La Paz travel guide

La Paz, Mexico

By the Travel Wiki editorial team

La Paz

Introduction

La Paz is the capital of Baja California Sur and the state's largest city, sitting within a municipality that ranks among the biggest in Mexico by area. It is a place where the desert meets the water, and that setting shapes everything about a visit here.

Before you go

La Paz sits in the Andes at extreme altitude, and the city spills down a canyon carved by the Choqueyapu River. El Alto, where the airport is located, lies at the top on the altiplano, while the lower residential neighbourhoods sit far below; the higher you are, the colder and harsher the weather, and the lower you go, the milder it becomes. This vertical geography shapes daily life: the downtown core along the Prado is tree-lined and central, the affluent neighbourhoods lie southwest of the Prado, and the hills above the centre are covered with makeshift brick housing. El Alto is a largely Aymara city on the altiplano, poorer than La Paz and home to the airport and bus connections. Plan for the altitude before you arrive, and note that 16 July is the anniversary of La Paz.

Back up your data before you arrive: hard drives can be damaged by operating at this altitude, which exceeds the safe range for most drives by a third. On safety, be aware of the plain-clothed police officer scam, and guard against pickpockets and bag-slashers in crowded areas, including a common trick in which one person spills something on you while another lifts your wallet or slashes your bag. Be vigilant when checking into accommodation, keep a hand on your belongings, and watch for thieves posing as hotel staff who create a diversion to snatch unattended bags. In El Alto, avoid carrying valuables and keep your backpack in front of you; theft is the most common crime there, though by day the bus station and Río Seco are fine to use. Violent muggings in taxis have occurred, so use only Radio Cabs or a reliable firm, lock the doors, refuse shared rides, and be especially cautious leaving after-hours bars. Protests are frequent, especially around midday, usually non-violent but sometimes accompanied by firecrackers and road closures; as a foreigner you are prohibited from participating in political activity. If a situation feels wrong, walk away and disappear into the crowds.

Getting there

Most visitors arrive at El Alto International Airport, the world's highest international airport, sitting at over 4,000 m above sea level. Because of the thin air, take things very easily once you land: walk slowly to immigration rather than rushing, or you will be seriously out of breath and may suffer medical complications. From the airport, use only radio taxis with a sign on the roof; shared vans are the cheapest option and drop you down the autopista past San Francisco Plaza, El Prado and on to Plaza Isabel la Católica. South American carriers such as LATAM and Avianca serve the airport alongside local airlines Boliviana de Aviación (BoA) and Ecojet, which cover major domestic destinations and some South American hubs.

Long-distance buses use several terminals. The main La Paz bus station has food, ATMs and free WiFi, with services to Cochabamba, Santa Cruz, Oruro, Potosí, Sucre, Tupiza, Tarija, Uyuni and the Chilean cities of Arica and Iquique; buses usually stop in El Alto to pick up or drop off passengers, so if you arrive from the south, sit on the right for views of the city. Buses for the Yungas and tropical lowlands, including Coroico, Chulumani, Caranavi and Rurrenabaque, leave from Terminal Provincial Minasa Yungas in Villa Fatima. Services to Lake Titicaca destinations such as Copacabana, Sorata, Desaguadero and Tiwanaku depart from Cementerio, north of the cemetery, and also from Río Seco in El Alto, which is easily reached by the Línea Azul gondola and saves you a trip into the centre. Regional minibuses and trufis to smaller southern destinations leave from the area around the El Alto bus station, where you will need to ask around to find the right company.

Getting around

La Paz is built in a canyon, and that shapes everything about how you move: the streets are narrow, driving yourself is not recommended, and public transport is largely underdeveloped compared to Europe, East Asia, or even other South American cities. Most of the time, a taxi is the preferred option. Taxis aren't metered, so agree on a fare before boarding; a ride within downtown should be about Bs. 6–8, and a normal trip from downtown to elsewhere in the city won't cost more than Bs. 20. If you're going further afield, ask two or more drivers before boarding. For ride-hailing, La Paz is Didi country — there are hardly any Ubers — so download the Didi app and complete registration before you need it. Walking works best as a complement to other modes: the hills are steep and the altitude is punishing, so take it slowly. If you lose your bearings, walk downhill; you'll eventually reach the Prado or another main avenue, where you can pick up a taxi.

The standout way to get around is Mi Teleférico, the cable car network, which connects El Alto with downtown La Paz and reaches out to other neighbourhoods. It saves a lot of time compared to taxis or minibuses, which can sit for ages in traffic. You need a new ticket for each transfer, but tickets for all lines are the same, so you can buy in bulk and skip the queues; there is also a rechargeable card that saves you time waiting in ticket queues. Riding is an experience in itself — taking the red line up to 16 de Julio station in El Alto gives you a great view of the city from above, and several lines form a circle, making a round trip of roughly an hour and a half to two hours. Locals are very proud of the system, keep it immaculate, and greet each new passenger entering the car. Shared public transport comes in three flavours, all displaying their routes on the windshield: micros (regular buses), mini buses (shared vans, whose fare collectors hang out the side yelling out routes in a rapid, auctioneer-like manner), and trufis (shared taxis running set routes). You can hail a bus or mini bus anywhere along its route; to get off, just yell out "¡voy a bajar!"

Where to stay

Most of La Paz's sleeping options cluster in the central backpacker area around Calle Sagarnaga and Calle Illampu, streets that fill with fairs and museums and stay busy all day. Hostels here range from the sociable Hostel Maya on Calle Sagarnaga, with terraces looking out over the city, to Loki Backpackers Hostel on Calle Loayza, set in a restored century-old hotel with a bar in the old ballroom and an Oxygen Bar on the rooftop terrace. Adventure Brew Hostel and Brew Too on Avenida Montes has its own micro-brewery and rooftop bar with regular BBQs, while Wild Rover Backpackers Hostel on Calle Comercio occupies a former president's house and draws a heavy British and Irish crowd. Perla Negra Hostal sits opposite the bus station, and Bacoo Hostel on Alto de la Alianza is a young, party-focused option. Wherever you book, inspect your room before signing the register.

If you'd rather be away from the tourist core, Hostal Illimani in Barrio Miraflores offers basic, secure rooms a few blocks from the stadium, with a courtyard for washing and drying clothes. Budget hotels are scattered through the centre: Hotel la Valle, Hostal Austria on Calle Yanacocha, Hosteria Blanquita on Santa Cruz, Hotel Continental at the top of Calle Illampu, Hostal Cactus on Calle Jimenez with its rooftop terrace, and Hostal Lobo at Illampu and Santa Cruz. Slightly up from the cheapest places, Hotel Majestic on Calle Santa Cruz and Hotel Milton on Calle Illampu both include breakfast, and Tiquina Palace Hotel on Pasaje Tiquina offers a central location and good hot showers. In the Sopocachi district, Hotel España has a garden courtyard and solarium near the restaurant scene, while Apartment Collita in Los Pinos suits longer stays in the Zona Sur. For something further out, Colibri Camping sits on a mountainside above the Valley of Flowers, with campsites, cabins and teepees.

Food & drink

For lunch, head to the little almuerzo-kitchens for a set menu, or eat cheaply in the local markets if you're on a budget. Street food is plentiful, from juice and snacks to full meals, and the avocado sandwiches are delicious if you're lucky enough to find someone selling them. Be careful with salads in your first days. Vegetarian options are rare but easier to find than some years ago. Two national dishes that come from La Paz are pique macho and plato paceño. Most of the fancier restaurants cluster at the bottom of the Prado, around Plaza Isabel La Catolica and Plaza Avaroa, while a string of inexpensive pizza and hamburger joints lines the west side of Avenida 6 de Agosto south of Plaza del Estudiante. For a sampling of Bolivian dishes, try Naira on Calle Sagarnaga, or the contemporary Bolivian cooking at Popular Cocina Boliviana on Calle Murillo, where you choose an entry, main and dessert and arrive early to be seated with the first group. La Coca in Sopocachi offers a four-course almuerzo menu with vegetarian choices, and Namas Te in San Pedro serves homestyle vegetarian cooking with a fixed lunch. For brunch, El Consulado behind the Hotel Plaza works with the "New Andean Kitchen" and organic coffee, and Tambo Colonial in Hotel Rosario lays out a lavish breakfast buffet and serves Lake Titicaca trout with Beni almonds. Angelo Colonial, a dark bohemian cafe in an old mansion, claims the best drip coffee in La Paz and serves llamas. Elsewhere you'll find Peruvian ceviche at Contigo Peru, Arabic food at Sultan in San Miguel and Al amir on Murillo, Brazilian cuisine at Paladar-Cozinha Brasileira, and Japanese specialties at Ken Chan, run by the Japanese Society. The Star of India is one of the few places for curry in Bolivia, with good veggie and vegan options. For fine dining, Gustu in Calacoto serves modern Bolivian tasting menus sourced entirely from within Bolivia, and Glam offers high-end international cuisine. Sol y Luna mixes excellent cocktails and a good atmosphere, and its coca leaf mojito swaps mint for coca leaves. From street vendors, try a glass of mocochinchi. Note that local law prohibits serving alcohol after a certain hour, and a number of speakeasies defy it. For coffee, Blueberries near Plaza Avaroa serves delicious coffee and an appealing breakfast menu, while Alexander The Great has locations around the city.

What to see and do

Sagarnaga Street, just south of Plaza San Francisco, is the city's main market strip, lined with artesanía and souvenir shops alongside budget hostels, tour agencies and cafés. Nearby, the Witches' Market on Calle Linares sells llama fetuses and dried frogs for Aymara rituals, plus soapstone figurines and aphrodisiac formulas, and it's the best place to pick up a charango or other Bolivian instrument. Calle Jaén preserves colonial buildings that now house several museums, while Eloy Salmón is the street for cheap electronics. At the heart of things, Plaza Murillo holds the government buildings and the Metropolitan Cathedral, with a monument to Murillo in the centre; the Presidential Palace, the Palacio Quemado, stands nearby and cannot be entered by tourists. The main cemetery, reached by a walk or minibus near the bus station, is unlike European cemeteries: ashes are bricked into shelf-like walls, their fronts decorated with photos, artificial flowers and small mementos, with coloured ladders and platforms giving access to the higher tiers, and the red cable car line offers a view over it from above. Beyond the centre, the Valle de la Luna is a landscape of eroded cones and craters shaped by water and air, and the Valle de las Ánimas offers eerie stalagmite-like formations where you can walk, climb and photograph, with views of the city and the snow-capped Illimani and Mururata mountains. The Thursday and Sunday market in El Alto is a vast mostly Aymara affair where you can buy almost anything, eat local food and watch the crowds; go early, keep valuables out of sight and bring sunblock. Mercado Uruguay, a labyrinth of stalls on a steep slope, is known for the best fish meals in the city. For museums, the Museo San Francisco occupies a restored religious complex and lets you climb the church tower for a panorama, the National Ethnographic and Folk Museum covers Bolivia's living cultures, and the National Museum of Art traces Bolivian painting and sculpture. The Coca Museum details the history of the coca plant, the Musical Instrument Museum displays playable devices and the bizarre creations of founder Ernesto Cavour, and the Museum of Precious Metals holds pre-Columbian silver and gold. Mirador Killi Killi gives the best view of the city, Parque Laikacota offers the best panorama from within the bowl, and Mirador Montículo, though its trees block much of the view, has a clear sight of Illimani.

When to go

La Paz has rainy summers and dry winters, with cold nights and occasional snow at its highest elevations and warmer, wetter conditions in the central and southern zones. If you travel in the rainy season, expect slightly warmer weather but concentrated rainfall — January is the wettest month, and heavy precipitation often causes destructive mudslides. At the highest elevations, February and March are the cloudiest months, with sunshine averaging only around five hours per day. The dry season brings the driest conditions, with very little precipitation, and June and July are also the sunniest, averaging about eight hours of sunshine per day at altitude. Even then, night-time temperatures at altitude remain cold to very cold, and snow flurries can occur in winter at altitude, especially at dawn, usually melting before noon.

Three days in La Paz

Day one: Start in La Paz, the seat of government in Baja California Sur's Mexican highlands, where the city spills down toward the Choqueyapu River. Ease into the altitude with a wander through the Prado, the tree-lined artery where Aymara culture and city life meet, and pause at San Francisco Plaza to watch the pace of the Plan. Because the city sits in the Andes, take the first day slowly, and let the evening unfold along El Prado as the lights come on.

Day two: Head up to El Alto, the sprawling city above La Paz, where the views back over the bowl of the valley are worth the climb. In El Alto, the streets around Río Seco show a different rhythm, and the markets and murals give a sense of the Aymara heart of the region. Be mindful that protests can flare and roads can close, so plan around them and use Radio Cabs if you need to move quickly. Back in La Paz, return to the Prado for a meal and a stroll.

Day three: Use the morning to explore the area around Plaza Isabel Católica, a quieter corner of the city with a South American feel. From there, you can connect to the airport at El Alto International Airport, served by carriers such as LATAM, Avianca, Boliviana de Aviación, BoA and Ecojet. Most ATMs and WiFi are easy to find in the central districts, so top up before you go. If you have time, take one last look over the Andes before you leave.

About this place