Few places on Earth rival the visual drama of Bolivia’s Altiplano. Here, at elevations over 12,000 feet (3,650 meters), vast salt deserts, ancient volcanoes, and luminous skies converge to create a surreal and dynamic environment—one that shifts with the seasons and challenges your photographic eye in every direction. This 7-day journey combines two of Bolivia’s most iconic highland regions: the flooded Uyuni Salt Flats and the majestic, little-visited Sajama National Park.
But before we reach these remote frontiers, we begin where all great high-altitude expeditions should—with time to adjust. Your journey starts in La Paz, the world’s highest capital, nestled in a canyon beneath the towering Cordillera Real. From here, we travel to the sapphire-blue shores of Lake Titicaca, the cradle of Andean civilization and an essential step in your active acclimatization process. We build this time into the itinerary deliberately—so you can adapt safely while photographing Inca ruins, vibrant Aymara life, and sunrises over 20,000-foot peaks.
Once acclimatized, we descend back to La Paz and fly south to the Salar de Uyuni, the largest salt flat on Earth. In the rainy season (Dec–Mar), the salar transforms into a vast natural mirror, producing the famed optical illusions seen from space. In the dry season (Apr–Nov), its cracked hexagonal crust and piercing clarity offer minimalist landscapes and stargazing unlike anywhere else. We’ll base ourselves near Thunupa Volcano, photographing both sunrise and sunset, exploring nearby pre-Inca cave mummies, and capturing migratory pink flamingos, vicuñas, and epic Andean skies.
From the flats, we drive north along the Chilean border to Sajama National Park, Bolivia’s oldest and perhaps most underrated reserve. Anchored by the towering Sajama Volcano (6,542 m / 21,463 ft), this alpine ecosystem is home to wild vicuñas, pumas, condors, and the world’s highest-elevation queñua forest—a gnarled grove of Andean trees surviving at nearly 15,000 feet (4,570 m). Add to that natural hot springs, traditional Aymara herders, and zero light pollution, and you have a perfect finale of photography, culture, and astronomy.
We return to La Paz on the final day for a well-earned farewell dinner and airport transfers based on your schedule.
This tour is offered year-round and is designed for photographers who want world-class visuals, expertly managed logistics, and the space to slow down and truly see. Whether you’re chasing reflections in the rainy season or patterns in the dry, the Altiplano will leave its mark.
December to April (wet season)
10 Guests
Vans & 4x4
Hotels & Hostels
Level 2 - Easy Level
We, of course, would do whatever is necessary in case of medical emergency and evacuate to the closest hospital or clinic to make sure you receive medical care.
Most international flights into Bolivia arrive in the very early morning hours at El Alto International Airport, which sits at a breath-catching 13,200 feet (4,100 meters) above sea level—on the edge of the Altiplano. If this is your first time at high altitude, you may feel light-headed or short of breath, which is completely normal. Don’t worry—we’ve planned for it.
Once you clear Immigration (where your tourist visa is issued on arrival) and Customs, a Sergio Photo Tours representative will be waiting for you at the passenger meeting area with a clearly marked sign. We’ll handle your luggage and escort you to our private vehicle. From there, you’ll descend nearly 3,000 feet (about 900 meters) into the heart of La Paz, down winding roads with sweeping views into the city’s dramatic canyon setting.
Your first stop is the Casa Grande Suites—a 5-star hotel in the Calacoto-Achumani district—situated at a more comfortable 10,200 feet (3,100 meters). You’ll have the morning to check in, rest, and begin adjusting to the elevation at your own pace. Lunch is on your own at the hotel, and we recommend taking it slow, staying well hydrated, and listening to your body. Everyone acclimates differently—some feel fine within hours, others may take a couple of days. Our itinerary builds in plenty of time to ease into the altitude.
At 2:00 p.m., we begin our introduction to La Paz with a four-hour private city tour. You’ll photograph and explore local open-air markets, colonial neighborhoods, the famous witches’ market, and a series of stunning panoramic viewpoints that showcase the city’s unique geography. It’s a low-key afternoon designed to stimulate your creative eye without overexerting your body.
After returning to the hotel, you’ll have time to rest and freshen up before we gather for a welcome dinner. This is a chance to meet your instructors and fellow travelers, review the days ahead, and make sure everyone is squared away on gear, clothing, and any lingering questions.
We recommend a light dinner, limited alcohol or caffeine, and plenty of water. During the day, feel free to try a cup of mate de coca—a traditional herbal tea that aids with acclimatization. In the evening, consider switching to calming teas like chamomile or anise to help with digestion and rest.
You’re officially in the Andes. We’ll take good care of you from here on out.
Hotel: Casa Grande Suites (5*)
Meals included: D
Today we travel deeper into the Altiplano, toward one of the most iconic places in all of South America—Lake Titicaca, a sacred body of water whose shores have cradled civilizations for millennia. At nearly 12,500 feet (3,810 meters), this part of the journey continues your altitude acclimatization, allowing your body to adjust gradually before we move higher in the coming days. It’s also a day to slow down and simply take it in—to breathe deeply, walk lightly, and begin to sense the spirit of the Altiplano.
After a hearty breakfast, we depart La Paz and begin climbing out of the city, ascending steadily onto the open plateau. To the east, the Cordillera Real stretches into the sky—a jagged spine of white summits rising above 20,000 feet. As we pass through rural hamlets and expansive agricultural lands, the road unfolds with long views across the high plains, dotted with adobe homes, herds of llamas, and rows of potatoes planted in ancient terraced fields.
Lake Titicaca greets us with stillness and space. Its deep blue waters, set against the backdrop of snowcapped peaks, offer a kind of clarity that can’t be found elsewhere. We’ll spend the day moving at a relaxed pace—photographing the light off the lake, watching highland birds along the reed-fringed shores, and observing the rhythm of Aymara life as it has existed for generations. Lunch en-route.
In the afternoon, we return to La Paz along a route that offers more opportunities for photography if the light and conditions are right. If we time it right, we can catch the sunset hitting Mt. Illimani, as it faces west and catches the last rays of the sun. Dinner at a local restaurant and overnight in La Paz.
Hotel: Casa Grande Suites (5*)
Meals Included: B, L, D
Today we begin our overland journey to one of the most surreal landscapes on the planet—the Salar de Uyuni, Earth’s largest salt flat and one of the crown jewels of the Andes.
After a good night’s sleep and breakfast at our hotel in La Paz, we depart at 8:00 a.m., climbing steadily out of the canyon and onto the vast rim of the Altiplano. In just over an hour, we ascend from 10,200 feet (3,100 meters) to 13,300 feet (4,050 meters)—a reminder that this is no ordinary road trip, but a high-altitude expedition across one of the most starkly beautiful regions in South America.
Heading south, we follow the main highway through windswept plains and quiet mining towns. We pass Oruro, then stop for lunch in Challapata, a highland town surrounded by agricultural lands. As we continue southwest, the paved road gives way to rugged tracks and open space. We pass the town of Salinas de Garci Mendoza, and the journey shifts—dirt roads now lead us deeper into the solitude of the Altiplano.
By late afternoon, we reach the northern edge of the Salar de Uyuni, just below the gaze of Mount Thunupa, an extinct volcano that towers above the landscape at 5,335 meters (17,500 feet). The scale is breathtaking. Villages like Jirira and Coquesa appear briefly before we arrive in Tahua, our home for the next two nights.
Depending on our arrival time and the weather, we may check in first or head straight to the salt flats for sunset. If conditions align—clouds, reflection, color—you’ll witness a visual phenomenon that defies logic. The Salar, at 12,000 feet (3,660 meters), stretches across over 4,000 square miles, and when the light is right, the sky appears to dissolve into the ground.
After sunset, we return to freshen up and enjoy dinner at Hotel Tayka de Sal, a community-owned salt-brick hotel built at the foot of the volcano.
Hotel: Tayka de Sal (3*)
Meals included: B, L, D
We begin early—well before sunrise—with a short drive to the edge of the Salar de Uyuni. If the winds are calm and a thin layer of water covers the surface, this is when the magic happens: the first light of day rising above the Altiplano and reflecting perfectly on the salar’s mirror-like skin. As the horizon glows, the vast expanse dissolves into the sky, creating one of the most surreal photographic moments anywhere on Earth.
The sun rises fast at this latitude, and once the show is over, we return to the hotel for a full breakfast and a short rest.
Later in the morning, we venture inland to the Chiquini Caves, where ancient volcanic activity has left behind cathedral-like chambers and walls coated with petrified plant formations. These fossils hang in delicate layers from the ceiling—remnants of a prehistoric world when this region was once underwater. The route there winds through canyons and offers striking overlooks with ever-shifting perspectives of the salt flats below.
We enjoy a picnic lunch en route, then return to the hotel in the early afternoon for a brief rest and gear check before the second part of the day unfolds.
In the late afternoon, we drive up the lower slopes of Mount Thunupa, an extinct stratovolcano that looms over the salar at 5,335 meters (17,500 feet). For thousands of years, it has served as both a spiritual landmark and navigational beacon. Near the end of the road, we make a short hike to a tucked-away cave that houses pre-Inca mummies—a quiet, powerful space that links the region’s volcanic history with its human past.
Thunupa’s geologic story is as layered as its slopes—its Pleistocene lava flows, signs of past glaciation, and evidence that it once stood as an island in ancient Lake Minchin and Lake Tauca. From this high vantage point, the Salar stretches beyond the horizon, its edges still invisible in every direction.
We descend in time for sunset on the flats, watching the light shift across the landscape one last time today. Then it’s back to the hotel for dinner and a well-earned rest.
Hotel: Tayka de Sal (3*)
Meals included: B, L, D
We begin our last morning on the Uyuni Salt Flats with one more chance to photograph sunrise. No two mornings are ever alike here—the wind, the clouds, the reflection, the silence—it all shifts day to day. If conditions are right, we’ll head to a favorite spot near the water’s edge to capture the salar’s final morning transformation.
After breakfast and packing up, we head north around the flanks of Mount Thunupa, beginning our journey toward one of Bolivia’s wildest and least-frequented regions: Sajama National Park.
We retrace our route through Challapata, then veer west across a seldom-traveled section of the Altiplano, climbing deeper into a rugged volcanic corridor that stretches toward the Chilean border. This is a part of Bolivia few people ever see—a landscape of high-altitude rivers, marshy bofedales, lagoons, and vast plains inhabited by vicuñas, rheas, foxes, and highland birds of prey. We travel through an ecosystem shaped by fire, wind, and millennia of slow adaptation.
Midday, we pause for a picnic lunch in the surreal rock formations of Pumiri, a remote “city of stone” sculpted from ancient lava flows. The landscape here is filled with fantastical formations—towers, arches, and figures that resemble animals or mythical creatures. We’ll take time to stretch, walk, and photograph in this otherworldly terrain before continuing north.
By late afternoon, we enter Sajama National Park, Bolivia’s first national park, established in 1939. Anchored by Nevado Sajama, the country’s tallest mountain at 6,542 meters (21,460 feet), this high-altitude wilderness feels sacred and untamed. Our first destination is a nearby lagoon beneath Sajama to photograph the volcano’s reflection—an ideal spot for either sunset or the next day’s sunrise, depending on the light.
From there, we drive northeast into the park’s interior, arriving in the village of Tomarapi, where we’ll spend the night in a community-owned hostel. Founded in 2003 to support sustainable tourism, the Hostal Tomarapi is a simple but welcoming place, offering clean rooms, warm meals, and insight into the local Aymara way of life.
Hotel: Hostal Tomarapi (3*)
Meals included: B, L, D
This morning, we rise early for what may be one of the most unforgettable dawns of the entire journey. Departing in the dark, we travel southwest—about 45 minutes—to a remote lagoon beneath Mount Sajama, where Bolivia’s tallest peak (6,542 m / 21,460 ft) reflects in calm morning water.
Flanking this sacred volcano are the Payachatas, a pair of dormant volcanic twins straddling the Bolivia-Chile border. With the first light rising behind the peaks this high-altitude basin offers one of the most iconic photography locations on the Bolivian Altiplano.
Sajama National Park, established in 1939, is Bolivia’s oldest and one of its most biologically and geologically unique reserves. Here you’ll find herds of domesticated llamas and alpacas grazing beneath glaciers, bofedales (high-altitude wetlands) laced with icy runoff, and the world’s highest forest, made up of hardy queñua trees growing up to nearly 16,000 feet. The air is thin, the light is clean, and every element of the landscape feels ancient.
After sunrise, we stop in the village of Sajama for a local breakfast before spending the rest of the morning visiting several of the park’s natural and cultural landmarks. We’ll explore the geothermal geysers, bubbling with enough heat to boil eggs, and photograph chullpas—ancestral burial towers made from mud, stone, and straw, standing solemnly across the landscape as markers of the region’s Aymara heritage.
We return to Tomarapi for lunch and a midday rest, taking time to process images, relax, and adjust to the high altitude. In the late afternoon, we head back into the park’s interior for wildlife tracking and golden hour photography. The region is home to vicuñas, viscachas (Andean mountain rodents resembling large rabbits), rheas, eagles, and the elusive Andean condor.
We plan to return to photograph Mt. Sajama for sunset, capturing the last light as it dances across this vast, silent wilderness.
Hotel: Tomarapi (3*)
Meals included: B, L, D
We begin our final morning in Sajama National Park with a sunrise close to home—just outside our lodge in Tomarapi, where the rising sun casts a warm glow across the eastern flank of Mount Sajama and the façade of the village’s historic colonial-era church. This simple adobe structure, framed by wide skies and volcanic peaks, is a hidden cultural gem. We’ll have special access to photograph the interior, where faded frescoes and hand-painted artwork hint at the region’s long fusion of Catholic and Aymara traditions.
After breakfast, we begin our drive back to La Paz, taking a scenic dirt route around Mount Sajama to the park’s southern boundary. We connect with the main highway linking La Paz to the Chilean border and follow it east across the Altiplano. Along the way, we pass through canyons, river valleys, and the open plains that define this highland region.
En route, we stop to visit several more chullpas, the funerary towers used for centuries by the Aymara to honor their leaders and elders. These ancient monuments are both photographic and spiritual markers—standing stoic against the elements and time.
We arrive in La Paz in the early afternoon and check into our hotel, where you’ll have time to relax, repack, or explore the city at your own pace. The rest of the afternoon is free time—a great opportunity to pick up local crafts, textiles, or simply unwind after an unforgettable week across Bolivia’s wild and wind-swept interior.
At 7:00 p.m., we gather for one final group dinner at one of La Paz’s favorite local restaurants. It’s a chance to reflect, share stories, share your favorite images, and celebrate the landscapes, wildlife, and people that made this journey so memorable. After dinner, we return to the hotel for rest and your final preparations before international departures the next day.
Hotel: Casa Grande Suites (5*)
Meals included: B, L, D
Most hotel departures depart around midnight to the airport. Based on your flight schedule, we will coordinate a departure time from the hotel. The ride from to the airport takes 45 minutes. Domestic flights require 1.5 hours before departure and international flights require 2.5 hours before departure.
Hotel: none
Meals included: none
End of our services.
Review of: Bolivia: Flooded Uyuni Salt Flats & Sajama National Park – 7 days
I did this tour with Sergio in February. It was the perfect time to go to the salt flats. Logistically, Sergio made everything easy from the moment I contacted him via email to when he dropped me off at the airport to head back home. He was prompt in returning emails, answered all my questions, and was knowledgeable not just about the tour, but about what was needed to travel to Bolivia, etc. During the tour, he made sure I had everything I needed and took care of everything.
As far as the photo "tour" (it was more of a workshop than a tour - which I greatly appreciated), I could not have asked for more. It was definitely more than I expected. Aside from being a great photographer himself, he is also a great teacher (being good at something or having knowledge of a subject doesn't always mean you are able to teach it to someone else - he can). I felt the workshop improved my knowledge and technique in so many area - camera/lenses, composition, lighting, editing, workflow, the business side of photography.
Sergio is very personable as well. He is 100% professional, patient, and puts in a lot of effort to make sure you learn as much as possible and enjoy Bolivia. Definitely would recommend this tour.
Bolivia exceeded expectations and so did Sergio's photo tour in February 2020 - just before the pandemic shut the country down.
After seeing amazing photos online of the Bolivian salt flats, I was highly motivated to travel there to create my own. In my search for a photo tour I came across Sergio Ballivian's name. The itinerary and the reviews of his tours sealed my decision. I traveled to Bolivia with three other friends for Sergio's early February 2020 tour. It was amazing! The high altitudes of Bolivia are breathtaking and Sergio knows where and when to go to get spectacular photos. I also really appreciated how Sergio pushed my creativity and got me to see things differently. Check out a few of my photos to see for yourself! I highly recommend Sergio and his tours!
• La Paz, Bolivia – the world’s highest Capital city, hiding between the Andes and Altiplano
• Andes Mountains – the world’s longest chain with many peaks over 6,000 m (20,000 ft)
• Lake Titicaca – world’s highest navigable lake in Bolivia and Peru at 3,810 m (12,500 ft)
• Bolivia’s Altiplano – 500×170 km (310×105 mi) at av. height of 4,000 m (13,000 ft)
• Strato-volcanoes, hidden river valleys and lava rock canyons hiding petroglyphs
• Native Aymara and Quechua people that are part of the intricate social fabric of Bolivia
• Visit Inca ruins that are the roots of the most expansive empire in South America
• Visit colonial cities & ruins from the colonial Spanish empire from over 450 years ago
• Unique flora and fauna of the Andes; condor, vicuña, llama, alpaca, Suri, Queñua tree
• Uyuni Salt Flats – the world’s largest salt flat 10,500 sq km (4,085 sq mi) of salt
• Sajama National Park – Sajama volcano, geysers, wild vicuñas, surreal Altiplano views
Our tour prices are based on a tiered pricing model. More guests = lower price, per person. That means the prices go down on a per-person basis as more people book onto a specific tour departure. Prices are based on double occupancy / twin share basis. All prices are in U$ Dollars.
Contact us for guidance on a quote for your group or private trip.
| Lowest Price | 7-10 travelers | $ 3,995 / per person |
| Average Price | 4-6 travelers | $ 4,395 / per person |
| Optimum Price | 2-3 travelers | $ 4,795 / per person |
| Highest Price | 1 solo traveler (= private trip) | $ 6,135 / 1 solo traveler |
| Single Supplement Fee | Per Person / Per Tour | $ 675 / for a single room |
Deposit & Terms (universal — identical on every tour. Custom tours have special terms, please contact us. ): A 30% deposit (minimum $1,000 per person) reserves your space. Of that, $1,000 per person is a non-refundable administrative fee — but it’s never lost: it’s always credited toward your trip, even if you change trips or dates, and it’s part of the total price, not an extra charge. Balance due 90 days before departure. Trip insurance (with a “cancel for any reason” rider) is required. See our Terms & Conditions for full details, or contact us for a custom or private quote.
Start Date: January 3, 2027
End Date: January 9, 2027
Start Date: January 17, 2027
End Date: January 23, 2027
Start Date: February 7, 2027
End Date: February 13, 2027
Start Date: February 21, 2027
End Date: February 27, 2027
Start Date: March 7, 2027
End Date: March 13, 2027
Start Date: March 21, 2027
End Date: March 27, 2027
Start Date: April 4, 2027
End Date: April 10, 2027
Start Date: April 11, 2027
End Date: April 17, 2027
