Travel
Getting Around in Bolivia
Bolivia has no passenger trains. Between cities, you fly or take a bus. Within cities, colectivos (shared minivans), taxis, and La Paz's teleférico are your options.
Between Cities
Flights are short, reasonably priced (usually 80–150 USD one-way), and bookable online (BoA, EcoJet). Buses are frequent and very affordable, but rides are long — often overnight — and roads can be bumpy. You can't buy bus tickets online; go to the bus terminal (terminal de buses) and buy them there, usually the day before or right before departure.
Santa Cruz → Sucre
✈️ Flight: ~45 min · most days (BoA)
🚌 Bus: ~12–14h · overnight, bumpy road, several departures in the evening
Sucre → Uyuni
✈️ No direct flights
🚌 Bus: ~8–10h · overnight, rough roads for the last stretch
Uyuni → La Paz
✈️ Flight: ~1h · about daily (BoA)
🚌 Bus: ~10–12h · overnight, high-altitude road
Santa Cruz ↔ La Paz
✈️ Flight: ~1h · many flights daily (BoA, EcoJet) — easy to book last-minute
🚌 Bus: ~16–18h · overnight, semi-cama or cama available
Within Cities
Cities don't have Uber or ride-hailing apps. Here's how locals get around.
Colectivos & Trufis
≈ $0.4–0.7Shared minivans that run fixed routes through the city. Extremely cheap. They have signs on the windshield showing the route — flag one down from the street and tell the driver where you're going. They stop anywhere along the route, just say "voy a bajar" (I'm getting off) when you're close.
Taxis
≈ $1.4–2.8Cheap and everywhere, but most don't use meters — always agree on the price before getting in. The safest option is to have your hotel or Bolivian friends call a radio taxi for you. Otherwise, wave one down from the street — don't get into a taxi that approaches you first. That covers short rides within the city center.
Teleférico (La Paz)
≈ $0.4La Paz has the world's largest urban cable car network — 10 color-coded lines connecting the city from the valley floor up to El Alto. It's safe, scenic, and costs next to nothing per ride. Point-to-point it's usually slower than a taxi, but it bypasses La Paz's notorious traffic — and the views are incredible.
Walking
City centers are very walkable. Just remember La Paz is hilly and at 3,640m — take it slow, especially in the first few days. Santa Cruz is flat and easier on the lungs.
