Uros Islands and Sillustani Tour, One Day from Puno
$60 Full Day
Overview
3 days
Two nights, both on the bus
1,800 km
Puno to the salt and back
3,650 m
On the salt. La Paz is higher
$481
Per person, buses and lunch in
The salt flat from Puno, in three days, with the buses and the border handled. And two nights you do not spend in a bed.
Uyuni is a long way from Lake Titicaca. Puno to La Paz is a day. La Paz to the salt is a night. Most people who want the salt from the Peruvian side either give it a week or give it up. This tour is the third way. You leave Puno on the morning of day one and stand on the salt on day two. You are back in Puno on the evening of day three. Everything in between is booked before you go.
Both nights are on a bus. Read that twice before you book.
There is no hotel on this tour. The first night is the overnight bus from La Paz to Uyuni. The second is the same bus back. You sleep in a reclining seat, arrive early, and do the salt on the day between. For a lot of people that is exactly the point. The salt flat for 481 dollars all in, with no hotel bill and no lost days. For others it is two bad nights. If you are in the second group, tell us when you book and we quote a bed in Uyuni instead. The day on the salt is the same one as our one day Uyuni tour. It is a very good day.
The Salt in One Day, or in Three from Puno
Two ways to stand on the same salt. The difference is where you start and what is booked for you.
You get there
Starts
Uyuni town at 10:30. Getting to Uyuni is yours to arrange, or ours to quote.
Nights
None. You sleep wherever you were sleeping.
Price and who it suits
70 dollars. Anyone already in Bolivia, or travelling on to Chile afterwards.
This page
Three days, from Puno
Starts
Your hotel in Puno at 06:30. Bus to La Paz, night bus to Uyuni, all booked.
Nights
Two, both on the bus. No hotel anywhere in the three days.
Price and who it suits
481 dollars. Anyone on the Peruvian side with three days and a tolerance for buses.
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What the 481 dollars buys, and what it does not
Every bus ticket in both directions, Puno to Copacabana to La Paz to Uyuni and back. The full day on the salt with a driver guide and the 4×4. Lunch on Incahuasi. Pickup at your Puno hotel. It leaves out every other meal and the 30 bolivianos entrance to Incahuasi, paid on the island. It leaves out a bed, because there is none. Bolivia charges some nationalities for a visa at the border. Tell us your passport when you book and we say whether that applies to you.
The road there is worth knowing about. Puno to Copacabana runs along the lake for three and a half hours. Then the Kasani border, where you walk between two stamps and lose an hour to Bolivian time. Copacabana to La Paz is another three or four hours, with the strait at Tiquina crossed on a barge. Then the night bus south. By the morning of day two you have crossed a border, a strait and half the Altiplano.
Not sure Bolivia is for you? Bolivia’s destinations puts the salt beside La Paz and the lake. Whether Bolivia is safe answers the other question. Our Peru or Bolivia post covers the lake itself. Planning the trip yourself? Our guide to the Uyuni salt flats from Peru sets out every route, with times, seasons and costs. If Machu Picchu is also on the list, do it first. The six day Machu Picchu and Lake Titicaca package ends in Puno, where this tour begins.
Tour Highlights
- ✓ The Salar de Uyuni from the Peruvian side in three days. Every bus and the border sorted before you leave Puno.
- ✓ A full day on the salt. The train cemetery, Colchani, the Ojos de Sal, Incahuasi and the perspective photographs.
- ✓ The road itself. Along the lake to Copacabana, over the Kasani border, across the Tiquina strait, and into La Paz.
- ✓ 481 dollars for the buses in both directions, the 4x4, the driver guide and lunch on the salt.
- ✓ Two nights on the bus and none in a hotel, which is why the price is what it is. Said here so nobody is surprised.
- ✓ Shared with at most seventeen people, in Spanish and English.
What to Expect
Three days. One on the salt, and two on the road that gets you there and back.
Day one is the road to Bolivia. Collected in Puno at half past six. The bus follows the lake to Copacabana, crosses at Kasani, and reaches La Paz by the afternoon. A drive through the city, then the night bus south.
Day two is the reason you came. The 4x4 takes you out through the train cemetery and the salt village at Colchani, then onto the crust. Past the bubbling eyes of water, to the cactus island of Incahuasi for lunch and the climb. The afternoon is open salt and photographs. Back in Uyuni by about five, with time for dinner before the night bus back to La Paz.
Day three is the road home. Off the bus in La Paz in the morning, onto the bus for Puno. Back at your hotel by the evening.
Tour Itinerary
1
Puno to Copacabana and the border
Collected from your hotel in central Puno at 06:30. The bus follows the western shore of the lake for three and a half hours. At Kasani you leave the bus for an exit stamp from Peru and an entry stamp from Bolivia. Set your watch forward an hour. Copacabana is twenty minutes on.
Time 06:30 AM start
Altitude 3,827 m
2
Copacabana to La Paz
3
La Paz, then the night bus south
4
Uyuni, the cemetery and Colchani
5
Onto the salt, and the Ojos de Sal
6
Incahuasi and lunch
7
The photographs, then the bus
8
La Paz to Puno
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Good to know
On the two nights
Both nights are on overnight buses, La Paz to Uyuni and back again. The seats recline, the cabin is cold, and you arrive early. Bring a blanket, a neck pillow, earplugs and every warm layer you have. Nobody sleeps well on the first night and most people sleep fine on the second. If a bed matters, tell us when you book and we quote a hotel night in Uyuni instead.
✓
Inclusions
- ✓ Bus tickets in both directions: Puno to Copacabana to La Paz, and La Paz to Uyuni overnight
- ✓ The full day on the salt with a driver guide, Spanish and English
- ✓ The 4x4 for the whole loop on the salt
- ✓ Lunch on day two, on Incahuasi island
- ✓ Pickup at your hotel in central Puno on day one, drop off on day three
X
Not Included
- X Hotels. There are none on this tour, both nights are on the bus
- X The Incahuasi island entrance, 30 bolivianos, paid at the island
- X Breakfasts, dinners, and lunch on days one and three
- X A Bolivian visa, which some nationalities need. Ask us with your passport in hand
- X Tips for the driver guide
- X Travel insurance
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About the exclusions
On the price
The 481 dollars covers every bus in both directions, the day on the salt with the 4x4 and the driver guide, and lunch on Incahuasi. Your Puno pickup is in. It leaves out the other meals, the 30 bolivianos for Incahuasi, and any visa fee your passport carries. There is no hotel in the price because there is no hotel on the tour.
Departure Information
Available: Daily departures
Group Size: Up to 17 people
Start Time: 6:30 AM
Pickup: Your hotel in central Puno
Frequently Asked Questions
Are both nights really on a bus?
Yes. The first night is the overnight bus from La Paz to Uyuni and the second is the same bus back. There is no hotel anywhere in the three days. That is what keeps the price at 481 dollars with every ticket included. If you would rather sleep in a bed in Uyuni, tell us when you book and we quote the change.
How long is each leg of the journey?
What happens at the border?
Do I need a visa for Bolivia?
Is the day on the salt the same as the one day tour?
Which season should I choose?
What luggage can I take?
Can I end in La Paz instead of coming back to Puno?
How many people are on the tour?
How does this compare with flying to Uyuni?
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