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Recommended/not recommended Salar de Uyuni tour operators

Posted: 05-June-2008

It is a bit lucky dip, front up to one of the many tourist operators in San Pedro and check them out. Whoever you book with could just shuffle you onto another half full vehicle. It is rugged with minimal creature comforts but it is one of highlights of South America. Go with a sense of humour and acceptance

Posted: 29-July-2007

We are going to do Salar de Uyuni in September, 2007. I have been following the Thorn Tree for quite a while in order to find out the best Uyuni operator. Since it is a real highlight of our trip to South America (and for many of you it was), I would like to ask those who have been there and those who plan to do so, to rank the best and the worse Uyuni tour provider.

Posted: 31-July-2007

Tonito Tours - We did not end up doing the tour with them because they sold us to Colque at the very last second. But they told us a few lies and for this reason I would not recommend them. I am sure the woman in Uyuni still has nightmares about me and my outburst that day. I am usually a really calm person but I hate it when someone tries to trick me. Colque Tours - They were okay. The car only broke down 1 or 2 times and the food was not that bad. But we paid for 4 days/3 nights and did not really got what we paid for. On the third day, they just dumped us in a ghost town not far from Uyuni in early afternoon and we had to spend all day and night in the worst alojamiento ever. Do not pay for a fourth day. The 3 days tour is exactly the same. But overall, what matter is the landscape and you will not be disapointed with that.

Posted: 06-August-2007

I can highly recommend Estrella del Sur... It has 2 agencies, one in San Pedro de Atacama and the other in Uyuni... the tour was perfectly organised, we had a cook with us (a traditional Bolivian woman) and really delicious food. They really kept all their promises.

Posted: 21-February-2008

I visited the Salar last week, 3 days-2 nights. We booked with Kantuta Tours as they were recommended on Footprint, but they are liars and disorganised. The woman in the agency persuaded us to book promising that they could also guarantee our train tickets to Tupiza. the following morning, ready to leave, she told us that in fact she will not be able to book the tickets - she wouldn't even try - and also that there was a change of programme: we would leave for a half day tour, then come back to sleep in Uyuni, and the following day leave to visit the rest skipping a few lakes on the way...we got our money back and were left with no tour that day. We booked for the following day with Esmeralda Tours. They offered a great tour, professional service, reliable driver, and cook serving excellent hot food. We only had some little problems with the car at the beginning, but our driver fixed it very quickly - it seems really common anyway, we saw several cars stuck at some points. The tour is amazing, it is a trip to another planet...enjoy

Posted: 24-February-2008

I spent ages trawling through various threads before we went to Uyuni looking for a good company, terrified by the stories of people getting typhoid and crashing vehicles so I thought, for what it is worth, I would share our very positive experience. We went with Cordillera Tours and were very impressed. Our driver, Javier, was very safe and very chilled, we had no problems with the vehicle (and he seemed quite angry with the driver of another tour when he stopped us as he had run out of fuel in the middle of nowhere!!). He does not speak English and does not necessarily volunteer information about the places but if you ask him he knows plenty about the places. And it is very unlikely in a group of 6 not to have one person who can speak some Spanish and English! There were 6 of us on the tour but there was no cook, we ate at the accommodation or had food preprepared for lunch. The food was simple (pasta, meat, mashed potatoes etc) but very fresh and plentiful. No complaints there! We had much more space in the 4X4 than on the bus to and from Uyuni from La Paz (which is by far the worst part of the whole experience!) As for the accommodation, it was perfectly adequate. The first night was in Culpina, which was great. There is only 1 shower and 2 toilets between 18 or so but we were prepared for this and everyone got a shower that wanted one in the end. The second night is more basic but you are right out in the middle of nowhere so it is really pretty good considering. There is no shower, but you get to bathe in the hotsprings in the morning (well worth stripping off in the cold for). One more tip.... on the first night we stayed in the same place as a group that was coming the opposite way from San Pedro to Uyuni. They were all suffering terribly from altitude sickness, with the vomiting and insomnia and feeling miserable. Our driver told us if you come that way you gain 2,000 metres altitude in 40minutes from San Pedro to the border so it is inevitable really. He said he would not do it that way round! Coming from Uyuni you gain 1,500m over 3 days, although you would probably still feel it if you had not already been in La Paz or Uyuni. I hope this helps anyone who is still looking for a company. I cannot say what the other drivers are like, although we met a couple of other Cordillera groups and they were pretty happy too. We saw some of the most awesome scenery I have ever seen in my life so it is well worth it!

Posted: 03-April-2008

I did the trip San Pedro de Atacama - Uyuni - San Pedro de Atacama January/February, 2008, and doing it with Colque Tours was a disaster. The driving skills of the two drivers we had were excellent, their skills as a tourist guide however were non-existent. Unless we asked about where we were and what we saw - in Spanish - they just did not bother saying anything. And they only spoke hard to understand mumble-Spanish. Definitely not recommended. The hotel manager at San Pedro de Atacama had suggested me to do it with the Cordillera agency, but their gear refused my creditcard, and the ATM in town was out of service, so that is why I went with Colque Tours.

Posted: 15-June-2008

I have just returned from a Salar De Uyuni tour with Tupiza Tours and highly recommend them. Leaving from Tupiza does mean it is a bit more expensive and it is 4 days not 3 days but I had consistently heard Tupiza Tours were good from backpackers I had met in La Paz so we went the extra distance to start in Tupiza and it paid off. We hired an English guide called Archie and he was fantastic. Our driver Gonzalez was also excellent as he was a careful and skilled driver. We had read the horror stories on this thread and so we did extra research because it sounded so hit and miss amongst the tour operators but Tupiza delivered on every aspect - they even catered for a wheat free, dairy free, egg free diet requirement on our group!! My only complaint of the trip was that we were freezing cold most of the time. The day time in the jeep is fine as it is sunny but from 17:00 to 11:00 hours we were freezing cold and the accommodation was the coldest I have ever experienced so pack for extreme conditions. We stayed at Hotel Mitru (*not recommended*) in Tupiza and Tupiza Tours has an office operating from within that hotel. Hotel Mitru staff were rude and not very helpful, quite poor service and rooms. Archie from Tupiza Tours was friendly and helpful and went out of his way to help everyone who walked in the door. He made up for the hotel staff rudeness!! Overall, I highly recommend you start in Tupiza and go with Tupiza Tours and ask for Archie as your guide!

Posted: 12-August-2008

We just finished 3 days - 2 nights on the Salar Tour. We went to at least 10 agencies before booking our tour, every single one of them has the exact same itinerary, and all of them charge roughly the same price, we had quotes from US$80.00 to US$115.00.Honestly, unless you are 6 people and you can actually be explicit about what you want to do and see, I do not think there is any point to carefully choosing your agency, if they do not book 6 people on on their tour you will just get shipped to another company anyways.We booked with Ripley's Tours, we were told that our tour had 5 people and we were just waiting for one more. We were told that all the passengers were coming back to Uyuni. This was not in fact the case. When we showed up on the morning of departure, there were three of us coming back to Uyuni and 3 going to Tupiza. We were told that we would be transferred to another jeep on the last day of the tour and the others would continue to Tupiza. This did not particularly bother us, although you pay for one company and end up with another. We left 2 hours later than our supposed time of departure. We got a flat tire on the salt flats. Thankfully we were not going too fast because it took a while to bring the jeep to a stop. Our guide and cook were very nice and our driver did not drive as fast as the others, which was a relief, however our jeep was in rough rough shape. On the 3rd day, when we woke up at 5 a.m. like all the other tours, in fact we were ready to leave before any of the other jeeps, but it took our driver 3 hours to get the jeep started. So, the three of us heading back to Uyuni, missed the 5 hour loop to Laguna Verde and back. We were kind of upset, but again, we could not blame the driver for the shitty car he was driving. We were transferred to the Quechua Tours jeep, who had a much more wreckless driver than ours. We complained to the other passengers about having missed the Laguna Verde. But they then told us about their experience. Their driver had gotten so drunk on the first night, that one of the tourists had to drive the jeep for 4 hours. There is actually nothing dangerous about the route that is travelled, other than the fact that the drivers go too fast or are intoxicated. I am not sure how you can protect yourself against bad drivers, other than to be firm. If you want your driver to slow down, you should tell him to slow down. You should also be very clear that your driver does not drink. Our driver did not take anything to drink, and when he had a beer, he was very explicit about showing us it was non-alcoholic.

Posted: 16-June-2008

The Incahuasi rip off

I did the Salar de Uyuni tour from San Pedro de Atacama to Uyuni with Cordillera Traveller company in May. Everything was ok with the exception that we did not see the Incahuasi Island, also called Fish Island. Why? Because with this company you pay in advance for all the entrance fees included the one of the Incahuasi Island and simply the driver do not take you there. He stops the car in one island and told that it was the Incahuasi but it was not and that way he keeps the money of all the passengers tickets.I realized, first because I had read that there was a restaurant there and I knew that we had to pay and in that place there was not any restaurant or tickets booths and later a French woman of the other jeep of Cordillera told me that for sure because she had been there some years before. She was very angry because she wanted to see it again as it was more beautiful (with bigger cactus,...) than the place we saw. Besides, in this place the paths were not prepared for tourism and you have to look for your way. I stumbled and fell down with the result of an ugly injured leg as the volcanic stones cut a lot. I complained at the Cordillera office in Uyuni and they gave me the money of the tickets, but I do not like to be deceived. I do not know if it was only the driver´s fault or if he knew about that.

Posted: 26-June-2008

We have just come back from a 4-day tour from Tupiza to Uyuni with Tupiza Tours. We chose them based on their good reputation in the guide books, but are really disappointed. The 4x4 car was not the promised Toyota Landcruiser, but a Nissan. It was not very well prepared, which resulted in 5 flat tires in 2 days, headlights that broke down, and the driver had to do maintenance to the engine on most nights. Due to the flat tires and the low quality equipment to fix them (with a handpump!), we had delays of 3 and 2 hours on those days, resulting in rushing past the last sites and arriving very late at night in the hospedajes. The last night we stayed at a salt hotel, which we paid extra for. Unfortunately, the Tupiza Tour office did not make the reservation as they promised, so we did not get a good room.The last day on our way to the sunrise on the Salar, we ran out of gasoline. The food was good, and do not expect a guide who tells you much; it is more only a driver. But that seems to be the case with more companies. We also looked at Grano de Oro and they seemed interested and professional. Maybe we just had bad luck. Anyway, the sites are magnificent and we enjoyed those!

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I was just travelling with a guy who did the tour with a company called Colque a few weeks ago and he said they were a little bit more expensive but very reliable. I´m going to use them. They have offices in San Pero and in La Paz and also get a good review in the Rough Guide. Hopes this helps!

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Posted: 31-July-2007

Tonito Tours - We did not end up doing the tour with them because they sold us to COLQUE at the very last second. But they told us a few lies and for this reason I would not recommend them. I am sure the woman in Uyuni still has nightmares about me and my outburst that day. I am usually a really calm person but I hate it when someone tries to trick me. Colque Tours - They were okay. The car only broke down 1 or 2 times and the food was not that bad. But we paid for 4 days/3 nights and did not really got what we paid for. On the third day, they just dumped us in a ghost town not far from Uyuni in early afternoon and we had to spend all day and night in the worst alojamiento ever. Do not pay for a fourth day. The 3 days tour is exactly the same. But overall, what matter is the landscape and you will not be disapointed with that.

4

This must be the most repetitious complaint subject about Bolivia by a country mile.
I have posted this a number of times, maybe those who collate and repost for this question could include this basic advice in their future answers to this.
There are better operators than others,, but basically none of the operators own and operate their own vehicles, some do have better vehicles, drivers, guides, cooks etc. but the vehicles, with the assigned driver { usually owned by an investor in buying the vhicle.not the driver} There is a myriad og toutes, agencies etc. etc. in Uyuni. With all the bad experiences that appear here on TT, there is one and only one surefire way to get a good driver and vehicle.
YOU CHOOSE.
Whether it is for a one day tour of the Salar or a four day tour or whatever.No matter a group, or a single joining a group - go here! Some will speak english and be more than happy to help. They do one vehicle at a time and it takes about 15 minutes to do a vehicle, so they are waiting in line.
GO to the high pressure car washes { there are primarily two about threee blocks of the highway out of town to Potosi and a block north}
Between 5 and 7 pm everyday, every vehicle that returns to Uyuni that day come here to have the vehicle hipressure washed down because of the salt - every time they go out they come here afterwards.
You can source your driver and his vehicle here. He will either be going out the next day for what you want or organize a friend who is who is good and has a good vehicle.
You will still pay the agency, not him, the driver, but you will choose the vehicle and driver yourself, rather than taking pot luck from an agency.
You see the vehicle and driver before, not after the journey starts...
If you donot have the energy to do this then donot complain if things donot work out for you. These people donot make much money, but there are fly by night outfits, and there is many horror stories and deaths because of a myriad of problems that one can, with a little effort avoid.
Enough of the rant, but there is a basic solution, and it is not complicated!

5

how can you tell if a driver is good just by speaking to him at a carwash? You may be able to see if a vehicle seems in good condition but even those could break down of course. But just by speaking to a driver you cannot tell if he drives well, will drink during a tour, is honest or dishonest. I just dont see this as a solution really.

6

When you see more than ten vehicles at onceand maybe 30 over a two hour period, for starters you can dismiss "bald" tires etc.etc, and sure you could still have a bad experience, but you sure are going to minimize problems as opposed to what do you do when an obvious problem arrives to pick you up for your tour that you have already paid for?
The vehicles are not new, they are all, for practicle purposes, Toyota Landcruiser, diesel 4X4 standard transmission, that is the choice and only choice of experienced operators.
Go with the two or three wholesalers that have a great reputation, on the whole, do have problems once in a while, but if people are going to arrive in Uyuni, and walk into the myriad of tour sellers in Uyuni, their chances of a bad experience are IMHO substatially high. Those will, in most instances put the paid customer on whatever goes without accounability. There are more than a few fly by nights in Uyuni.
Going to the car wash is not a perfect solution, but again IMHO, it is better than chances with the bucket shops near the clock
Go with the first class operators {including tunabagel!} who charge properly for their services, usually maybe somewhat higher because of respomsible people and vehicles, but worth it.
Or go with the carwash to sort out as best you can which person and vehicle you prefer instead of pot luck, which may be no luck at all.
Any one who does not want to engage someone like tunabagel, who has a good reputation, and uses better tours for the Salt flats etc.etc. should not IMHO use the bucket shops in Uyuni, when you can eliminate most iof the bad experience by choosing the driver and vehicle at the wash.

7

Just to make my post clearer.
People who arrive in Uyuni are ill served when they try to sort out the myriad of bucket shops, and touts, including some hotels, who promise the great experience.
The only way, if you are trying to deal with that situation, { I am unaware of any of the first class operators earlier referenced as selling at Uyuni} is to choose at the car washes and your chances of having a bad experience will be immeasurably dimminished.
The driver at the carwash will not circumvent the tour operator, but you will know who your driver and vehicle is before you go!

8

I have good news ! We have just returned from a 3 day trip with Red Planet and cannot fault them. They are situated directly next door to Hotel Girasoles (also good) in Uyuni.

We paid Bn820 each for the tour, which was slightly more than most other companies but that included an excellent English speaking guide (Luis) all 8 of us had an excellent experience.

We followed all the recommendations i.e. checked the car the night before, read the menu, read the full itinerary, paid only a deposit until the morning of the trip etc and it worked perfectly.

Due to the size of our group, we were split between 2 cars. The cars were fairly new Toyota Land Cruisers, there were a total of 8 people per car (inc driver). The other car had a loopy Argentinian woman who complained about everything. I think she expected a 5 star hotel, but lets face it, we are in Bolivia. We expect basic and basic is what we got.

During the 3 days we saw countless cars broken down, bumped into other tour groups with complaints of churlish drivers and bad food but our experience was a world apart. Our drivers were extra cautious, treated the cars like they are their own, refused alcohol (and we tested them) and stopped frequently to let us take comfort breaks.

There we go, they´re not all bad.

I can recommend Minuteman Pizza too (just out beyond the train station) . Run by a Boston man and his wife. Great pizzas and salads. So good we went there twice .0)