Bolivia is one of only two landlocked countries in South America, but its geography is anything but limited. The country stretches from the high Andes and vast salt flats to deserts and tropical rainforest, creating some of the most diverse landscapes in South America.
What makes Bolivia especially unique is its strong Indigenous heritage. A large part of the population belongs to Indigenous peoples whose languages, traditions, clothing, and cultures remain an important part of everyday life. Bolivia also shares Lake Titicaca with neighboring Peru, one of the world’s highest major lakes. Between its deep cultural roots, ancient civilizations, high-altitude cities, mountains, deserts, and extraordinary landscapes, Bolivia feels distinctly different from many of its South American neighbors.
Explore La Paz
Set dramatically among the Andes, La Paz is one of the world’s highest major cities, with parts of the metropolitan area climbing above 4,000 meters. It’s also one of the best places in Bolivia to experience the country’s Indigenous culture. One of the city’s most unusual places to explore is the Mercado de las Brujas, or Witches’ Market, where traditional remedies and ritual items are sold alongside more conventional artisan souvenirs.
Explore Tiwanaku
Within a day trip of La Paz are the impressive ruins of Tiwanaku, the remains of one of South America’s great pre-Inca civilizations. Massive stone structures, carved monuments, statues, and ceremonial sites survive from a culture that dominated parts of the central Andes centuries before the rise of the Inca Empire.
Explore Lake Titicaca & Copacabana
Lake Titicaca feels more like a small inland sea than a mountain lake. Sitting high in the Andes between Bolivia and Peru, its waters have supported communities, trade, and ancient civilizations for thousands of years. Along the Bolivian shore is Copacabana, one of the country’s most scenic towns and a great base for exploring the lake and its surrounding culture.
Explore Salar de Uyuni
Salar de Uyuni is the largest salt flat in the world and one of the most surreal landscapes in South America. The enormous white expanse stretches toward the horizon, while the surrounding region contains volcanoes, islands covered in giant cacti, and some of Bolivia’s most unusual scenery. Multi-day 4×4 trips are one of the best ways to explore the region, and you can even spend the night in hotels constructed largely from blocks of salt.
Explore Eduardo Avaroa National Park
Located in the extreme southwest of Bolivia near Chile, Eduardo Avaroa National Park is filled with some of the country’s most spectacular scenery. High-altitude deserts, volcanoes, geothermal fields, flamingos, and mineral-rich lakes create landscapes that sometimes barely look real. Different minerals and microorganisms give the lakes striking shades of red, green, blue, and white, making this one of the most visually unusual regions I visited in Bolivia.
