Embark on an unforgettable 3-day expedition through the vast and blinding-white salt flats of Uyuni (Salar de Uyuni) into the desert of southwest Bolivia to visit tiny villages lost in the desert, multi-colored lakes filled with flamingos, the Sol de Manana geyser at 5,000m and thermal hot-springs.
Start your tour off at 10:30am with a visit to Uyuni’s ‘train graveyard’ to see the abandoned locomotives in Bolivia. Then visit the small settlement of Colchani (salt miners workshops next to the salt flats) where you can see handicrafts made of salt and textile art made of llama and alpaca. Take photos as you cruise along the vast white expanse of salt, visit los Ojos de Agua Salada (‘salt water eyes’) and then a hotel made completely of salt which is currently a museum.
Lunch will be served on “Isla Incahuasi” (Fish Island) where you will have time to hike to the top of the island to see giant cactus and rock formations made of petrified coral. Take time to organize your group for fun perspective and proportion-distorted photos on the blinding white surface of the salt flats. Then, head to Pia Pia island for the unique experience of seeing a beautiful sunset over the salt flats. Have dinner and spend the night at Ajencha town. In the evening, enjoy star gazing from an amazing look-out point through telescope. (L/D)
Start off at 7:00am for breakfast. Our first stop is galaxy caves before continuing on to visit the Chiguana desert on the south side of Uyuni salt flats, surrounded by volcanoes such as Ollague (5840m), which is still active and can be seen from the lookout. Continue along a rocky road - Pasito Tuntun - to the beautiful Andean lagoons inhabited by 3 species of Andean flamingos. Marvel at three lagoons on the way; Cañapa where you’ll see pink flamingos, Hedionda where lunch will be served, and Chiarcota where you’ll see a wider variety of birds and altiplanic fauna.
After, we enter the Eduardo Avaroa National Reserve and visit the Desert of Siloli at 4550m (the highest and driest in the world) and take a photos next to the ‘Rock tree’, a lava rock formation. Before arriving to our final destination today, we will stop at the overlook point by the Red Lagoon to see more pink flamingos in their natural habitat and admire the intense red-colored lake. Stay the night at a shared family lodging. (B,L,D)
Get off to an early start around 5:00am to visit the Sol de Mañana Geyser, at 5,000m and walk next to fumaroles and steaming craters filled with boiling pots of mud at 150-200 degrees C. Continue to the open air hot springs and take a bath in 35 degree C water before enjoying a pancake breakfast. The next places to visit are the Dali Desert where Salvador Dali found his inspiration from boulders sprinkled in the middle of the desert, followed by the Green Lagoon (toxic copper water at the foot of Licancabur volcano at 6000m, which is a few kilometers from the Bolivia-Chile border).
After this, you will head back to Uyuni passing by beautiful scenery and eating a picnic lunch along the roadside. On the way, pass by the Valley of the Rocks, the Alota settlement and the San Cristobal Village where we will visit the church and see the exquisite colonial paintings. Return to Uyuni by 6:30pm where your tour comes to an end. (Option to connect to San Pedro de Atacama, Chile. You need to book this transfer in advance.) (B,L)
Note: This itinerary is subject to change without prior notice according to weather conditions, strikes, roadblocks, or other events which are beyond our control. We will always do our best to follow the itinerary as closely as possible.
ACCOMMODATION/ FACILITIES:
The accommodation on the Uyuni Salt Flats tour will be bare-bones basic with basic cots in shared rooms. On occasion there may not be electricity or running water due to lack of infrastructure and services in the national park. You will be traveling in the middle of the desert - toilet facilities will only be available on the first day of the Uyuni tour and might have a small local cost.
