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Voykit pocket guide · Bolivia
Uyuni
Stay 2 nights: one before your salt-flat tour, one after. The town itself needs half a day; the Salar is the reason you came.
Uyuni is a cold, wind-scoured railway town at 3,670 m with one job: it is the gateway to the Salar de Uyuni, the world's largest salt flat. Almost nothing here competes with the tour. Book a tour, sleep either side of it, and leave. Plan around altitude and around the fact that buses and trains run on thin schedules.
- Country
- Bolivia
- Best months
- May–Oct (dry season, clear skies, cold nights)
- Avoid
- Jan–Mar (rain and mud; the mirror effect is spectacular but tours reroute), Jun–Jul nights (well below freezing)
- Stay
- 2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- BOB
- Money
- Currency is the boliviano (BOB, Bs). Cash rules outside larger hotels and restaurants in La Paz and Santa Cruz.
- Daily spend
- Budget Bs 150–250 excl. bed and tour · Mid Bs 250–450 excl. bed and tour · High Bs 450+ excl. bed and tour (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- Entel, Tigo and Viva sell SIMs with passport registration in their own shops.
- Emergency
- Police 110 · Ambulance 118 · Fire 119
- Plugs
- Types A, C · 230 V · 50 Hz · Some La Paz buildings have 115 V — check.
- Tipping
- Restaurants: Round up; about 10% in tourist restaurants.; Uyuni driver and cook: Bs 50–100 per traveller for 3 days, shared.; Guides: Bs 30–70 a day.
- Water
- Not safe from the tap; bottled or filtered.
- Toilets
- Pay a boliviano or two; bring paper.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Set lunch (almuerzo: soup and main) | Bs 10–25 |
| Pizza, individual | Bs 35–60 |
| Coffee or tea | Bs 5–15 |
| Beer, 1 L bottle in a shop | Bs 15–25 |
| Laundry, per kilo | Bs 15 |
| Internet café, per hour | Bs 5–6 |
| Bus to Potosí | Bs 30 |
| Bus to Tupiza | Bs 40–60 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- UYU · Joya Andina Airport
- Small airport about 3 km from town; flights from La Paz and Cochabamba, operated by Boliviana de Aviación. Schedules change often — check.Small airport about 1.9 mi from town; flights from La Paz and Cochabamba, operated by Boliviana de Aviación. Schedules change often — check.
Typical fares
- Bus Uyuni → Potosí
- Bs 30, 3–4 h
- Bus Uyuni → Tupiza
- Bs 40–60, about 5 h
- 3-day salt-flat tour
- from about Bs 600–700, plus a fee for onward transport to Chile
- Taxi in town
- Bs 10–20; agree the fare first
Get around
The town is flat and small enough to walk end to end in about 20 minutes. No local buses worth using. For the airport and the Train Graveyard, ask your hotel to arrange a taxi or remise and agree the fare first (check). For the Salar you go by tour vehicle only.
See and do
Known for
- Salar de Uyuni
- Train Graveyard
- Railway history
- Salt-flat tours
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Salar de Uyuni (day trip) | Organised 4x4 tour from a town agency; departure times vary by operator — check | Full day |
| Salar de Uyuni and the southwest lagoons (3–4 days) | Multi-day 4x4 tour, often ending at the Chilean border for San Pedro de Atacama | 3–4 days |
| Train Graveyard | Walk or short taxi ride about 2 km south of town along the railwayWalk or short taxi ride about 1.2 mi south of town along the railway | 1–2 h |
| Pulacayo | Road toward Potosí, about 20 kmRoad toward Potosí, about 12 mi | Half day |
Sleep
- Around Avenida Ferroviaria and the train station
- Where the tour offices, hostels and mid-range hotels cluster. Walkable to everything.
- Avenida Arce and Avenida Potosí
- Bus company offices, ATMs, market and cheap eats. Five minutes on foot from the station.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Hello | Buenos díasBWEH-nos DEE-as |
| Thank you | GraciasGRAH-syas |
| How much is it? | ¿Cuánto cuesta?KWAN-to KWES-ta |
| Where is the bus office? | ¿Dónde está la oficina de buses?DON-de es-TA la o-fi-SEE-na de BU-ses |
| I need a doctor | Necesito un médicone-se-SEE-to un ME-di-ko |
| The tour leaves at what time? | ¿A qué hora sale el tour?a ke O-ra SA-le el tur |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake and 'buenos días'; avoid: Rushing into business
- Photos: Ask, and accept a no; avoid: Photographing rituals uninvited
- Sea question: Listen; avoid: Joking about Bolivia's lost coast
- Queues and blockades: Patience; avoid: Arguing with protesters
Scams and watch-outs
- Altitude: the town sits at about 3,670 m and 3–4 day tours climb to roughly 5,000 m. Arrive from La Paz or Potosí already acclimatised, and do not fly in and tour the same morning.
- Cold: without sun the town and the flats drop below freezing in winter. Bring thermal layers, hat, gloves and a sleeping bag for night buses.
- Cheap tours: the lowest price often means an old vehicle, a cold night and a driver in a hurry. Pay for a mid-priced operator and check the vehicle before you leave.
- ATMs run out of cash, especially at weekends. Bring dollars as a backup and change them at a casa de cambio.
- Do not walk into the desert or attempt to cross the salt flat on foot. People have died doing it.
- Keep your bag in sight on public buses; luggage has gone missing between Uyuni and other cities.
Uyuni is a small town, but the real risks are altitude, cold and a bad tour operator. Pay for a mid-priced company, check the vehicle, and never walk into the desert.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Uyuni yet. Suggested stay: 2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Salar de Uyuni
- Train Graveyard
- Railway history
- Salt-flat tours
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Municipio de Uyuni — tourism office: municipiouyuni.gob.bo/
- Ferroviaria Andina — train schedules: ferroviaria-andina.com.bo/
- Wikivoyage: Uyuni, revision 5329590 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5329590
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Uyuni
A esta dirección, por favor
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Uyuni; most countries are represented in La Paz. The US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all have embassies there — check the address before you travel.
Altitude 3,670 m. Drink water, eat light on arrival, and skip alcohol the first night.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/uyuni). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.