Uyuni Travel Forum

Can anyone recommend a good tour operator to go across Salar De Uyuni, going from Uyuni to San Perdro De Atacama??

Hi VTs

I am looking for a (reliable) tour operator that organises tours to Uyuni from La Paz. From what I've seen, there are plenty or operators offering tours to the salar from Uyuni itself, but given that it is a bit of a pain to get from La Paz to Uyuni (namely rough bus to Oruro, and then train to Uyuni), I was wondering if you are aware of any operators that offer to pick you up from La Paz on their own vehicles and take you straight to Uyuni and then around the flats.

My main aim is trying to find an alternative to the current transportation methods linking La Paz to Uyuni, particularly the bus link.

Let me know your thoughts please.

Thanks a lot

RV

Anyone know where do you take the bus tha goes from La Paz to Oruro? And what days do the trains leave Oruro to Uyuni? I can't seem to find any info on this on the web. Thanks!

Can somebody tell me at what time buses from Oruro to Uyuni depart? the overnight ones?

Two friends and I will be traveling down from Machu Picchu, through Puno to La Paz. From there, the highlight of our Bolivian travels will be the salt flats in Uyuni.

We want to stop in Potosí on the way, though. I know that people typically take the bus to Oruro and then the train to Uyuni. What is the transportation situation for going from La Paz to Potosi to Uyuni?

After the salt flats we will be traveling up to Salta. I found a train (Ferroviara Andina) that will take us from Uyuni through Atocha, Tupiza, and Villazon). Is this the best transportation?

Or, instead of going directly across the border, does it make sense for us to stop in any of the other towns? Sucre? Tupiza? What do they offer?

Thanks for your help!

-- Rachel

Hi all
Advice needed!! I am arriving in Calama on Monday and have read in various places that the train to Uyuni leaves on Wednesday night from Calama. I have also seen a few notes on Calama being a 'not-much-to-see' town so would therefore like to go to San Pedro de Atacama. I have 3 questions...
1. Is this a better option. i.e. go to Calama to S.P.D.Atacama?
2. Can I get transport to Uyuni from S.P.D. Atacama and when/what is it?
3. We are going over there in mid Oct? Do we need extreme cold weather clothing in traveller experience of will good jackets, hats etc be ok?

Thankyou

Rusty

Ok so i'm planning on going to uyuni from Santiago. I can afford to buy domestic plane tickets and I was thinking to either Arica or Calama. Are there buses that go from Chile to Uyuni? Do I need to book tickets in advance? Any advice is appreciated.

Is there a flight from La Paz to Uyuni? If not, what is the best way to get there? Is it safe for a single female traveling from La Paz to Uyuni?

Also, any recommended companies to do a tour of the salt flats over about 3 days?

Oh, one more thing ... is the a company that leave from La Paz to do the flats and then return to La Paz?

Thanks!

Hi
I am visiting S. America for a month in Septemeber. Can anyone recommend a suitable itinery over a week of so to visit Atacam/Salyar d Uyuni/ and where is a good target in northern Chile for onward travel south. With a wealth of infor out there its difficult what is best so the advice of anyone would be extremely appreciated

Regards

Russ and Hannah

Hi
I am wondering if it is a possible/feasible route to travel from Iguazu in Argentina to Uyuni by coach/train? If so, is it a worthwhile journey in terms of cost/scenery/travelling time? Any tips would be v much appreciated.

Regards

Russ & Hannah

Hello!
I will have only 3 days in Bolivia, and I heard theres a 3 day tour that takes you to the Salar de Uyuni and these different colored lagoons... So basically Im wondering if anyone knows about this tour and/or has gone on it, how it was, and how much it costed?
Thanks!

is there any specific gear that you would recommend bringing? will be going via machu picchu and lago titicaca, so will have the basics. i heard it´s very cold there.

tours el caminante-supposedly newest company with nice jeeps.
toñito tours

thank you for the info re: colque and juliet tour companies.
are these still the recommended companies?

We (2) arrive in La Paz on Sunday Morning 1st of october (after a long trip from Europe).
We are looking for transport to Uyuni bus/train to start a 3-day trip on Thuesday in the Salar and de Reserva de Fauna Andina Eduardo Avaroa.
We prefer not to travel at night.
What can you recommend us? Spanish is not a problem.
Thanks
Choque2001@yahoo.com

Could anybody let me know how possible it is to catch a bus from either Uyuni to Iguazu Falls or San Pedro De Atacama to Iguazu Falls? If so, approximately how long does the trip take?

hi everybody,

does anybody has experience in renting a jeep with a private chofer/driver in la paz and doing a trip to salar de uyuni.

i think the travelling by bus and train will be very strenuos especially if you are planning to stay only 2 nights in the region. to rent a private jeep sounds like a more comfortable way to travel.

can anyone provide some addresses where to rent a car with driver and what will that cost (3 day return trip with driver from la paz and app. 1500 km )

Any informatiion is highly appreciated

thanks in advance

ulrich

Hi I am arriving into La Paz on Sat morning the 27th May and want to get to Uyuni.
From what i have read i can catch a bus leaving at 4-5 pm on the sat to Oruro, that takes about 3 hours then from Oruro to Uyuni you can get an overnight bus that arrives into uyuni at 5 am the next day.

Is the above correct and do the buses run everyday?
Also when u arrive at oruro are you sure going to get on to the next bus.

Also is it best to book a tour of the salt planes when you arrive at uyuni or before.

Thank you very much for your help
Steven

Hi there,
I am planning a trip around south america for next year and my itinerary is pery-bolivia-chile-argentina-brazil. I pretty much have all my itinerary planned from Peru to Bolivia but I am a bit stuck in getting from Salar de Uyuni to Santiago in Chile. Has anyone done this route before? Which means of transport are available? Which towns are worth visiting on the way down?
Any information would be greately appreciated!
Thanks!
LL

Does anyone have experience with Relampago Tours in Uyuni and what their accommodations are like in Jirira? Also, any information about the northern part of the Salar de Uyuni near Volcan Thunupa would be appreciated.

Hey ppl,

I'm planning taking a tour from San Pedro one way to Uyuni (think with Colque Tours) who say they arrive on the 3rd day at around 15:00. Leaving on the 9th April arriving 11th April hopefully!

Just wondering what my next best move would be. I would like to visit Potosi and Sucre but am rather pushed for time. As I have to be in Cuzco on the 19th of April.

Waiting for my lonely planet guide to Bolivia to arrive so I can work out the best (i.e. fastest) route.

Any advice, tips welcomed, thanks in advance!

Steve.

I'm just wondering if there are any flights going form La Paz to Uyuni and back.
Any information is very appreciated.

What is the Salt tour? I don't know anything about this but I really want to see the salt flats. I don't want to end up in Chile though. So what are my options? I'm coming to Uyuni from Buenos Aires and I want to go to Potosi so I want to end up back in Uyuni. What is this 2-4 tour? Does it always end in Chile? I guess I just want some general information because I'm really in the dark about this place. Thank you so much! Any information would be deeply appreciated.

How long does is take and how much does it cost to get to Uyuni by bus from Buenos Aires? Thank you so much!

Hi!
I´m with a group of people in Bolivia and we´re going to Uyuni so that we can do the tour that goes round the salt lakes and down to the lagunas in the game reserves then back to Uyuni. I understand that it's possible to go from the reserve through to Chile and we are interested in doing this so that we can re-enter bolivia with another 90 day visa. Does anyone know how long it takes to get to San Pedro de Atacama from the border and if it's possible to then go back to Uyuni in the same day? (is it possible to just pop over for a couple of hours?) if not, would it be best to spend the night in San Pedro then head back up to Uyuni the next day...AND...how long would it take to drive from San Pedro to Uyuni? or...would it be best to pop-over and spend the night somewhere on the way back to Uyuni? thank you for your time in reading this, all help is greatly appreciated!

Please answer the following questions.

1. What is the best way to get to Uyuni from La Paz and back to Uyuni? If it is by train or bus, how much does it cost?
2. Is it best to get my own train/bus from La Paz to Uyuni or should I have a tour operator do it? How long are the tours? How much do they cost?
3. Is it safe to travel from Uyuni to La Paz by myself?
3. Is Potosi worth visting?

Thanks,

Changito_Loco

I have the choice of either taking the 3-day tour of the Salar de Uyuni either right now (Feb 5-16) or in mid-March (the 12th and beyond). I want to see the salar's breathtaking mirror effect work on the sun and clouds, but weather.com says that it is raining and overcast both day and night in uyuni for the next ten days!

Has anyone traversed the Salar in mid-March? What kind of weather would I expect? Should i go now, and chance having a flooded/overcast experience, or later, and risk missing the rainy season? (dry salt flats do not sound as appealing...)

Thanks to anyone who can answer my question...

-an avid photographer

(apologies if this post appears more than once...I accidentally posted it in the wrong place at first)

hi all, two of us are planning on arriving in Uyuni on Saturday the 5th on the train from villazon at 11 pm. would love to take a two day tour starting the next morning. is this possible? can anyone recommend who to do it with and where they are located? Can we set it up first thing in the morning? Also need a non grungy place to stay on the 5th in uyuni. any suggestions?

Thanks!

Hello there!

I´m baking in the heat here in El Bolson - Argentina - at the moment and thinking of posting all my Patagonian warm weather gear back to London. We´re heading up to San Pedro De Atacama and then across the Salar and into Bolivia on a 4W tour end of February/beginning March. Can anyone tell me how cold it will be at night? I´ve heard it can go down to -25 in which case I might hang on to a fleece or two.

Will be grateful for any advice

Cheers

Plan to take the four day Salar de Uyuni tour, and want to know if anyone can recommend a good tour operator, as i hear the quality can differ greatly!

Hello everybody. I have actually 2 questions:
1) Ive read everywhere on the net that Esmeralda Tour was the best agency to do the jeep tour. Ive tried to reach them but they won't pick up the phone. Was someone recently there and could tell me if they're still in business? and what is the best way to reach them (email?)

2) I would like to use this tour operator but starting from San Pedro De Sula and ending at uyuni. Do you know if it's possible? the lonely planet mentions few agencies that do the tour from San Pedro but they can't recommend any of them. I wish I could book the tour with Esmeralda from San Pedro.

3) here's a last one: do we have to book in advance or can we just show up there?

Thanks a lot for your help and suggestions.
Celine