Nevado Sajama
Extinct volcano in Bolivia
Bolivia's highest peak, an extinct volcano in Sajama Province, Oruro Department.
Photo: Unknown, Public domain
BO · Curated travel guide
Bolivia: 10 places worth the journey
Nevado Sajama, Illimani, Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos and 7 more — what each one is, and why it is worth the detour.
- Places
- 10
- World Heritage
- 1
- Language
- Spanish
- Currency
- BOB
What to see in Bolivia
Chosen from everything Wikidata knows about Bolivia and ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions describe them, which is about as close to "famous" as open data gets. One is on UNESCO's World Heritage list.
Illimani
Mountain in Bolivia
A prominent fold mountain of Bolivia's Cordillera Real, a subrange of the Andes, about 82 kilometres (51 mi) southeast of La Paz. Its summit, 6,438 metres (21,120 ft) high, is the highest of the Cordillera Real and second in Bolivia only to Nevado Sajama.
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Anakin~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0
World Heritage
Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos
Catholic missions in Bolivia
Former Jesuit missions in Santa Cruz department, eastern Bolivia, six of which together became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.
Photo: Daan at Dutch Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Yungas Road
National Road in Bolivia, known for its treacherous journey
Usually called Death Road, a route for bikes and vehicles 64-kilometer (40 mi) long between the city of La Paz and Bolivia's Yungas region. The Bolivian government built it in the 1930s to link La Paz, the capital, with the Amazon Rainforest in the north of the country.
Photo: Hph at de.wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0
Ancohuma
Mountain in Bolivia
Also called Janq'u Uma, Bolivia's third-tallest peak, rising in the northern Cordillera Real, the Andean range to Lake Titicaca's east.
Photo: Christopher Walker from Krakow, Poland, CC BY 2.0
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Illampu
Mountain in Bolivia
Bolivia's fourth-tallest peak, rising in the northern Cordillera Real, the Andean range to Lake Titicaca's east.
Photo: codiferous (Cody H), CC BY 2.0
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Lake Titicaca
Large lake on the border of Peru and Bolivia
A large lake high in the Andes, on the border of Peru and Bolivia, often called the world's highest navigable lake.
Photo: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0
Huayna PotosÃ
Mountain in Bolivia
A fold mountain in western Bolivia, near the city of El Alto and about 25 km (16 mi) north of La Paz, the country's seat of government. It rises 6,088 m (19,974 ft) above sea level and belongs to the Andes' Cordillera Real, which divides the high Altiplano plains from the forested lowlands of the Yungas, the way down to the Amazon basin.
Photo: Skykid 123ve, CC BY 3.0
Parinacota (volcano)
Volcano on the border of Chile and Bolivia
Also called Parina Quta or Parinaquta, a dormant stratovolcano on the Chile–Bolivia border, which with Pomerape makes up the Nevados de Payachata volcanic chain.
Photo: Gerd Breitenbach, CC BY-SA 3.0
Chacaltaya
Mountain in Bolivia
A 5,395-meter (17,700 ft) peak of the Cordillera Real, itself one of the chains making up the Cordillera Oriental of Bolivia's Andes.
Photo: No machine-readable author provided. Anakin~commonswiki assumed (based on copyright claims)., CC BY-SA 3.0
About Bolivia
Officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, a landlocked country in the middle of South America. It is mostly Andean in the west and tropical lowland in the east and north, and its environment is highly varied: the huge Amazonian plain, the Gran Chaco, temperate valleys, the high Altiplano plateau, and mountains and snowy peaks, with a wide range of climates and biomes.
Officially The Plurinational State of Bolivia.
Based on the Wikipedia article, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0: the facts are Wikipedia's, the wording is this site's.
Questions travellers ask
What is worth seeing in Bolivia?
This guide lists 10: Nevado Sajama, Illimani, Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos and Yungas Road and others. Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
How were these places chosen?
By machine, from open data, with no human ranking them and nobody able to pay for a place on the list. Everything Wikidata records in Bolivia that is a building, a landform, a protected area or a tourist attraction, has coordinates, a photograph and an English Wikipedia article, is ranked by how many Wikipedia language editions wrote about it. Provinces, cities, airports, stations and stretches of sea shared with the neighbours are filtered out.
Which places here are UNESCO World Heritage Sites?
1 of the 10 in this guide: Jesuit Missions of Chiquitos. That is not the full count for Bolivia, only the listed sites that made this guide.
What language is spoken in Bolivia, and what currency?
Spanish. The currency is BOB.
How do I get mobile data in Bolivia?
A travel eSIM is usually the cheapest way, and avoids a roaming bill. The plans suggested at the foot of this guide start at $8.84 for 1GB for 7 days. The eSIM is data-only and sits alongside your normal SIM, so calls, texts and WhatsApp keep working on your own number.
Which networks would my phone use in Bolivia?
Tigo. Your phone picks whichever has the best signal where you are, the same way a local phone does.
One practical note: staying online
Maps, tickets and translation all want data, and roaming is the expensive way to get it. A Computatus eSIM eSIM connects to Tigo once you land, and installs by QR code before you leave.
See 6 Computatus eSIM plans for Bolivia from $8.84
| Plan | Data | Valid | Price | Order |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GB for 7 days Cheapest | 1 GB | 7 days | $8.84 | Get it → |
| 3GB per day | 3 GB | 1 day | $22.38 | Get it → |
| 3GB for 15 days | 3 GB | 15 days | $25.08 | Get it → |
| 5GB for 30 days | 5 GB | 30 days | $39.33 | Get it → |
| 10GB for 30 days | 10 GB | 30 days | $70.78 | Get it → |
| 20GB for 30 days | 20 GB | 30 days | $141.55 | Get it → |
No app needed. Install by QR code before you fly, keep your own number for calls, and it connects the moment you land.
Tigo 4G
A commission on plans bought through these links is what pays for this guide. Nothing above depends on it: the places are chosen before any price is looked up.