7 Things to Know Before Choosing an Uyuni Salt Flats Tour [2023]

Uyuni is a must do – but here are 7 things you should know before choosing a tour.

The Salt Flats in Uyuni, otherwise known as the Salar de Uyuni, is truly one of the most marvellous things I’ve witnessed in all my travels. In the rainy season, the Uyuni Salt Flats produce the world’s largest mirror effect, making it look like you’re walking in heaven. In the dry season, the salt flats are beautiful in an entirely different way – presenting themselves in visually striking hexagonal shapes – making you feel like you’re on another planet.

Dakar Monument Flags in Uyuni – Visitable on Day 1 of an Uyuni Tour.

But as unforgettable as the Salt Flats are, there are definitely questions you should ask before choosing an Uyuni tour. Uyuni is full of dodgy tours and I have heard many horror stories out there of vehicles without seatbelts, travellers being stranded on the salt plains, and scariest of all – car collisions resulting in serious injuries. These stories are alarmingly quite common and might deter you from visiting. However, that would be a massive shame as Uyuni is frequently referred to by travellers as an all-time bucket list highlight. With a little research and by following the recommendations of others, you will most likely be completely safe in Uyuni.

Laguna Colorada, the beautiful lagoon you’ll see on day 3 of your 3-day tour.

But with hundreds of tours out there, how do you know which ones are safe? To help you make the safest choice, we decided to create this list of 7 Things to Know Before Choosing an Uyuni Tour so you can make the most informed choice.

1. The itinerary on every tour is more or less the same…

When I was doing research on tours in Uyuni, I wasted too much time reviewing the itineraries of each tour. The truth is, the attractions and places you visit on every tour are more or less the same. You might visit them in a different order than other tours, but eventually everyone will end up visiting the same places.

Sunset at Isla Incahuasi, an island full of cactuses.

If you go on a tour that isn’t reputable, you might miss some attractions due to mismanagement of the tour schedule. For example, we heard of some tour groups who didn’t get to see the Geiser Sol de La Manana or Arbol de Peidra – both iconic Uyuni attractions – because their tour guide got drunk and completely mismanaged the latter half of their itinerary.

👉 To take a look at what a typical complete itinerary looks like for a 3-Day Uyuni Tour, check out this specific tour.

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2. But the safety standards are not!

The safety standards of each tour vary wildly. One tour company could run their tours in a perfectly safe manner, and another tour might be much more careless with their tours. It could be the difference between having a drunk driver at the wheel versus a driver who always take care of their passengers at first priority. Or it could be the difference between having seatbelts in the car versus having to hold on to the seat for safety.

Not all Uyuni tours are created equally! Some operate with poorly maintained cars.

Some vehicles may be old and poorly maintained, while others may be newer and much more equipped to handle the unpredictable terrain in Uyuni.

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3. You should read reviews carefully

99% of travel bloggers (okay – that may be an exaggeration, but there’s a lot of them out there) will recommend that you book your tour once you get to Uyuni. The reasoning for this is that the majority of Uyuni tour operators do not advertise their tours online, so you’ll have many more tour options if you visit their offices physically, in town. This way, you can also haggle down and choose a tour based on the cheapest price.

The town of Uyuni, where most tours leave from

But this is where I wholeheartedly disagree. Safety is of the upmost importance when choosing a tour in Uyuni and I wouldn’t gamble it by deciding a tour on the spot. If you choose a multi-day tour, these tour operators will have your lives in their hands, and you want to know that they’re going to be running their tour safely.

You can find these Transformers statues at the Train Cemetery.

If you get to town and decide then, you won’t have the time to properly vet and assess the company. Also, if the company doesn’t have an online presence, there is no way to read reviews of other travellers’ experiences. For all you know, they might have a poor safety reputation.

We love a good bargain just as much as about anyone, but it’s not worth booking a cheap, potentially shoddy tour considering what’s at stake.

 👉 That’s why websites like Viator are so useful. They allow potential customers to check out comprehensive reviews for that particular tour – not just the tour company itself. This is important as perhaps one company offers a great One-Day Tour of the Uyuni Salt Flats, but aren’t as great in delivering other tours.

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4. English vs. Spanish Speaking Tour

Tours lead by an English-speaking guide are usually much more expensive than tours led completely in Spanish. In some cases, they could be up to 60-100USD more expensive, per person. You may be inclined to then save money and book a Spanish-speaking tour, but I would advise against this.

Salvador Deli Desert, Uyuni

Unless you speak fluent Spanish, you wouldn’t be able to understand all the history behind the places you’re visiting. Uyuni is truly a fascinating place with lots to learn about, and you’d be missing out. More importantly, if you ever feel unwell at any time – whether it be because of poor driving, the high altitude, or food poisoning – it’ll be difficult for you to communicate this if your guide does not speak English. It’s worth spending that extra money for the peace of mind you’re going to get for being able to communicate with your guide at any time.

👉 For a 5-star rated reputable English-speaking tour, check out this specific tour.

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5. Differences in Accommodation

There are some differences in the quality of accommodation among the tours. Some tours operate on a share-room only basis, with extremely basic accommodation. Other tours provide the option of private rooms with private bathrooms, similar to what you would expect at a 3-star hotel.

The accommodation we stayed at on night two was located directly in front of this natural hot spring, and we went star gazing in it the night before this photo was taken.

In general, the accommodation in Uyuni isn’t that great so if you’re looking to stay at a place that’s a little nicer than your standard bunk-bed dorm room situation, you might have to spend more money or book a private tour.

👉 For a perfectly rated Private 3-Day Uyuni Tour featuring 5-star hotels, check out this specific tour.

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6. Most tours do not offer Wi-Fi or any type of connectivity

Going flamingo spotting around Uyuni.

You’ll have normal connectivity in Uyuni town, but when you’re on the road, 4G/5G/Wi-Fi will be close to non-existent. There were times where I picked up phone reception for a minute or two just enough to message family back home, but other than that – expect to be disconnected for the duration of your tour. It’s really not that horrible as you’ll end up reconnecting with nature instead and maybe discover that life without the internet isn’t so bad! But it’s important to know this just in case you need to do something particularly important involving the internet during your tour.

Taking in Uyuni’s otherworldly scenery.

Some upscale tours that take their guests to higher quality accommodation might have access to paid Wi-Fi.

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7. Travel Insurance is crucial and could literally save your life

Travel insurance is a necessity for every trip, but is especially important in this case given what could go wrong on an Uyuni tour. We never leave home without travel insurance, and that rule has saved us literally thousands of dollars.

Yay for travel insurance! A lifesaver.

We use World Nomads for our travel insurance just like other expert bloggers such as Nomadic Matt.

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Handpicked Uyuni Tours

Check out these Uyuni Tours that we’ve handpicked for you!

Take the guesswork out of choosing the right Uyuni Salt Flats Tour for you. We’ve searched far and wide to handpick you the best-rated Uyuni Tours out there. Check these out!

From La Paz

The most hassle-free way to kick off your Uyuni journey is to start from the lively Bolivian city of La Paz, likely to be your entry point into Bolivia. La Paz is an amazing city full of colour, culture and unique landscapes in its own right – so do not skip this city.

Here are some experiences we would recommend:

• La Paz to Uyuni Premium Bus – This is the only tour company offering hotel pick up and drop off directly to the La Paz Bus Station, where your overnight bus will leave from. This is handy because the La Paz Bus Station is known to be a bit sketchy at night. The bus company, El Cisne, offers a premium bus service that includes fully reclinable seats, charging ports, blankets and even dinner and breakfast.

• Day Trip to Uyuni Salt Flats from La Paz – If you’re short on time and only want to visit the Salar De Uyuni on a day trip from La Paz, this tour does just that. On this jam-packed day, you’ll get to tick off the Salt Flats, Train Cemetery, Colchani and Isla Incahuasi. I would usually recommend a Multi-Day Tour, but this tour is perfect if you only have a day of your sleeve.

• Luxury 2-Day Trip from La Paz to Uyuni by Flight – This premium 2-day trip offers you more time to see Uyuni’s attractions, while saving on time by flying from La Paz to Uyuni.

From Uyuni

• Classic 1-Day Tour Uyuni Salt Flats Tour from Uyuni – This 1-day tour will give you a taste of Uyuni, as it takes you through to Uyuni’s closest attractions. Super convenient if you’re planning on staying at Uyuni town for an extended period of time and just planning to take a day trip from there.

• Classic 2-Day Tour Uyuni Salt Flats Tour – The 2-day version of this tour includes all the attractions of the previously mentioned tour, but gives you the opportunity to visit volcanoes and stay over at a Salt Hotel, which is a really memorable experience.

• Classic 3-Day Tour to Uyuni Slat Flats Tour + Coloured Lagoons + Sunset Viewing – This is the Uyuni tour that has everything. My favourite stops – the Dali Desert and Laguna Verde are visited on the third day, so I would strongly recommend doing this 3-day tour.

A 3-Day Uyuni Tour is the way to go if you have the time.

From San Pedro de Atacama

It’s possible to explore Uyuni from the Chilean holiday town of San Pedro De Atacama (which is also beautiful).

Although tours starting in Chile are generally more expensive, there are still Multi-Day tours to Uyuni available from San Pedro de Atacama, such as this specific tour.

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Which Tour Did We Do?

Laguna Verde, Uyuni – close to the Chilean border.

We did a 3-Day Tour from Uyuni to San Pedro De Atacama. We wanted to see as much as possible in the region, including Atacama, so this was naturally the best choice for us.

Getting to Uyuni is an effort and a half already, so we thought we’d maximise our time and explore all the attractions. Unless you’re really short on time, we would highly recommend you do a 3-Day Tour as, quite honestly, our favourite things to see were on Day 2 and Day 3 of our tour.

Look, flamingos!

San Pedro de Atacama and its surroundings were also GORGEOUS, so we would also recommend finishing your tour up there as opposed to going back to Uyuni. Just please be aware of Chile’s entry requirements for your individual passport beforehand as we were almost not let through customs at the Hito Cajun Border due to a visa issue.

👉  To book a 3-Day Tour from Uyuni to San Pedro de Atacama, check out this specific tour.

Note: The tour offers you the option to transfer to San Pedro de Atacama (not every tour provider does), but you’ll have to pay the bus ticket to San Pedro de Atacama costing 20USD each in cash.

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Is a Tour the Only Way to Visit the Salt Falts in Uyuni?

Ralph at Isla Incahuasi

Unfortunately, yes. Visiting the salt flats on a tour is pretty much the only feasible way right now to experience Uyuni and its surrounding areas.

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What can really go wrong on an Uyuni Salt Flats Tour?

Dramatic scenery around the Uyuni area.

It really pains us to warn travellers about a particular destination – we want to be as encouraging as possible to our readers – but we wouldn’t be doing our jobs if we didn’t properly stress the significance of how important it is to find a reputable tour.

Asher at Salvador Dali Desert.

Uyuni has quite a long list of accidents owing to various factors, including drunk driving, untrained drivers, poor vehicle maintenance, speeding and general carelessness. Collisions, vehicles flipping and similar types of incidents do happen – choosing a good tour is crucial!

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How do I get to Uyuni?

How do you get to Uyuni?

Arriving into Uyuni is not the easiest task as it usually either involves a long overnight bus ride or flight from La Paz.

👉 To book the bus ride from La Paz to Uyuni, click here.

👉 To book a flight to Uyuni, click here or use the Skyscanner widget below.

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Is visiting the Salt Flats in Uyuni still worth it despite the dangers?

Laguna Verde, Uyuni

Yes, for sure! You might be thinking that Uyuni isn’t worth all the hassle, but that would be a big mistake. Experiencing the whole Uyuni area is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I would definitely still encourage you to go. Where else can you gaze at night stars in a natural hot spring, drive for hours in an endless mirror, find otherworldly landscapes and spot flamingos?

You won’t find these landscaped anywhere else. Truly breathtaking.

With a reputable tour, you shouldn’t have any problems. The best-rated tour companies have run tours for decades and have a good safety reputation for a reason. Once you’ve made the smart decision of booking a highly-rated tour, then you can be rest assured that any accidents are highly unlikely to happen on your trip.

Still worth it! Asher at the Salar de Uyuni.

Please also remember that Uyuni is located 3,656m above sea level. Altitude sickness is a real thing, so prepare accordingly.

We hope you feel more prepared when choosing an Uyuni Salt Flats Tour! Although there may be some risk involved, we strongly believe that visiting on a reputable tour and witnessing Salar de Uyuni for yourself is 100% worth it.