Best of Bolivia

Before even touching down in Bolivia, you’ll be treated to a taste of the splendour and magnitude of the incredible Andes as you fly over the snow-capped peaks that loom down over La Paz. A city of extremes, La Paz is the world’s highest capital; a city of contradictions, it’s home to indigenous peoples, colonial architecture and towering skyscrapers - it cannot help but arouse curiosity. At 12,000ft above sea level, the altitude can take a bit of getting used to, so for the first three days of your Bolivian escape, simply relax, go slow and take a little time unearthing the intricacies of this surreal city; expect to come across markets selling traditional potions, traditionally-dressed, bowler-hatted local women chewing coca and, outside the city, mountains dotted with ancient ruins. While here, you’ll be staying at the Camino Real.

After three days in buzzing La Paz, you’ll be taken to its laid-back rival, Sucre. Dotted with plazas, colonial buildings and whitewashed houses, Sucre is a picturesque, soothing city and your half-day tour will take you to the bustling food market, San Francisco Church and the House of Liberty, where Simon Bolivar signed the Independence of Bolivia. A treat for both wanderers and explorers, its guests can while away the hours cafe-hopping and meandering its cobbled streets or head to the hillsides for adrenaline-pumping activities. For an interesting excursion outside the city, you may wish to see the 60 million year old dinosaur footprints. While in Sucre, you’ll stay at the Parador Santa Maria, a beautifully converted 18th century colonial-style hotel, built around two internal courtyards.

The drive from Sucre to Potosi takes you through looming mountains and staggering valleys, and you’ll arrive in good time for an afternoon tour that takes in the cloister of San Francisco, the cathedral, the royal mint, which conserves the wooden machinery brought from 17th century Spain, and the city’s main attraction; the mine.The grandiose buildings and ornate colonial mansions of Potosi remind the city of its affluent past when, as a major producer of silver, it was the wealthiest in South America. On your second day, consider venturing into the heart of the mines, where the focus has since turned to zinc, tin and copper, for a humbling insight into a completely different world. End each day in the heated pool at the Coloso Potosi Hotel, your home while in Potosi.

You’ll leave Potosi behind for iconic, glistening salt flats of Salar de Uyuni. Stretching to the horizon and beyond, the plains are a pristine, beautiful and bizarre natural wonder, and your journey into one of South America’s most spectacular landscapes will take you past looming snow-capped mountains and all the way to Luna Salada, a quirky hotel made entirely of salt. With the white carpet of the salt flats rolled out at its doorstep, the hidden retreat is the perfect place to enjoy the most stunning sunset Bolivia has to offer.

The following morning, you’ll watch the locals extracting salt from the plains using fascinating traditional methods and visit Inkawasi Island, a baffling cacti ‘island’ seemingly swallowed up by the salt pans. The isolated oasis-type ecosystem is a feast for the camera, with ancient marine fossils forever etched into its surface rocks. You’ll spend your second night deep in the heart of Salar de Uyuni in a vintage Airstream campervan with a bedroom area, living space and bathroom.

Flying back to La Paz, you’ll be transferred to Camino Real, where you’ll stay one more night before being taken to the airport for your flights back home.