Bolivia Salt Flats

The Bolivia Salt Flats are one of the top tourist attractions in Bolivia. Also called salt beds, (Salar de Uyuni in Spanish) this great salt desert is the largest in the world, and is located in the southwestern state of Potosí. The salt flats, all that remain of an ancient lake that has since dried up, extend over a great expanse of territory and tours usually last for 3-5 days. This incredibly arid region is so flat it is used by NASA to calibrate satellites. The Bolivian salt flats also afford tourists the opportunity to take some amazing photographs because there is no depth perception (no horizon).


The Bolivia Salt Flats attract thousands of tourists each year for this and other reasons. They cover 12,000 square kilometers and are estimated to contain about 10 billion tons of salt. All around the Uyuni salt flats are small hotels that have been built completely out of salt bricks. In some of these hotels even the furniture is made of salt. Uyuni tours often also include visits to the Laguna Verde and Laguna Colorada, two large lagoons tinted green and red in color due to the algae that grow in them. At Sol de Mañana, also in the area, you can see geysers and fumaroles. Click here to read all about the Bolivia Salt Flats of Uyuni.