Parque Nacional Madidi-no tours...possible?

hello everyone!
the more i read about Parque Nacional Madidi the more I can't wait to go there!!However all I can see is 3-4 day tours or more.And they are expensive for the solo budget traveller that I am.I was wondering if I can just spend 2 nights there and take in 1-2 tours in the jungle?can I stay for 1-2 nights at the Chalalan ecolodge and NOT be part of a tour?Any other accommodation that are as good?Thanks.

Yes, the Madidi National Park is amazing. The official website http://www.sernap.gov.bo/madidi can be translated from Spanish to English using http://translate.google.com
"Learn More About Madidi" at http://www.wcs.org/international/latinamerica/centralandes/nwbolivia/madidimonkey/madidi_summary

I can recommend San Miguel del Bala. They have 1 and 2 days tours.
Recent threads mentioning San Miguel del Bala:
volunteering in S.Miguel del Bala, 22-Sep-2008.
Bolivia, 02-Oct-2008.
A recent blog: Bethany's Travels, 4th Sep 2008 - 7th Sep 2008.

For general information about Rurrenabaque and tours I can refer to my post in the thread "Rurrenabaque tours", 08-Jul-2008.

thanks erik!
San Miguel del Bala seems really nice to have a tour with.Their site doesn't say anything about prices though,any idea of the cost?

I stayed in San Miguel del Bala. To be honest, I think there was some confusion on pricing. We were told it was $45 for a day visit and $60 for spending the night. We only stayed one night, but were charged $60 for both days. By the time we realized this we were already at the lodge (having paid in advance at the office in town), but eventually thought...well, it's for the community and I'm sure they need our extra $15 ($30 total) more than we do. Anyway, it's cheaper than Chalalan.

It's a BEAUTIFUL lodge, rustic but very clean and well-kept. The food is the best I had in Bolivia...Bolivians tend to really oversalt things and bland things down and eat nothing corn and potatoes (ok, I'm exaggerating a bit) but the cooks at San Miguel del Bala have been well-trained.

You can choose the tours you want to take. We did a guided walk to learn about medicinal plants, and then a visit to the community. The second day we went hiking in Madidi proper.

I wrote a general travelogue about Rurrenabaque but much of it is about San Miguel del Bala. I think it's relatively balanced, not an all-out gushfest but I do think more people should visit!

hi again naugastyle!!

very nice travelogue on Rurre!!Will look into it for more detailed info later(I'm only planning for sometime next year)but I'm already relieved that I won't necessarily have to stay at the Chalalan lodge and that there are other ecolodges that are cheaper.thanks.

In the thread Bolivia, 02-Oct-2008, the user 'linek' writes: "... a company called San Miguel del Bala, and they are very recommendable. They do the jungletour. Bit pricey (60 $ a day), but worth it."

To be sure about prices you should send a mail to San Miguel del Bala.

The price 60 US $ a day has now been mentioned twice in this thread. Remember that the value of your money changes over time. The exchange rates to other currencies change, and the purchasing power in each country change.

The currency of Bolivia is Boliviano, but in the tourist sector also US dollar is used.
One and a half year ago 60 US $ was 498 Bolivianos. Now it is 429 Bolivianos (14 % less), and in the same 18 months the purchasing power of the Boliviano in Bolivia most likely has fallen.

With this I do not say that the prices in Bolivia will go up. I have no knowledge about this matter. I am only saying that when you go abroad, and want to pay a fair price, be prepared that the money you bring from home have less value than a year or two ago.

Previously the US $ was the strong currency, and when the Bolivianos was falling in value, it was an advantage to use prices in $.
But things have changed. See the TT thread Bolivia - Foreign currency, 28-Dec-2007.
The US dollar became weak compared with other dominant currencies. While the Euro has been rather steady (until recently).

The rate of exchange from US $ to Euro:
During the year 2007 1 US $ fell from 0.775 Euro (mid January) to 0.673 Euro (end of November). (Interbank rate, Daily average).
And the fall continued in 2008: 1 US $ = 0.627 in the end of April, and after some fluctuation it again reached 0,627 Euro in the mid of July 2008.

Since then the financial crisis has become worse in the US, but apparently more worse in Europe (and the rest of the world), and now the Euro has fallen compared with the US $: Today 1 US $ = 0,73 Euro.

The rate of exchange from US $ to Boliviano (Interbank rate, Daily average):
In the first almost 5 month of 2007 1 US $ was about 8.3 Boliviano. From the end of May the fall of the US $ compared with the Boliviano began, and 1 US $ was 7.7 Boliviano at the turn of the year 2007-2008. This fall has continued in 2008: In September 1 US $ reached the lowest so far: 7.0 Bolivianos. Today the rate is 7.16.

Source of exchange rates: http://www.oanda.com (FXHistory, historical currency exchange rates).
Note that the mentioned rates are 'Interbank rates'. The actual exchange rates when private persons exchange money or uses a credit card may differ 'a little'.

thanks erik.
Will bring euro,will check the rate of exchange situation early next year.