Bolivia on a budget: see world-class sights for fewer bolivianos

06.11.2023 - 15:17 / lonelyplanet.com

Bolivia consistently ranks among the top value-for-dollar destinations in the Americas. With the country's famously diverse terrain, you can explore Amazonian rainforests, ancient Tiwanaku ruins and some of the planet’s highest peaks on a relatively tight budget.

With lower living costs compared to Argentina, Brazil and Chile, international travelers can generally visit longer, eat more heartily and sleep for less money than in nearly every one of Bolivia's South American neighbors.

Street food is incredibly inexpensive, hostels and guesthouses are among the most affordable on the continent and, if you mainly travel by bus, you can explore far and wide without making a serious dent in your wallet.

Of course, international flights to Bolivia aren’t cheap, cost for tours and entry fees can add up, and you’ll want to come prepared with the right gear for treks and national park trips to avoid having to hire or buy equipment locally. Here are our top tips on how to make the most out of your budget on a trip to Bolivia, as well as advice on when and where to splurge.

With its wild geography, colorful colonial-era buildings and proud Indigenous identity, La Paz captures the imagination of travelers far more than the modern and sometimes brash city of Santa Cruz.

Yet, cheap flights to La Paz are hard to come by, partly because of the tiny number of airlines serving the city's high-altitude El Alto International Airport. 

Because Santa Cruz is Bolivia’s most important business center, it welcomes the vast majority of international arrivals, meaning prices are cheaper and routes are less convoluted.

Not only can you save money by starting your Bolivian adventure in Santa Cruz, you'll also start the trip at a lower elevation, allowing time to acclimatize as you travel to La Paz and the altiplano (highlands).

In general, flying into Bolivia from abroad isn’t cheap since there is very little competition on international routes. Few airlines from outside South America fly here, so you'll almost always be connecting through a neighboring country en route.

Start your backpacking trip in Argentina, Chile or Peru instead and travel overland to Bolivia to save money on your international flight. Bolivia also has a reputation for being more challenging to navigate than its neighbors, so many travelers prefer to come here once they have got used to the lie of the land, rather than using Bolivia as the launchpad for a pan-American adventure.

If you’re traveling as a couple or in a group, it can often be much cheaper – and more comfortable – to share a private room in a local residencial, alojamiento or posada (these names are used interchangeably for informal local inns), rather than paying for multiple dorm beds at a hostel.

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