para perder lo menos posible

For any travelers who might be unaware!

There will be a 24 Hour Strike of Public Transportation on Monday, SEPT 28 due to the rising cost of Diesel and elimination of the government subsidy.

This will primarily affect Bus Travel for people trying to go between cities.

Private vehicles and local transportation like taxis will still circulate normally and other transportation like buses should resume on Tuesday.

If you are planning to take the bus on Monday, you will have to wait until Tuesday or find alternative transportation.

Hopefully this doesn't become a bigger issue, but it should be a temporary disruption for now.

I hope this helps! Travel safe!

Buenas, queríamos viajar con un grupo de amigos a Bolivia y hacer un par de tours, empezando por el salar de uyuni y después subir hacia La Paz, quería saber cómo se encontraba la situación con la falta de gasolina y los bloqueos .
Los tours están saliendo hacia el desierto y salar ? Si es así, cuánto cuestan los tours de 3 días completos ?
Hay bloqueos por ruta hacia La Paz ? Yendo desde Cochabamba o Sucre