Sucre
The Iglesia de Santa Mónica was begun in 1574 and was originally intended to serve as a monastery for the Ermitañas de San Agustín. However, the order ran…
Must-see attractions in Bolivia
Bolivia
This scenic spot 10km south of Tupiza is the site of a narrow tunnel carved into the mountain, known as the angosto (narrow). Until 2011, the tunnel was…
Salar de Uyuni
The small 'Eggshell Island' was named for the broken shells of birds’ eggs that litter it. It's located near the southern end of Salar de Uyuni and is…
Santa Cruz
This cultural center is in the impeccably restored family home of Dr Melchor Pinto Parada, a wealthy and influential cruceño who died in 1982. There are…
Bolivia
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid are honored in this tiny but charming adobe museum. Enlarged photographs of the real-life duo and their celluloid…
La Paz
Chew on some facts inside the small, slightly tired Coca Museum, which explores the sacred leaf’s role in traditional societies, its use by the soft-drink…
La Paz
Once the home of don Pedro Domingo Murillo, a leader in the La Paz Revolution of July 16, 1809, the Casa de Murillo displays collections of colonial art,…
Potosí
The rather ordinary-looking Iglesia de San Martín was built in the 1600s and is today run by the French Redemptionist Fathers. Inside is an art museum,…
Bolivia
This chilling museum details the horrifying treatment of political prisoners, and is adorned with distorted mannequins illustrating the painful…
Santa Cruz
In the former home of the Gutiérrez Jiménez family, completed in 1920, this museum has four rooms with displays covering regional history. The first is…
Tiwanaku
West of Kalasasaya is a 55m-by-60m rectangular area known as Putuni. It is surrounded by double walls and you can see the foundations of several tombs…
Santa Cruz
Inside the cathedral, the Museum of Sacred Art displays a collection of religious icons, vestments and medallions. Most interesting are the gold and…
Isla del Sol
Early Spaniards believed Yumani’s spring was a fountain of youth and for the Incas the three streams represented their national motto: Ama sua, Ama llulla…
Lake Titicaca
A 3km walk northeast along the shoreline from the end of Calles Junín or Ballivián leads to the community of Kusijata, where there’s a former colonial…
Santa Cruz & Gran Chiquitania
This charming and responsible little zoo is a refuge for rescued animals. The zoo accepts volunteers (one month minimum) who can lodge for free in…
Bolivia
It’s worth taking a look at Casa Günther, a rambling, historic mansion in the northeast corner of the plaza that now houses the Residencial Sorata. It was…
Museo de Historia Natural Alcide d’Orbigny
Cochabamba
Adjacent to the Palacio Portales is the city's old-fashioned, neglected and low-key natural history museum. With its creaky wooden floors and array of…
Tarija
San Lorenzo is best known as the home of José Eustaquio ‘Moto’ Méndez, the hero of the Batalla de la Tablada, whose former house is now the Museo Moto…
Bolivia
About an hour’s walk outside Chari are some pre-Incan ruins, reached by walking through town and turning left at the enormous boulder that creates a small…
La Paz
This building was once home to Walter Solón Romero, one of the nation's most important and politically active artists. Known for his elaborate murals and…
Santa Cruz & Gran Chiquitania
This is the one-time home of the former president and Chaco War hero German Busch, who died in mysterious circumstances aged 35. There is a bit of clutter…
Lake Titicaca
This is a collection of lakefront adobe houses. If you ask around, you’ll find rooms for rent for about B$30. Asociación Transport Yampu Tour Lacustre…
Santa Cruz
A small but interesting and professionally presented exhibition of Guaraní culture, located close to the zoo. The curator is happy to explain the…
Lake Titicaca
Copacabana's cathedral is a repository for both European and local religious art and Museo de la Catedral contains some interesting articles and offerings…
Sucre
Run by the university, this museum is an old aristocrat’s house stocked with a hodgepodge collection of gaudy 19th-century decor. Think gilded gold…
Bolivia
Ask around town for directions to this nearby mountain fortress with terracing, stone walls and chullpares (burial towers). Cloaked in legend and a site…
Bolivia
On November 17, 1851, Bolivia’s flag was first raised at Faro de Conchupata: red for the courage of the Bolivian army, gold for the country’s mineral…
Tiwanaku
The heap of rubble at the eastern end of the Tiwanaku site is known as Kantatayita. Archaeologists are still trying to deduce some sort of meaningful plan…
Museo de la Revolución Nacional
La Paz
The first question to ask is ‘Which Revolution?’ (Bolivia has had more than 100 of them). The answer is that of April 1952, the popular revolt of armed…
Santa Cruz & Gran Chiquitania
This museum is a re-creation of the school room where Che was held prisoner and executed on October 9, 1967. It's covered with photographs, letters and…
La Paz
The diminutive Museo del Litoral incorporates relics from the 1880s war in which Bolivia became landlocked after losing its Litoral department to Chile…
Santa Cruz & Gran Chiquitania
Adjacent to the church is this interesting little museum outlining the history of the Chiquitos people and the missions. There is also a small gift shop…
Lake Titicaca
North of the cemetery on the southeastern outskirts of town is this neglected site of artificially sculpted boulders. Its original purpose is unknown, but…
Templete Semisubterráneo & Museo al Aire Libre
La Paz
The open-pit museum opposite the stadium contains replicas of statues from Tiwanaku’s Templete Semisubterráneo. Only worth seeing if you can't visit…
Santa Cruz & Gran Chiquitania
Río Surutú is a popular excursion for locals, and there’s a pleasant sandy beach ideal for picnics, swimming and camping during the dry season. From Buena…
Tarija
The exterior of this oddly prominent and deteriorating private mansion is worth a look for its garish blue-and-white-striped extravagance. It’s still…
Bolivia
The foothills flanking Volcán Sajama are covered with the world’s highest forest, consisting of dwarf queñua trees, an endemic and ancient altiplano…
Centro de Preservación La Hormiga
Amazon Basin
A small park/wildlife garden 11km from Villa Tunari featuring a variety of bromeliads and other plant life, as well as some (caged) local fauna. A taxi…
Potosí
Potosí's elaborate colonial architecture merits a stroll around the narrow streets to take in the ornate doorways and facades, as well as the covered…
Tarija
Architecturally, Tarija’s most unusual church and major landmark is the bright, white 1887 Iglesia de San Roque. Dedicated to the city’s patron saint, the…
