Jungle & Mountains Tour || Go BIG Tours

Monte Illimani (Aymara), La Paz

Puente de las Américas, La Paz

AM

Arrive in La Paz and shuttle to hotel

Welcome meeting at 3:30pm at the hotel

PM

Mirador Killi Killi for sunset

Accommodations

Hotel Mitru (or similar)

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Optional on your own

* Time-specific activity

The tour begins with a 3:30pm welcome meeting at Hotel Mitru where you can meet fellow travelers and the tour host. The host will verify travel insurance details and emergency contact information, and give a brief tour introduction. Then, it’s off on a sunset outing to Killi Killi, an outlook perched above the city, to take in Nuestra Señora de La Paz (“Our Lady of Peace”) as the sun sets behind the towering peaks that surround the city.

Getting to the hotel: Hotel airport shuttle will be prearranged based on scheduled arrival. Private transportation can be arranged for additional fee.

High altitude awareness: Go BIG recommends taking things slowly as your body acclimates to the high altitude – drink water and coca tea (known for its restorative properties), keep your exertion level low, eat carbs and eat lightly. Consult your physician BEFORE travel. See Tour FAQ for more.

Money: It is very difficult to get bolivianos in your home country. There are a currency exchange and an ATM at the airport. Credit cards can be used in larger cities with Visa being the most accepted; traveler’s checks are not recommended. US currency is the only foreign currency that is often accepted, but you should carry small bills with very little wear and absolutely no tears. See more in Tour FAQ.

A bit about La Paz:
– Founded in 1548 by the Spanish conquistador Alonso de Mendoza
– About 817K ppl and 1.8 million in the greater metropolitan area
– Subtropical highland climate with rainy summers (Dec to Mar)
– Highest capital city in the world (the constitutional capital is Sucre)

Alto Beni River, Rurrenabaque

AM

Breakfast (7am)

Flight to Rurrenabaque

PM

Hotel check-in and rest of the day to explore Rurrenabaque

Accommodations

Hotel

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Optional on your own

* Time-specific activity

Breakfast at the hotel and then a shuttle to the airport for a quick flight to Rurrenabaque. After checking-in to the hotel, head out to explore the jungle town of Rurrenabaque.

Fiesta de Beni (November 18th) is an annual festival that brings in many people from the surrounding remote villages. There are horse races, cockfighting, canoe races, rice threshing competitions and a beauty pageant.

Rainy season is late November through March with the highest rainfall averaging late December through March. The rainy season can make things quite muddy, and flooding is common in some areas and occasionally in the entire town. Mosquitoes are also more prevalent and animal sightings are less prevalent. Go BIG only offers private tours late December through March.

Rurrenabaque, known locally as “Rurre”, is a small town of about 20,000 people that was founded in 1844 along the shores of the Alto Beni river. It is nestled between Madidi National Park and the Pampas del Yacuma Municipal Protected Area, so it is a great jumping off point for exploration of the jungle and the wetlands.

The town has seen many economic booms: first a rubber boom in the late 1800s and then the production of quinine from the cinchona tree bark. The harvesting of hardwoods was prominent until recently, largely due to most of it in the area had already been removed, but also due to the creation of Madidi National Park. In the last decade, there has been a small boom of jungle gold mining, but by far the biggest recent boom is ecotourism.

Tour Availability

Go BIG does not offer standard tours from late December through March due to frequent transportation complications. However, we do offer private tours to the area during rainy season, so as to incorporate more flexibility for potential itinerary changes.

Beni River

Madidi National Park

AM

Breakfast (~7am)

Visit a local community specializing in sugarcane honey

Riverboat on the Beni and Tuichi Rivers to a traditional lodge in the Madidi National Park

Buffet lunch

Guided nature walk to look for animals and learn about the jungle

PM

Buffet dinner

Accommodations

Lodge - shared group rooms

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

* Time-specific activity

After checking out from the hotel, head on to the Alto Beni River on a boat and visit a community largely dedicated to the production of sugarcane honey. Then, it is back on the river for the voyage to the rainforest of Madidi National Park and your accommodations for the next two nights at an indigenous community-run eco-lodge. After lunch, head on a walk through the jungle with an experienced local guide who will share stories and their vast knowledge of the jungle’s flora and fauna. Then, it’s back to the lodge for a buffet dinner and a night’s sleep to the sounds of the jungle.

Madidi National Park is considered one of the most biodiverse on the planet! It is also one of the largest national parks in the world. New species are constantly found. In a 3-year survey started in 2015, 1,362 new species were documented. It is thought to contain over 1,100 species of birds (~11% of all bird species in the world). It is home to 46 indigenous communities from six different tribes, most of whom still use traditional methods of jungle living.

Mosquitoes are common in the area, and malaria, dengue fever and yellow fever are potential risks, so limiting mosquito bites is always preferable. DEET-based repellents are the most effective but are often hard to get in Bolivia, so it’s best to bring it from home. DEET can be very harmful to animals (including humans) – your eyes, mouth and animals should never come in contact with it. See more about mosquitoes and mosquito-borne illnesses in Tour FAQ.

What to bring: Cash – ATMs are available in town, but often run out of cash and can be finicky about accepted cards; sunscreen – best to get before Rurrenabaque; personal medications; insect repellent and bite cream; flashlight/headlamp – for lodges after generator hours, heading to the bathroom and jungle night walks; clothing – for hot weather (non-cotton quick-drying preferred), bathing suit if desired, lightweight pants and long-sleeve shirts for prime mosquito times.

Possibly Seen

ENDANGERED SCALE

Low High

Spectacled Bear

Tremarctos ornatus

Also known as a Mountain Bear, Andean Bear, Jukumari, Ukumari and Ukuku. It is currently classified as vulnerable due to habitat loss. They typically live at higher elevations, but can be found as low as the Rurrenabaque area.

Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth

Bradypus variegatus

A unique and slow moving mammal that spends most of its time sleeping 15 to 18 hours a day in the jungle canopy. The hairs of its fur are adapted to cultivate algaes that have been shown to be anti-parasitic, anti-cancer and anti-bacterial.

Bolivian River Dolphin

Inia boliviensis

Locally called Bufeos, they are a threatened species, but protected by the Bolivian law after being declared national treasures. The bio-sonar they use to "see" is well suited to murky river waters.

Rio Beni Titi Monkey

Callicebus modestus

A recently discovered species native to the jungles near Rurrenabaque. They usually live in family groups of 3-7, and the males care for the young. They mainly eat fruit, but also leaves, insects, bird eggs and small vertebrates.

Alto Beni River

Jungle canopy

AM

Buffet breakfast

Visit the nesting and feeding cliffs of Farrallon of the Macaws

Visit a local tribe and ride a handmade raft back to the lodge

Buffet lunch

Visit an indigenous family in their home or go catfish / piranha fishing

PM

Sunset animal observation boat ride

Accommodations

Lodge - shared group rooms

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

* Time-specific activity

After breakfast, head on a jungle walk to Caquiahuara “Macaw Cliff” to see nesting macaws and learn more about the jungle. Visit a local community and watch or help build a callapo, a basic raft, and then use the raft to float back down the Tuichi River to the lodge! Then, have lunch and a rest before an option to fish for piranhas or lessons in local craft making, then back for a large buffet dinner.

Jungle/pampas lodges are traditional and community-owned and operated. All rooms are shared with a shared bathroom. Clean linen and pillows are provided for the single beds (often bunk). Mosquito nets are provided as there is no glass in the windows. Rooms are not air conditioned. Power is limited to when the generators run – usually for a few hours every night, so you can charge up your electronics using the limited outlets. There is no cellular service or Wi-Fi. There is no hot water; however, the water’s ambient temperature is fairly warm. Remember you are on an adventure of a lifetime, and it wouldn’t be an adventure if it were just like home!

People of Madidi: in the last 50 years, Quechua and Aymara people have been moving down from the highlands to the area. The park is home to Tacana (Maropas), Ese Ejja (Chamas), Tsimane, Moseten and the voluntarily isolated Toromana.

Indigenous foods: common red meats – howler monkey, white-lipped peccary, collared peccary, and tapir; common fish – catfish and pintado; cultivated foods – banana, cassava and other fruits.

Caquiahuara – clay cliffs at the confluence of the Beni and Tuichi Rivers where many Red & Green and Chestnut -fronted Macaws have dug out nest. A viewing platform has been erected down a short path just off the river.

Pampas forest

Pampas marsh

AM

Breakfast (6am)

Riverboat to Rurrenabaque (1.5hrs)

Jeep animal tour to Pampas eco-lodge

Buffet lunch

Guided riverboat animal tour and swim with river dolphins (if weather permits and dolphins are located)

PM

Buffet dinner

Accommodations

Lodge - shared group rooms

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

After a breakfast of typical local fruits and pastries, board a motorized canoe (peque) for the ride back to Rurrenabaque, and transfer to jeeps on a Bolivian safari with great chances of seeing sloths, anteaters and a multitude of birds. After a canoe ride, arrive at the ecolodge, and enjoy a buffet style lunch. Then, to the Yacuma River to look for animals – often including caimans, capybaras and monkeys. With a bit of luck and weather permitting, there will be an opportunity to swim with pink river dolphins!

Threats to preservation: deforestation for agriculture and ranching is illegal but often ignored; “wood pirates” who illegally harvest rare hardwoods – mostly the Mara (Bigleaf Mahogany); gold mining, specifically the increased mercury due to the gold separation process; construction of the Apolo-Ixiamas Road through very remote areas over challenging topography, including the construction of a controversial bridge in Rurrenabaque; oil exploration; non-sustainable tourism; poaching for food or illegal trade; two proposed multi-billion dollar mega dams.
Iconic local animals: Toucans – with various sized bills, mostly eat fruit and use their large bills as a highly efficient thermoregulation system; Anacondas – water boas and world’s heaviest snakes up to 1,100 lb / 500 kg and second longest reaching up to 36 ft / 11 m; Caimans (black or spectacled) flourish in slow moving freshwater. Black is the larger of the two and can be as long as 20 ft / 6 m; Jaguars in the Madidi area are the largest in the world – reaching close to 9 ft / 2.7 m and up to 300 lb / 135 kg. Their biggest threat is poaching for their fangs which are sold in China; Piranhas are omnivores and typically don’t represent a risk to humans. Their teeth are used as tools by local people for sharpening and carving.

Possibly Seen

ENDANGERED SCALE

Low High

Red Brocket

Giant Anteater

Pampas Cat

Giant Otter

Margay

Andean Bear

Macaw

Long-tailed Otter

Giant Armadillo

Piranha

Bolivian Red Howler

White-lipped Peccary

Amazon River Dolphin

Brown-throated Three-toed Sloth

Capybara

Jaguar

Paracana

Cougar

Bush Dog

Anaconda

Spectacled Caiman

Large-headed Capuchin

Spider Monkey

Wetlands Jungle

AM

Watch the sunrise and experience the jungle awakening

Breakfast buffet

Search for anacondas and other wildlife

Buffet lunch

Jeep safari back to Rurrenabaque

Flight to La Paz (conditions permitting)

PM

Hotel check-in

Accommodations

Hotel

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Wake up pre-dawn to experience sunrise & watch and listen to the Pampas awaken! Then, another great fresh breakfast before taking a boat ride and short walks looking for anacondas and other wildlife along the Yacuma River. After lunch, it’s back on jeep safari to Rurrenabaque and more opportunities to see wildlife from the comfort of the vehicles. Depending on flight availability, catch a flight to La Paz or enjoy another night in Rurre.

What’s the deal with unpredictable flights?
The severe altitude difference and the associated climatic variations from La Paz to Rurrenabaque makes for scheduling complications due to rapidly changing weather conditions. Cancellations were greatly diminished when the runway in Rurrenabaque was paved, but cloud cover and torrential rains can still cause cancellations. Having only one airline that flies the route means there are no choices unless one chooses to go by road, which can be a harrowing 11 to 30 hour ride depending on road conditions, if passable at all.

Bolivian fruit: Chiramaya – has a tough pineapple-like exterior with sweet soft interior commonly used in ice cream; Ambuiba – looks like a potato and is highly prized and delicious; Acachairu (Honey Kiss) – a highly sought after fruit used for juicing or eaten raw; Lima – it is supposed to be somewhere between a lemon and a lime, but it’s not really – used in juices; Maracuya – has a hard outer shell with sweet seeds used in jellies, pies and juices; Pachio – similar to Maracuya but sweeter; Granadilla – seeds are in a gelatinous covering and is eaten as is.

Mount Illimani (Aymara), La Paz

La Paz

AM

Breakfast (6-9am)

Walking city tour (~2.5hrs)

PM

A day to enjoy the city on your own

Accommodations

Hotel

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Optional on your own

* Time-specific activity

If all went according to plan A the day before, you will wake up and have breakfast before a city tour. If the flight to La Paz did not occur yesterday, then have a leisurely breakfast in Rurenabaque and a late morning flight to La Paz, an early check-in to the hotel and lunch on your own, and then a walking tour of La Paz. There is an optional opportunity to visit a local charitable organization.

San Pedro Prison in the center of La Paz is perhaps the strangest prison in the world. Inside looks similar to the streets outside the walls, with churches and markets. The inmates run the prison with rules, a political system and punishments, and an economy. Cells are purchased or rented with prices negotiated, purchase agreements, and official property titles. Some are like luxury apartments and some are bought by inmates for rentals. Food, clothing and medicine must be purchased, so inmates have jobs within the walls. Inmates’ families are permitted to live there and come and go through the gates. There were tours given by inmates, but that is not allowed anymore. You can read more about it in the book Marching Powder.

Go BIG was founded on the idea of responsible travel and strives to make a positive impact on the places visited. We try to give travelers the opportunity to give back by introducing them to local organizations in hopes of kindling a relationship that could last a lifetime through sponsorship. We can often arrange for our travelers to make a real difference in Bolivia by: getting directly involved with a volunteering project, albeit a very short one; sharing their knowledge by giving a talk; or simply observing how the organizations are helping the communities. These opportunities are scheduled outside of the standard tour itinerary as additional opportunities for travelers’ free time.

Copacabana, Lake Titicaca

North Yungas Road

AM

Breakfast

Private van to Tiwanaku - UNESCO World Heritage site - and then on to Lake Titicaca - the world´s highest navigable lake (lunch included)

Shuttle to the top of the North Yungas Road to ride mountain bikes down one of the longest continuous stretches of downhill road in the world - nearly 25 miles (lunch included)

PM

Hotel check-in

Accommodations

Hotel

Included Meals

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

Optional on your own

* Time-specific activity

After breakfast, there are two options for the day:

Option 1: Tiwanaku & Lake Titicaca (10-12hrs departs at 7:30am) Take a van to the UNESCO site Tiwanaku, a pre-columbian settlement, for a private tour and time for exploration of the site and museums on your own. Then, off to visit many sites along the shores of Lake Titicaca before heading back to La Paz.

Option 2: Bike the North Yungas Road (8-10hrs departs at 6:30am) Take a shuttle bus to La Cumbre (15,250 feet) and ride mountain bike, often out of the clouds, through the beautiful valley past waterfalls, snow-capped mountains and cloud forests to the dense jungle in the valley. Snacks and informational stops along the way with your guides. All equipment (including helmets, gloves, knee & elbow pads, wind/rain pants & jacket) provided as are the full-suspension Kona bikes with hydraulic brakes. Enjoy a large buffet lunch, a pool and showers before heading back to La Paz by private bus.

Tiwanaku was once the capital of the pre-columbian Tiwanaku culture. It is one of the largest archaeological sites in South America (~4 km²). It dates back to around 800AD and had an estimated population of about twenty thousand people.

N. Yungas Road was built in 1930 by carving into the rock faces of the mountain which created sheer drops of 1,000+ feet off the shelf. It goes from 14,783 ft / 4,506 m to 5,003 ft / 1,525 m and is one of the longest continuous stretches of downhill road in the world. Some sections are only about 11 ft /3 m wide, unpaved with no guardrails. Combine that with the often heavy rain and thick fog common to the area, and you can see how the road got its nickname: The World’s Most Dangerous Road. However, since a new road was built in 2007, the traffic has been greatly reduced and with it, the danger.

AM

Breakfast

Shuttle to the airport

Breakfast

Lunch

Dinner

* Time-specific activity

After breakfast, catch a shuttle to the airport for your flight home.