Bolivia Landmarks and World Heritage Sites

Notice for travellers, October 2026. Bolivia has had a nationwide state of exception in force since June 2026. Blockades and demonstrations can cut roads between cities, including roads to airports, with very little warning, and fuel shortages are a recurring problem. The UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel to Chapare Province, Villa Tunari among its towns, and the US warns against travel there too. See the FCDO advice and travel.state.gov before planning.

Bolivia Landmarks and World Heritage Sites

Bolivia’s landmarks fall into four groups: ceremonies of the pre-Inca world, silver-era colonial cities, places of pilgrimage and a few landscapes. Fees below are in bolivianos with “about”, since the currency floated in 2026 and was near 12 per US dollar in late October. Confirm each price and opening day at the gate.

Before the Incas

Tiwanaku. The ceremonial centre of a civilisation that peaked between about AD 500 and 900 lies 72 km west of La Paz at 3,850 m, and UNESCO inscribed it in 2000. Look for the Kalasasaya platform and its Gate of the Sun, the sunken temple studded with carved stone heads, the stepped Akapana mound and the exact stone blocks of Pumapunku. The foreigner ticket is about Bs 100, cash, and the site is generally open from 09:00 to 17:00. The Aymara New Year is marked at dawn on 21 June, the southern winter solstice.

Silver cities

Potosí. The mint, Casa Nacional de la Moneda, is the city’s best-known sight, with wooden presses and colonial paintings. A guided tour costs about Bs 40 for foreigners, with Tuesday to Saturday hours, and a five-year restoration that started in September 2026 is expected to leave it open. The city was inscribed in 1987 and has been on UNESCO’s list of World Heritage in Danger since 2014; see the UNESCO decision . It lies at about 4,000 m, so rest first.

Cerro Rico, the mountain behind the city, is still mined by cooperatives. Silver extraction here cost the lives of vast numbers of forced labourers in the colonial era, and today’s miners work in dust and falling-rock danger. Tours exist, but they are a look at a hard workplace and not entertainment. They are not for children or for people with breathing, heart or claustrophobia problems.

Sucre. The white capital, at about 2,810 m, was inscribed in 1991. The Casa de la Libertad is the former chapel where independence was signed in August 1825, with a guided entry of about Bs 15 and Tuesday to Saturday opening.

Places of pilgrimage

Copacabana. On Lake Titicaca, the white basilica houses the dark wooden Virgin of Copacabana, carved in the 1500s. It is a working church, so dress modestly and stay quiet during services. Pilgrims climb Cerro Calvario above the town, free of charge, for sunset over the lake.

Landscapes and viewpoints

Valle de la Luna, La Paz. Eroded clay pinnacles in Mallasa, 10 km from the centre. Entry was about Bs 15 and it opens in daylight.

Cristo de la Concordia, Cochabamba. A 34 m statue on Cerro San Pedro, reached by cable car for about Bs 10 return, with views over the valley.

Salar de Uyuni. The largest salt flat in the world is spectacular but is not on any UNESCO list. It is a multi-day, cold trip above 3,600 m. From about December to April rain floods it into a mirror, though some routes then close.

Getting between sights

Travel between cities is by long-distance bus or domestic flight, and BOA covers many routes. Flying is the safer bet when roads are blocked. Altitude shapes every itinerary, because La Paz and El Alto run from 3,600 to 4,000 m. Move up slowly, avoid alcohol early on and see a doctor before travel. Coca tea is a local custom and not a proven treatment.

For a guide with transport, compare GetYourGuide tours of Bolivian sights .

Read more: Walking routes through the old towns and a 7 day route that strings sights together.