Salar De Uyuni

Advantages: Truly breathtaking; some of the best scenery in the world
Disadvantages: Hard to get to; gets very cold

The Salar de Uyuni is more commonly known as the salt flats or salt pans. Coming to Bolivia, I had heard a little about them, someone likening them to a desert of salt but I wasn't quite sure what to expect. After visiting though its something i would say is an absolute must for anyone travelling to this part of the world! Imagine being surrounded for hundreds of miles by compltley flat pure white salt. It feels as though the dazzling whiteness extends ...
...Uyuni from La Paz for me was a gruelling experience - 13 hours on a cramped bus along un-tarmacked roads, made only slightly more bearable by a TV showing the most over exaggerated Spanish soaps and a slightly dodgy copy of Troy. It was definitely worth the long journey, however, and the drivers are generally happy to stop off in the small hamlets along the way to stock up on supplies, or even pull up by the side of the road for toilet breaks. My ... Read review

Advantages: Completley unique landscapes
Disadvantages: Not the place to go if you suffer from altitude sickness

...Chile into Bolivia over the Salar de Uyuni. This is the name given to the largest salt flats in the world, the residue of a vast, ancient high-altitude lake, which dried out many years ago. This is no surprise as there is very little rainfall anywhere near the area. In fact, in some parts there has been absolutely no recorded rainfall! It is a barren and arid landscape where the animals and plants have needed to evolve pretty quickly to survive. ...
...crossing you touch on 5,300 metres above sea level and altitude sickness is extremely common. The crossing goes from San Pedro de Atacama in Northern Chile, through to Uyuni in Bolivia. You can do the crossing either way, although if you start in Chile it tends to be more expensive (approx $70 as opposed to $50). You will need to cross by 4x4, and an organised trip is the best option, as you will not want to get lost out there. The journey will ... Read review

Advantages: the views, the sheer size and the wind and colours!
Disadvantages: maybe not on your planned route but if that's the case i suggest you change it!

I visited the Salar De Uyuni in November of 1999 with 5 other travellers from the UK. We took a 5-day tour costing 50 dollars a day (it's best to think in US currency when in South America with the exception of French Guyana). The best place to take a tour from is the town Uyuni which can be reached from La Paz direct by plane or by bus. We arrived there from Cochabamba by bus. Our tour was by 4x4 jeep (absolutely necessary because there are often ...
...motorcyclist cops. The Salar de Uyuni for those of you who don’t know is a vast expanse of salt at very high altitude (about 4000m). What happened was millions of years ago the plates pushed together in such a way that a large amount of water was trapped and raised to it’s current altitude and the water evaporated leaving the salt. The tour itself really is mind-blowing. You will see salt factories (which you can take photos of then pretend to your ... Read review