Salar de Uyuni

The main starting point of tours to the Salar de Uyuni is Uyuni.

Finding An Agency

When choosing a tour operator it is important to check with other travelers to understand the type of experience they have had and the vehicles, drivers, and food they had on their trip. Trips will arrive in all of the departure cities coming in the opposite direction and this is a good opportunity to ask other travelers their impressions. Common complaints include vehicles in extremely poor repair, a lack of emergency supplies, intoxicated drivers and limited food and water.

Uyuni

There are dozens of tour agents offering this trip. Most are situated around the main square, where every other shop is a tourist agency. It is also advisable to find a group of people who are going on the tour who share your interests, and/or language and work with their agency. Minuteman Pizza in the evenings, or the main square is a great place to meet such people. See Uyuni for a complete list.

Tupiza

You can also set off from Tupiza and end in Uyuni or vice versa.

Choosing A Tour Package

There are several options to visit the Uyuni salt flat. Starting your trip from La Paz, you will take the bus to Oruro and afterwards, board the train to Uyuni. After a pleasant trip for around 7 hours, you will arrive in Uyuni at night. You can book in a hotel in Uyuni or in one of the hotels built in salt blocks located near the salt flat. The next day, you will start your journey towards the Uyuni Salt Flat visiting Colchani, a small town where you can buy handicrafts made in salt. From this point you will see unimaginable and spectacular views of the largest salt desert in the world, with an approximate area of 12,000 km2, the Salar de Uyuni! You will begin the trip watching the water bubbling on its surface in the so-called “the eyes of water”, and also the inhabitants of the place in their work of extracting salt for marketing. Next you can continue to Incahuasi Island, or Fish Island, located in the heart of the Salar, which is characterized by the presence of giant cacti. You can walk around the island, enjoying a spectacular view of the Salt Flat and appreciate the great white intertwined with the Andean sky, this is the best place to photograph the Salt Flat. Later, you can continue the journey continue heading south west toward the colored lagoons Red, Blue, White, Yellow and Green, located in the Parque Nacional de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa. These sites are occupied by volcanoes, and offer wonderful and surreal views. On some tours, you can visit places such as the Cave of the Galaxies and the Devil's Cave. The lagoons are so-named due to the different tones that characterize them and are due to the presence of algae, the chemical composition of the water, the movement of the wind or to the specific time of the day. Recently, modern hotels were built in this region, allowing a comfortable stay, avoiding the basic accommodations cited elsewhere. At your return to Uyuni, you can visit the little town of San Cristóbal, the Train Graveyard and admire the sunset on the Salt Flat, one of the most magnificent you will see in your life!