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District · La Paz

Plaza Murillo and Casco ViejoPlaza Murillo y casco viejo

Steep cobbled streets and colonial houses.

sleepsee

Key facts

Suits
First visit, museums and government buildings
Sights here
2
Eats here
1

What it's like

Feels:
Government square with colonial streets
Suits:
First visit, museums and government buildings
Best time:
Morning
Watch out for:
Protest days.
In short:
Steep cobbled streets and colonial houses.

About these names

Zona Sur (Calacoto and San Miguel) is the wealthy lower district, warmer and 300–400 m lower.

The centre is a strip along the canyon floor: the old town and Plaza Murillo at the top, El Prado in the middle and Sopocachi on the west slope. El Alto is above the rim.

Where exactly

This district is highlighted. Shapes follow this guide's walking areas and places, not official boundaries.

Plaza Murillo and Casco Viejo on the La Paz mapTap an area for what it is like and who it suits. Shapes follow this guide’s walking areas and places, not official boundaries.
Plaza San Francisco hot… · $$Sopocachi hotels · $$

Plaza Murillo and Casco ViejoPlaza Murillo y casco viejo

sleepsee

Steep cobbled streets and colonial houses.

Suits: First visit, museums and government buildings

On the map: MUSEF: National Museum of Ethnography and Folklore

District guideWalk: Plaza Murillo & Calle JaénIn the districts table

Off the map: El Alto International Airport (LPB) (35–60 min by the usual route).

Not drawn yet (no coordinates in this guide): Zona Sur (Calacoto). See the table above.

Where’s what, as a list:

  • Plaza Murillo and Casco Viejo (Plaza Murillo y casco viejo): Steep cobbled streets and colonial houses. Suits: First visit, museums and government buildings.
  • Sagárnaga and San Francisco (Sagárnaga y San Francisco): Busy, steep and noisy; the hostel and tour-agency area. Suits: Budget stays, tours, market shopping. Price band $$.
  • El Prado (El Prado): The main avenue; flatter and easier for slow starts. Suits: Flat walks and larger hotels.
  • Sopocachi (Sopocachi): A leafy district with restaurants and Plaza Abaroa. Suits: Cafés, quiet evenings, couples. Price band $$.
  • Zona Sur (Calacoto) (Zona Sur): Twenty minutes by car; embassies and malls. Suits: Warmer, lower, calmer.
  • Sleep area Plaza San Francisco hotels: suits Budget stays, tours, market shopping, price band $$.
  • Sleep area Sopocachi hotels: suits Cafés, quiet evenings, couples, price band $$.
  • El Alto International Airport (LPB), 35–60 min by the usual route.

Stay here?

Not a base in this guide

No sleep area here has scores. The best-placed bases are Sagárnaga and San Francisco, Sopocachi.

See

Opening hours and prices from each place page; (check) means typical hours, not yet verified.

  • MUSEF: National Museum of Ethnography and FolkloreGo

    A well-run museum of Andean and lowland textiles, masks and festival dress, in a colonial mansion near Plaza Murillo: 60–90 minutes, and an indoor shelter on a cold or wet day.

    Hours:
    Check days and hours.(check)
    Entry:
    Bs10–30 (2026 estimate)
  • Plaza MurilloGo

    The main square with the cathedral and government palaces: 30 minutes on a slow first morning, then rest.

    Entry:
    Free

Eat

What to order and what locals pay, from each eat page. Prices are estimates; check the menu.

  • Mercado Lanza: api and pastel breakfast

    A central market with breakfast counters selling api (hot purple-corn drink) and pastel (fried cheese pastry): go 07:30–10:30 on your second morning, not straight after landing.

    Order: Api morado: Ask for it caliente and with a pastel.

    Price: Api and a pastel for Bs8–15 (2026 estimate).

Drink and nightlife

Lines from the La Paz drinking guide that name this district.

  • Calle Jaén cafés · Coffee and singani · until EveningSmall bars in colonial houses.

Getting there and around

Where to get off

  • Walk from Plaza Murillo along Calle Ingavi · for MUSEF: National Museum of Ethnography and Folklore
  • Plaza Murillo · for Plaza Murillo
  • Market entrance near Plaza Murillo (field-verify) · 6 min walk to Mercado Lanza: api and pastel breakfast

Walks inside the district

  • Plaza Murillo → MUSEF (ethnography museum): 8–11 min on foot (Walk to MUSEF)
  • Mercado Lanza: api and pastel breakfast → Plaza Murillo: 5–7 min on foot (Walk to Plaza Murillo)

On to the next area

From other sleep areas

  • From Plaza San Francisco hotels: 12–17 min walk to Plaza Murillo & Calle Jaén

Minutes are this guide’s typical walking and ride times (p50–p90); traffic and heat stretch them.

Half-day walk

In the day plans: Day 1 — A slow start: Plaza Murillo and the Witches' Market (La Paz in 3 days)

Photo and sunset spots

Streets in this district

Street names that appear in the addresses of this district’s places and eats: useful to type into a map or show a driver.

  • Calle Ingavi

Safety at night and noise

  • Plaza Murillo and casco viejoday: oknight: caution

    Protests and marches; pickpockets.

Nearby districts

Built from this guide’s La Paz districts table, place, eat and sleep pages, route graph and city notes. Hours, prices and rules change: anything marked (check) is typical, not verified. checked: 2026-09.