Where to go around La Paz to go back to nature?

---

You think that La Paz is too big, too busy and that you aren’t yourself in the capital of Bolivia, don’t worry, I felt the same way but there is a way to feel better. There is indeed within a few hours nice places where you could go, which will bring you to quietness again.



1. 1. My favorite place to come back to nature is Copacabana and the Isla del Sol. Yes, it’s touristic but you can easily go somewhere, where you will not find so many tourists.



To go to Copacabana, there are local buses, which should cost you 20 Bolivianos and are leaving close to the cemetery in La Paz. In around 4 hours, you will then arrive in Copacabana, including the boat transfer on a small portion of Titicaca lake. Once outside of La Paz, the scenery on the way is just AMAZING. You will see small houses –I wanted to write “small villages” but it’s even smaller than that!- in the middle of wheat fields, with farmers bringing back the wheat cut in the day, some cattle at pasture, the mountains on your right and then finally you will get the 1^st look over the Titicaca lake. I was so happy, when I saw it and I knew already, that the place would be great and it was 😊



In Copacabana, if you want to be out of the –very small- city center, you can easily walk on your left from the harbor following the lake and you will find a good campsite –where you can also get a room- for a low price. As I said, the lake is just outside the camping entrance gate, so you will have a great view for yourself looking at the sunset/sunrise.



From Copacabana, you can go to Isla del Sol. The boat ride costs 25 bolivianos to the North of the island and 20 bolivianos for the South of the Island, if you buy it the day before. I heard however a guy selling a boat ticket to the North of the Island 15 minutes before the boat departure for 10 bolivianos, so if you look for something even cheaper, you can try the last minute option 😉



In opposition to what people will tell you, the boat ride lasts more than 2 hours to the North of the island (around 3 hours). So bring some sunscreen and a hat, as the sun will be burning you otherwise.



I advise you to go by boat to the North of the Island.



Why? Because firstly, it will be easier to walk then from the North to the South. Secondly, because the North is much less touristy than the South. From the harbour in the North, you should hike up to the ruins and once you are there, you will see a very nice beach of your left. Well, if you want a quiet place to stay for the afternoon or even camp for the night, that’s the right place. I spent a night there with no other people and I just loved it. Then, you can hike to the South of the island. The first part will be uphill but then it’s mostly downhill. You will have amazing views over the Cordillera Blanca, the lake and the small villages. What I loved there was to meet local people taking their cattle to the pasture. Those people were friendly and some even stopped to talk.



On the end of the trail to the South of the Island, you will arrive at the top of a spring –which according to legends has some amazing properties for life-. If you want to rest for a while, it’s a nice place to do it. We spent our lunchtime there with view over the Cordillera Blanca and the lake. We even met some local children there, who were wondering what and why we were cooking there 😉



2. 2. Sorata and around



The other place that I really like around La Paz is Sorata. It’s a half-day journey from La Paz to get there with local minibus (around 3€, also leaving a few blocks away from the cemetery).



Why is Sorata nice? Well, it’s a small village in the mountains, where there are none or a very few tourists. So you can enjoy for yourself the place and its surroundings.



One advice there: eat the local fruits Chirimoya and Avocado. Chirimoya was a great culinary discovery for me. It has a nice sweet taste, which reminded me a bit of mango.



From Sorata, there are nice hiking trails to walk in the mountains. I chose to go to the sacred San Pedro Cave, when I was there. The hike is nice in the mountains with the rivers and the fields. The cave in itself is very big and there is a lake inside.



Around Sorata, I also had the opportunity to attend a religious celebration of San Pedro in the village. People were dressed up with very nice dresses or suits, were playing some traditional music and were going around with a statue of Jesus. It was great to be part of this.



If you are looking for a place to stay, you can ask where the Casa Raggae is. I stayed there and it was nice with the view over the mountains!



3. 3. Coroico



Coroico is another nice place around La Paz and it’s also a half-day journey from there by minibus -3€ from Villa Fatima bus terminal in the North of La Paz-.



The only thing is that Coroico is definitely more touristy than Sorata, so if you have to choose only one place to go I would choose to go to Sorata.



However, Coroico is really nice and you will not see too many tourists while hiking around to the waterfalls for instance.



To sleep there, I advise you to go to the camping 5 minutes downhill from the main square. This place is cheaper than the famous camping Hostal Luna y Sol and the view over the surrounding mountains there is just great! Even if it’s cloudy in the morning, you will for sure appreciate the magical scenery there.



Hope you will enjoy your time around La Paz as I did 😊

---