Bus from La Paz to Uyuni or Else?
What is the best way to reach Uyuni from La Paz?
That’s the question we asked ourselves while in Bolivia. First, we were eager to do the famous 3 days tour in the Bolivian Salt flats, to do so we had to be in Uyuni before 10am, time at which all tours start.
From all the transportation method, we quickly gave up on the taxi due to its cost. The train could have been a good idea, but Bolivia has one of least developed railway infrastructure in south America. Yet there is a train going to Uyuni but the departure ain’t from La Paz but Oruro which is 3h away by bus. Plus, trains don’t run daily…
We are down to 2 options: taking the bus from La Paz to Uyuni or the Plane. Let’s check the pros/cons.
- The plane is faster, has daily departures, are comfortable. But a ticket is expensive and you gotta go at the airport.
- The bus from La Paz to Uyuni is one of the most common transportation means in Bolivia, has daily departures, is cheap. But the ride takes more time and from what you can read online, some travelers experienced bus breakdown which could lead you to miss your tour.
After some long reflection, we opted for the bus from La Paz to Uyuni as it would save us a night in a hostel and was cheaper. Additionally, it could be a good experience.
Which Company for the bus from La Paz to Uyuni
Which company to pick for the bus from La Paz to Uyuni? Which one will be more comfortable? safer? In our previous bus rides in south America we experienced delay and discomfort. As we were rolling for a 10h ride we wanted to be sure.
Alright back to our phone. From what we read, there are many companies doing this road but only one is standing out: Todo Tourism. This company truly have lots of positive comments. So here we are buying our tickets for 9am bus from La Paz to Uyuni the next day.
We arrived at Todo Tourism office, located next to La Paz bus station around 8:20pm. They advised you to arrive 30min prior to the bus departure. A quick control of our E-billet and they took our backpack before telling us to move upstairs in the office to check-in and wait.
What surprised us was that there was only foreigner there. Seems like we made the right call.
Time to resupply water, charge our phone and used the bathroom.
We boarded the bus from La Paz to Uyuni at 8:50pm and it was a brand new bus! Ouhh Ouhh awesome (that’s the bus engineer mind). A double decker bus with full reclinable (cama) on the lower deck and half reclinable (semi-cama) on the upper deck. There isn’t much difference between the seat as both seat layouts are 2+1, only the degree to which it reclines change a bit, the cama seat has a 30° more reclining possibilities. But as we booked online one day earlier all cama option were taken.
PS : Booking the bus from La Paz to Uyuni can be made on their website. It is really easy to do it even if you don’t speak Spanish. Also, while booking you can choose the type of meal you want. They have all option you may like (Vegan, vegetarian, etc…)
Up deck we went and found our seat. They were HUGE! Complimentary blanket, pillow and a bottle of water was on top of each of them. Much better than any economy or premium economy plane.
A small dinner is served right after the departure. We opted for the vegan option but didn’t take it as it was already late.
There were a few stops along the road but up to now we can only guess what happened. Except for the last one that was at 6:30pm and lasted for 45min instead of 15min. Time for a small snack and a sunset. I think it is due to the driver limited driving time. (We have such regulation in Europe).
We arrived at almost 8am with around 1h delay but no issue here
Let’s talk about the bus from La Paz to Uyuni: There is USB, bottle holder, individual light. We had the seat 14 and 15 which were great and next to a foldable window. One small negative point was that after 1h30 on the bus but it became a bit hot and stuffy. There is toilet in the bus but they ask you only to urinate. The reason for this is that it required less maintenance. As the toilet were new, they were still full of chemical so if you really can’t wait the Todo tourismo office in Uyuni where there is toilet, you can use the one on the bus. It will not break anything
Now, you are ready to read our Uyuni Day 1, Day 2 and Day 3 Guide
Unique Stay in Copacabana
The best accommodation in town is simply: LA CUPULA. Years after that travel, we are dreaming of this accommodation, its fireplace, and incredible view of lake Titicaca.
“I am not the same, having seen the moon shine on the other side of the world.” – Mary Anne Radmacher
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