The Great Andean Altiplano Expedition

It runs in the dry season, May to October, for clear skies, a firm surface on the Salar, open tracks across the altiplano, and the best conditions in the canyons and at the high lakes. Nights are cold at altitude year round. A scheduled October departure is offered, and as a private trip it can also run on your own dates.

The expedition is priced by party size. The rate is $5,700 per person at four to six guests, higher for smaller parties, and lower at seven or more, with solo pricing on request. The full scale is shown on the page.

A deposit of $1,425 per person, twenty-five percent of the rate, secures your place, with the balance due before departure. You can pay by card, bank transfer, or wire.

Yes. It runs privately for your own party, capped at eight guests, with a private 4×4 and driver-guide throughout.

The trip begins lower in Santa Cruz, Cochabamba, and Toro Toro, roughly 2,000 to 3,600 meters, and climbs into the deep altiplano, where Ciudad de Itas, the Sol de Manana geysers, and the high lagoons sit between 4,000 and 4,900 meters. The gradual ascent helps you adjust, but take the high southwest days steady and consult your doctor about altitude medication if you have any heart or respiratory condition.

The earlier days at moderate altitude ease you in. Hydrate well, take the first high days slowly, and rest when you need to. Coca tea is widely available and many travelers find it helps.

The Umajalanta cave involves scrambling, ducking, and some tight passages. It is optional, so if you have mobility concerns or claustrophobia you can skip it and explore above ground instead. Tell your guide either way.

Comprehensive travel insurance is mandatory and must cover high altitude, caving, horse riding, and remote medical evacuation, since the southwest altiplano is a long way from the nearest hospital.

Moderate. Much of it is private 4×4 touring, but there are active days: caving and canyon stairs at Toro Toro, walking at altitude, and optional riding and biking at Tupiza. Nothing is technical, but reasonable fitness and comfort at altitude make it more enjoyable.

No. The horse riding and mountain biking are options. You can do either, both, or neither and see the red canyon country on foot or by vehicle instead.

There are day walks on uneven ground at altitude, the Toro Toro canyon and caves, the Maragua crater, and various viewpoints, all at a relaxed pace with time to rest.

Some are long. The deep-altiplano legs around Guadalupe, Ciudad de Roma, and Quetena mean several hours on rough tracks in the 4×4, broken by stops. They test your patience for travel more than your fitness.

Every transfer is in a private 4×4 with a driver-guide. The deep-altiplano sections cross remote, largely roadless country, with long distances between stops and very few services along the way.

Very, in the southwest. A couple of nights are in basic accommodation with limited facilities and no hot water, chosen because they are the only option in some spectacular and isolated places.

The cities and towns, Cochabamba, Sucre, Potosi, and Tupiza, have coverage. Toro Toro is limited, and the deep altiplano and Sajama are largely off-grid, so treat those stretches as a disconnection.

Expect bright, dry days with very strong high-altitude sun and cold nights that drop below freezing on the altiplano. You need to pack for both extremes in the same day.

It ranges from comfortable hotels in Cochabamba, Sucre, and Tupiza to an ecolodge at Toro Toro, simple refuges and a salt hotel in the southwest altiplano, and the Tomarapi ecolodge at Sajama. The remote stays are basic by necessity; the town stays are comfortable.

Bring warm layers and a windproof for cold nights and high passes, strong sun protection and a hat, sturdy shoes for the caves and canyons, a headlamp, and clothes you do not mind getting dusty on the caving and off-road days. A small daypack is useful for the walks.

In the cities, yes. Across the remote altiplano stretch, plan to be self-sufficient for several days, as services are scarce.