Itinerary - Chile and Bolivia: Adventure in the Salar de Uyuni

Flights to/from Italy are not included in the package, so you can decide which airport to leave from, at what time and with the airline you prefer... This is to give you maximum freedom of choice!

Our adventure begins in Santiago, the capital of Chile , the seventh most populous city in South America. After the entry formalities, we are ready to immerse ourselves in the local culture. Depending on the arrival times, we can choose between a walk in the colorful Barrio Bellavista to admire the street art, or a visit to Pablo Neruda's house or the first sunset together with Cerro Santa Lucia: what would you prefer?

Today we can choose to continue visiting Santiago or get on a bus that in less than 2 hours will take us to Valparaíso and continue our adventure on the coast to discover this Chilean jewel declared a World Heritage Site. With a walking tour we can choose to explore the city, with its colorful houses and its elevators and “cerri” with incredible views. Starting from the Ascensor Concepción we reach Cerro Concepción , where the most panoramic points of the city are located. We continue towards Cerro Carcel and the Parque Cultural de Valparaíso, a cultural center created inside a former prison.

For lunch we can choose one of the many restaurants with a view or opt for street food of Chilean empanadas, before visiting La Sebastiana , one of Pablo Neruda 's three houses in Chile. In the afternoon we return to Santiago and get ready for the first dinner all together!

Wake up early to take the internal flight that will take us to Calama. Here our driver will be waiting for us and in about an hour we will be in San Pedro de Atacama . After leaving our backpacks at the hotel, we are ready to experience days of pure magic in the midst of uncontaminated nature and unique landscapes in the world!

Did you know that on Earth it is possible to see a lunar landscape without taking a shuttle? In the afternoon we will visit the most iconic and well-known place in San Pedro de Atacama: the Moon Valley . Among huge sand dunes, rock formations, spires, crests, canyons of immense beauty, and a landscape that slowly turns pink, we will admire one of the most exciting sunsets of our lives, all accompanied by an excellent Chilean aperitif obviously based on Pisco!

Astronomy enthusiasts, show yourselves! We will end this wonderful day observing the stars in the middle of the desert ! The extraordinary clarity of the night sky and the total absence of clouds, make the desert an ideal place for observing the sky. Thanks to the darkness of the desert, we will be able to admire the celestial vault of the southern hemisphere , through binoculars and telescopes, in the center of the Atacama Desert, the driest on the planet!

This morning another unique experience awaits us: we leave very early to reach in a couple of hours the third largest geothermal area in the world , that of the Tatio geisers . The geisers are located at 4,200 meters and it will be freezing cold, but seeing the sunrise in front of the fumaroles will be a show that will leave us breathless!

After the visit to the geysers, we will have a unique breakfast “on the road” , in the middle of the desert and silence, that you will remember forever. Return to San Pedro to take a few walks and enjoy a good local lunch!

This afternoon another excursion awaits us to a haven of peace called Laguna Cejar . Bring a swimsuit, towel and slippers because yes, in about an hour we will reach this lagoon where we can also swim ! Thanks to its very high salinity, the water will keep us afloat without making the slightest effort, just like in the Dead Sea.

We will be surrounded by a wonderful landscape, composed of volcanoes, snow-capped mountains and expanses of glittering salt as far as the eye can see. If the lagoon is closed or in case of adverse weather conditions, it will be possible to choose between other lagoons, spas or trekking!

This morning we say goodbye to Chile and head towards the border with Bolivia where the 4x4 jeeps and our drivers await us and will accompany us for the next three days to discover a magical region between colored lagoons and crazy views. We start from the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve , visiting the Laguna Blanca , the Laguna Verde and the Salvador Dalí Desert with its incredible landscapes.

The journey continues north, through the hot springs of Polques , where we can take a hot bath at 4,000 m altitude! Then we will visit the Sol de Mañana geyser , with its impressive fumaroles, and the Laguna Colorada , where we can see the famous Andean flamingos , until we reach our lodge in the middle of this unique desert.

After breakfast, we return to the jeeps for another day in the most authentic and uncontaminated nature! We start with the rock formations of Italia Perdida to continue with the Laguna de Vinto and its flamingos , ending with the Laguna Catal or Escondida , where we can take a walk and see animals such as llamas and vizcahas . We will visit the Valle de las Rocas and the Cañon de la Anaconda , while after lunch we will make a stop in the village of San Cristobal.

Before reaching Uyuni, we stop at the train cemetery, a few minutes walk from the center: a real depot of abandoned wagons, at almost 4,000 meters above sea level. In this place, as desolate as it is suggestive, we will find dozens of historic steam trains and locomotives, dating back to the 19th century, when the city was a locomotive factory. We will be able to climb on the wrecks and, with the right light of the late afternoon, take incredible photos!

We finally arrive in Uyuni ! Tonight a bed of salt awaits us, or rather a room, but what shall we say… a hotel made of salt ! Its rooms made of salt are well equipped, soundproofed and decorated with motifs from traditional Bolivian culture. After so many hours in the jeep, we deserve a bit of relaxation! We go out for dinner in the characteristic town of Uyuni to taste some Andean specialties: have you ever tried llama?

After a short stop in the small village of Colchani , famous for its salt extraction and processing, we will dedicate the whole day to Bolivia's most impressive natural attraction, the largest salt flat in the world with its 10,582 km², which will give us one of the most incredible views imaginable: his majesty, the Salar de Uyuni !

We will have plenty of time to enjoy the show and take the best optical illusion photos with the famous Ojos de Sal. We will have lunch in the middle of the desert and, in the afternoon, we will head to Incahuasi Island , in the middle of the salt flats, covered with ancient cacti up to 18 meters high, in a rare ecosystem that has survived for centuries.

At the end of the day, our drivers will take us to the best spot in the Salar to watch the sunset. We will enjoy a local aperitif while we watch one of the most beautiful sunsets of our lives!

After so many excursions in the middle of nature, it is time to return to the city! We will leave our salt hotel to go to Potosí , a UNESCO World Heritage Site, characterized by its neocolonial architecture, and the highest city in the world, at 4,090 meters above sea level! However, Potosí is famous for its silver mine , a symbol of the exploitation and extermination of the local population by the Spanish conquistadors. The visit to the mine will take us into the belly of what the Incas called SumajOrcko, the “beautiful mountain”, where the miners still work, preserving their ancestral traditions.

We will have time to visit the city, with its squares and colonial buildings, and to taste delicious local dishes such as chambergos , typical sweets in the shape of a sombrero, in some panadería!

Today we descend in altitude! We will take a bus that in a few hours will take us to Sucre, the first Bolivian capital and one of the most beautiful cities in the country . A UNESCO World Heritage Site and known as “La Ciudad Blanca”, Sucre has maintained its old colonial appearance almost unchanged, made up of elegant whitewashed buildings . We will visit the city and its historic center, from Plaza 25 de Mayo to the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe, one of the most important religious buildings in the country. But Sucre is also the home of Bolivian chocolate , did you know that? We will then enter one of the main chocolate shops in the city to taste the best chocolate in the country!

After all this walking, we must be hungry! So let's choose a place to try the typical fritanga , a dish of meat and corn perfect for spicy lovers! Sucre is full of nice places, let's choose one with a terrace to admire the city at night, what do you think?

Check-out and wake up early, today we say goodbye to Sucre and take an internal flight that, in less than an hour, takes us to La Paz . We will immediately begin to get lost in the colorful streets of the center, crossing the folkloristic Mercado de las Brujas , or the witches' market, browsing among the various objects and natural elixirs for sale. Right here, we will come into contact with the Aymara civilization and culture and its ancestral traditions. We will continue our tour passing by Plaza Mayor de San Francisco, a meeting point for the inhabitants on weekends, and Plaza Murillo, the center of political power in Bolivia.

In the late afternoon, we will board the cable car that connects the lower city with El Alto . It is through the largest urban cable car network in the world that we will be able to understand the grandeur of this city and its particular geographical conformation. We could then taste some local Bolivian specialties, such as salteña , and enjoy the sunset from one of the many miradors. The evening is still long, how about having a little fun together?

Yes, there are many things to do around La Paz. The most famous is definitely the Ruta de la Muerte , a route that until a few years ago was considered one of the most dangerous in the world. Today it is a destination for mountain bike enthusiasts. The excursion is optional and starts from La Cumbre, at 4,650 meters above sea level, where you put on protective equipment and are explained the safety rules. It ends in Yolosa, at just 1,200 meters above sea level, where we will have lunch. Yes, you read correctly, we will travel 3,500 meters of altitude difference!

For something more peaceful, instead, we could opt for the Valle de la Luna and the Valle de las Animas , two valleys with curious rock formations, reachable with a simple trek, and the Palca Canyon , with gorges up to 200 meters high due to the thaw and the wind, which extend for the 8 km of the valley. In this case, after lunch we will return to La Paz, for a bit of relaxation, a few last strolls in the center to buy some souvenirs and prepare for the last dinner together! Our trip cannot end with dinner: let's look for a place to have a drink and share the most beautiful and funniest anecdotes and memories!

It's time to say goodbye, hasta ready for the next WeRoad!