| Day
1. Arrival in La Paz. Transfer to Hotel. |
Elevations
El Alto: 4,100m (13,450f)
La Paz: 3,650m (11,972ft)
Timing
Driving: 30 min
Meals
None |
Arriving in La Paz, what
impresses the most is the crisp clear sky of the highlands. In a normal
winter day it is possible to see over a distance of 200Km (120mi). The cold
and dry air feels good after so many hours of treated pressurized cabin
air.
The airport is located
in the city of “El Alto” the highest international airport
in the world from here you will be transferred to your hotel descending
approximately 30 Min. into La Paz city canyon. Do not stress much about
the altitude, our program has been designed to get you gradually acclimatized.
At the beginning we strongly sug
gest you to take it very easy, drink plenty of water and eat lightly (get
into out Acclimatization page for more information).
You will have the
rest of the day free. At early evening we will have a briefing meeting
and a welcome dinner.
|
| Day
2. Visit of Tiwanaco. Transport to Puerto Perez. Hotel. |
Elevations
El Alto: 4,100m (13,450f)
Pto.Perez 3,820m (12,529f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
Traveling through this
land you will understand how important the shores of Lake Titicaca have
been in the origin of the Andean cultures. Surrounded by desert like hills
and snow caped mountains, lake Titicaca offered, and still offers, rich
lands and a mild climate. Tiwanaco used to be a port, an important ceremonial
center and a huge urban establishment. After an illustrative tour through
the ruins and museums, we will drive back to La Paz (El Alto) and from there
to the southern shores of the lake. On the way to our campsite, we will
be culturally transferred to the past as we go by Aymara villages where
Indians have been keeping their lifestyle for centuries. Our hotel will
be located on a beautiful spot with great views of the Lake Titicaca and
the peaks of “Cordillera Real”. |
| Day
3. Transport to Oruro city. Hotel. |
Elevations
Oruro 3,702m (12,142f)
Timing
Driving: 5-6 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
In the morning, our
car will take to us to Patapatani peninsula. There, reeds form a labyrinth
where many Andean bird species can be spotted on sight. At Qwaya village,
we will visit their tiny museum and the Khala Uta ruins. After completing
the circuit around the peninsula, we will return to the main road and head
fist east to La Paz city, and then south towards Oruro city. |
| Day
4. Transport to Uyuni Salt Flats. Basic hostel. |
Elevations
Jirira 3,675m (12,054f)
Timing
Driving: 7-8 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
Today we go into the
volcanic zone of the Bolivian Andes. After crossing various desert plains
we come across craters formed by the impact of ancient meteorites, and in
the afternoon we enter the salt plains of Uyuni. On one of its shores at
the extreme north we explore the ruins of a pre-inca market area and in
the evening we will reach a picturesque spot on the lake’s shores:
Jirira. There we will settle into a typical indigenous hostel for the night;
basic but very neat and clean accommodation. |
| Day
5. Trek to Tunupa view-up point. Transport to colchani. Luna Salada hotel. |
Elevations
Tunupa view-up point 4,450m (14,596f)
Colchani 3,675m (12,054f)
Timing
Driving: 6-7 Hrs
Walking: 2-3
Meals
B,L,D |
In the morning we will
hike to a viewpoint high on the volcano slopes with great views for miles
and miles. After lunch we will get salty. It is very difficult to describe
the landscape of the Uyuni salt flats … It is so huge, a wide-open
sea of rock hard salt. Are we still on earth? We will enter the vastness
of the lake and traverse towards the mirages till we can “dock”
on one of the islands. Their names have been confused but, we will get to
the one called “Fishback” (Lomo de Pescado), although, some
locals call it Incahuasi (the house of the Inca). There we will hike to
the top of the island and later drive to Colchani at the eastern side and
stay in the beautiful and charming “Luna Salada” hotel. |
| Day
6. Transport to Potosi. Visit to the Silver Mines. Hotel. |
Elevations
Potosi 3,880m (12,726f)
Timing
Driving: 5-6 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
Today we will first
drive to Uyuni town - not precisely the most beautiful town of Bolivia but
it steams with young tourists getting transportation to traverse the salt
flats into Chile – make a short visit to the train cemetery and continue
on the impressive road to Potosi with it's mountains changing colors at
every turn. On the way we will visit the mine of Pulacayo. We will arrive
to Potosi just in time to enjoy the sunset from the roof of a colonial church. |
| Day
7. Transport to Tupiza. Hotel. |
Elevations
Silver Mines 4,000m (13,120f)
Tupiza 2,950m (9,676f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
In the morning we will
visit the mines that during the XVII and XVIII centuries helped the flourishing
of Europe in general and Spain in particular. Some of the Old Spanish mines
have been reopened but there is little silver left. Tin, Zinc and tungsten,
are the main mineral exploited today. After lunch we will leave the city
behind and get to the “lower” lands towards Tupiza, a small
sleepy. Since Tupiza is located more than 2,000m(6560ft) lower than Potosi,
we will fell much better as we get lower in altitude. Although the vegetation
grows up, the woods are not the typical cloud forests that lie at the eastern
side of the Andes, here is extremely dry and harsh. As usual, we will be
at the best hotel in town. |
| Day
8. Trek to Tupiza canyons. Hotel. |
Elevations
Tupiza canyons 3,200m (10,496f)
Tupiza 2,950m (9,676f)
Timing
Driving: 1-2 Hrs
Walking: 3-4 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
Tupiza is known because
it hosted, almost a hundred years ago, a couple of American villains: Butch
Cassidy and Sundance Kid. And in fact here we will feel being in the Wild
West while walking along the canyons and rocky formations around the valleys
of Tupiza. There are several natural “treasures” hidden into
these canyons that we will hike for several hours. In the late afternoon
we be high in the hills to enjoy the sunset over the canyons. Same hotel
as yesterday. |
| Day
9. Transport to San Pablo de Lipez. Basic Hostel. |
Elevations
San Pablo de Lipez 4,250m (13,940f)
Timing
Driving: 6-7 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
Back to the highlands
again but, this time we will not feel the altitude as on the first days
of the expedition. We are already acclimatized and can enjoy the return
to the high Andes. San Pablo is the capital of the province of Lipez but
do not expect too much. It is just a village of no more than 5 streets.
The hostel, the only accommodation in town, is again a very simple but clean
service. |
| Day
10. Transport to Quetena. Basic Hostel. |
Elevations
Quetena 3,900m (12,792f)
Timing
Driving: 5-6 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
We enter to the “Tibet
of the Andes”. The South Lipez province really looks like a different
world: bright colored lakes contrasting with pastel colors deserts, high
volcanoes and salt lakes, rocks carved by the winds, the lava canyons …
so much to see in just one day. We will visit Laguna Celeste (Light Blue
Lagoon), Laguna Amarilla (Yellow Lagoon) and traverse the lower hillsides
of Uturunco, the fastest growing volcano on earth. We will stay in a basic
hotel in Quetena Village, located inside one of the innumerable canyons
of the region. We will pay a visit to the newest project of the local community,
the “Chasca” ecological center. Here, in middle of the desert,
running water produces a microclimate that host a lot of local wild birds
and herds of alpacas. |
| Day
11. Transport to San Pedro de Atacama. Hotel. |
Elevations
1st Road pass 4,900m (16,072f)
San Pedro 2,438m (7,996f)
Timing
Driving: 6-7 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
We continue our drive
south, towards “Eduardo Avaroa” National Reserve of Andean Fauna.
First we drive towards Colorada lagoon where we will spend some time to
spot the largest pink flamingos population in Bolivian territory and afterwards
towards Verde lagoon. On the way we will cross a mountain pass and drive
to a huge crater to visit the geysers of “Sol de Mañana”
(Morning’s Sun). At lunchtime we are presented with the opportunity
to bathe in natural hot springs by the side of pre-Columbian ruins. After
our “thermal siesta”, we will travel through wide plains between
volcanic mountains called “Dali Desert”. We will encounter on
route: several lagoons and salt lakes. All the mountains that surround us
have been form due to volcanic activity; in fact, this is one of the regions
with more concentration of volcanoes per square kilometer in the planet.
Some of them are active but, even inactive, all of them still show the brutal
and dynamic action of the mother earth: giant cones, old avalanches debris,
rocky outcrops, domes, flows, ignimbrites (huge hot ash flows), blown calderas,
colorful mountainsides and sedimentary rocks derived from this volcanic
activity. After a short stop at Green laggon, we leave Bolivia to enter
Chilean territory, the Atacama desert. We will spend the night in a hotel
in San Pedro de Atacama.
|
| Day
12. Visit of Miñiques and Miscanti lagoons. Return to San Pedro de
Atacama. Hotel |
Elevations
Miscanti lagoon 4,350m (14,268f)
San Pedro 2,438m (7,996f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Walking: 1-2 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
In the morning we will
take the road to Argentina towards Miñiques and Miscanti lagoons.
The views of the lagoons with the two volcanoes with the same name in the
background is just one of the best within the “Flamingos National
park”. On the way we will visit the Atacama salt flat and the oasis
of Toconao. Back in San Pedro and later in the evening, we will visit the
moon valley and the Salt Mountain range. |
| Day
13. Visit of Tatio Geysers. Transport to Calama. Hotel. |
Elevations
Tatio 4,321m (14,172f)
1st Road pass 4,650m (15,252f)
Calama 2,275m (7,462f)
Timing
Driving: 6-7 Hrs
Walking: 1-2 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
A very early start is
required to drive up to the volcanic slopes to “El Tatio” geysers
and arrive before the sunrise (the coldest time during the day) just in
time to enjoy the geysers when they are more active. Following this amazing
spectacle, we will drive west, first towards a road pass with great views
of San Pedro and San Pablo volcanoes, to then drop down to the microclimatic
valleys of Caspana, Toconce and Chiu Chui before continuing towards Calama.
If we are lucky, it may be a scheduled visit to one of the largest copper
mine in the planet; Chuquicamata mine. |
| Day
14. Transport to Iquique. Hotel. |
Elevations
Iquique 30m (98f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
Today we will leave
the thin air of the mountain behind and descend to sea level to breathe
thicker air rich in oxygen. Our route will take is west through the most
deserted part of the Atacama lowlands, this lands towards Tocopilla at the
pacific coast is so sterile and dry that there is no vegetation at all (not
even small bushes or muss). We drive north on the spectacular coastal road:
the contrast between the world’s driest desert lapped by the unending
Pacific ocean is just unforgettable. Mid-way we will make a pause at one
of the beaches for lunch, and later eventually arrive at the prosperous
duty free city of Iquique. |
| Day
15. Transport to Isluga National Park. Basic Hostel. |
Elevations
Road pass to Colchane 5,100m (16,728f)
Enquelga 4,300m (14,104f)
Timing
Driving: 7-8 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
Once again back to the
highlands and the mountains. Our route will take us west towards “Salar
de Huasco” where we will leave the paved road and head north through
one of the most beautiful landscapes of the mountainous region in the north
of Chile. We will have to cross the highest road pass of the trip on the
way to Isluga National Park, named after the main volcano in the region.
Continuing north, we will visit the “Salar de Surire” declared
National Monument. We might have a visit to the hot springs. Tonight our
accommodation will be very simple at the hut of the National Forestall Service;
the Chilean institution in charge of the National Parks and reserves. |
| Day
16. Visit of Lauca National Park. Transport to Sajama. Hotel. |
Elevations
Road pass 4,850m (15,908f)
Tomarapi 4,180m (13,710f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
An early start will
be required to visit Surire reserve of Andean Fauna and Lauca National Park,
there we will visit the picturesque town of Paricacota and bird watch in
Lake Chungara at the foot of the volcanoes and the snow caped peaks. After
passing through all control at the border post, we get into Bolivian territory.
Tonight’s accommodation will be an Indian Lodge at Tomarapi village,
just in front of the highest mountain of Bolivia: Sajama. |
| Day
17. Visit of Keñua forest, Geysers & Hot springs. Lodge. |
Elevations
Sajama BC 4,800m (14,744f)
Tomarapi 4,180m (13,710f)
Timing
Driving: 2-3 Hrs
Walking 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L,D |
We will spend all day
long exploring and enjoying Sajama National Park, one of the most bizarre,
exotic and amazing landscapes in the Bolivian highlands. We will take a
hike to the base camp used by mountaineers that attempt the mountain, on
the way we will visit the local native Keñua forest with some trees
growing as high as 5,000m (16,400ft). After lunch our car will take us to
the geysers and to the natural hot water pools. Return to the same lodge
for overnight. |
| Day
18. Transport to La Paz. Hotel. |
Elevations
La Paz 3,650m (11,972f)
Timing
Driving: 4-5 Hrs
Meals
B,L |
Today’s drive
will bring us back to the starting point: La Paz city with its thousand
faces and noises. |
| Day
19. Free day. Hotel. |
Elevations
La Paz 3,650m (11,972f)
Timing
None
Meals
B,D |
Free day in La Paz to
rest and do some shopping. Later at the evening, we will have a farewell
dinner and celebrate all together. |
| Day
20. Departure. Transfer to Airport. |
Elevations
El Alto 4,100m (13,450f)
Timing
Driving: 30 Min
Meals
B |
Transfer to airport. |
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This
unforgettable journey will start with a visit of the main attractions
around Lake Titicaca, to then head south towards the Atacama Desert through
the unique Uyuni salt flats and Potosi lands. After visiting San Pedro
de Atacama we will return to La Paz visiting the main National Parks of
the volcanic range of the northern Chile. Once back in Bolivian territory,
we will spend some time at the Sajama National Park before heading back
to la Paz. This trip has been designed for the ones that love nature but
prefer not camp. Every night we will get to the best accommodation available.