Copacabana to Puno

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Company: Dorado
Type: Economy
Price: 25BOB each
Duration: 3 hours

Details: After exploring the city centre and Isla del Sol from Copacabana we took the 1.30pm bus from the town centre towards Puno. By this point the altitude had hit us pretty hard so weren't feeling the best during the journey, but took the time to try and rest up while we could. Once we got to the bus we were greeted by a friendly bus driver called Oscar who helped us sort our seats and bags before setting off. Half an hour later? we crossed the border into Peru, The driver Oscar was very helpful again, giving us good tips to change our Bolivianos at the border with a great rate, and invaluable information on getting a bus from Puno to Cusco after our floating islands tour. As we made our way we had great views of Lake Titicaca on our right, and saw flamingos and Cholitas working and harvesting quinoa on the farmland.

La Paz to Copacabana

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Company: Local Bus
Type: Minivan
Price: 40 BOB each
Duration: 3 hrs

Description: Following a fascinating nature filled jungle tour in the Bolivian Amazon basin we flew back to La Paz and made our way to Copacabana on Lake Titicaca, a small town situated close to the boarder of Peru. The cheapest way to get there is by a local mini bus from the Cemetery General, just north of the city centre. We crammed on with a load of locals and made our way along the windy roads surrounded by towering mountains. 

As we approached the small town of Tiquina the mini bus boarded a large wooden cargo boat that took us over the lake crossing. The driver kept trying to charge us extra for the stop, but luckily an Argentinian guy who was on the bus with us told us we didn't have to. We continued the last stretch of the journey to Copacabana and arrived at the pretty main square in front of the Cathedral before making our way to a nearby hostel.

 

Sucre to La Paz

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Company: El Dorado
Type: Economy
Price: 120 BOB
Duration: 12.5 hrs

Description: Boarding our first long hall bus journey in Bolivia was definitely a little more stressful than in other South American countries. There was a very strange system of taking your bags up a flight of stairs and down a long corridor to be tagged, before lowering them down by a rope in front of the bus. It was a pretty confusing, and with all the running around and getting tickets and tags we only managed to get on the bus with 5 minutes to spare! Our seats had randomly changed from 27-28 (downstairs) to 1-2, the front seats upstairs, and we weren't sure why, but went along with it anyway.

Additionally we were told that Bolivian buses don't offer any food or water, so we made sure we ate and stocked up with plenty before we got on. After the rather stressful boarding, all seemed to go smoothly and we even managed a few hours sleep (after the loud Spanish-dubbed John Claud van dam film had finished). At cx we arrived at La Paz, the second capital of Bolivia situated at 4500m above sea level. La Paz is a convenient (and cheap) launchpad from which to visit the Amazon basin and so it was our next port of call.

Potosi to Sucre

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Company: Local taxi
Type: 4 seater car
Price: 50BOB each
Duration: 2.5 hours

Details: Our original plan was to get the bus to Sucre, but after finding out how cheap Bolivian taxis are from the lady at our hostel, we decided to take a cab. After setting off we stopped in a nearby square to pick up 2 others also wanting to head to Sucre. The journey was much quicker than a bus, and at 50BOB each (about £5) it was a steal, although the car was a little crowded and we were relieved to be out of it once we got to our hostel in the city centre.

Uyuni to Potosi

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Company: Expreso 11 de Julio
Type: Economy
Price: 25 BOB each
Duration: 4 hours

Details: Having just had a truly epic 3 day jeep tour from San Pedro de Aticama to Uyuni, travelling past stunning lakes, volcanos and of course the Salar de Uyuni salt flats, we boarded a small local bus in the town with a group of people we had met on the jeep tour. The bus was pretty basic, and seats weren't particularly comfortable, but it was very cheap. The journey was relatively comfortable due to the new road that had been built between Uyuni and Sucre, and despite the loud Bolivian music that was playing we managed to get some sleep before arriving at the small bus station in Potosi at 8.30pm. Our group then split and we jumped on a local bus to the centre and chose a decent looking hostel near the main plaza.

San Pedro de Atacama to Uyuni

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Company: Atacama Mistica
Type: 4x4 Jeep
Price: £105 each
Duration: 3 Days

Description: The 3 day Jeep tour from San Pedro de Atacama to Salar de Uyuni was, for us, one of the things we had been looking forward to most during our trip around South America. After a few days in San Pedro de Atacama we finally decided on a tour company (there are loads to chose from, we went with Atacama Mistica). We had heard plenty of horror stories about drunk drivers, and therefore did a lot of research and asked around to make sure that it was going to be safe. You can read more about our experience here.