Travel Guide La Paz, Bolivia: what to do, where to eat & sleep on a budget

For Budget travelers Bolivia is like heaven – actually its the cheapest country in South America and offers a wide range of activities as well as stunning landscapes to discover. Bolivias capital La Paz is the starting point for most travelers – use this guide to make the most out of your stay!

Things to do in & around La Paz

Compared to other countries the tourism industry isn't that big in Bolivia. Beside the popular Death Road and Uyuni there isn't that much information available beforehand – I discovered a bit more and would say that La Paz has quite a few options to fill a whole week.

City Tour (2-3 hrs, 20€ / or: 13€ for Budget Tour)
It's hard to find a city tour in La Paz. Luckily I got the contact of a guy who started to organize private and really authentic guided walks through the city.
Ben took me on a journey through the real La Paz which means: eating local, seeing places off the touristic path, heading over to El Alto, taking the public transportation and visiting a real shamane who will read your fortune of of coca leaves. Head over to Banjotours website to book the La Paz city tour.

Biking down the Death Road (full day, 85€ / HolaGringo Deal: free gift!)
This is possibly one of the MUST-Do's once you are here. Beside the adrenaline experience of riding down a thrilling route on a cool mountainbike I recommend doing it especially because of the nature and panoramic views you come to see.
I went with Gravity and highly recommend them, though they are more expensive than others they offer the best equipment, fun tour guides and a nice package – this means you get snacks and water along the way and at the end you enjoy a nice buffet in a monkey resort where you also receive your free t-shirt to make your friends at home jealous ;)
Have a look at the related Biking down the Death Road Video to see what it's like (including the Ziplining) and check out the HolaGringo Deals below.

Ziplining / Flying Fox (28 € / HolaGringo Deal: 24 €!)
If you want it all you can go Ziplining right after your death road experience and enjoy the next adrenaline activity!
See the special gravity deals below.

Rappel: Urban Rush (15 € / HolaGringo Deal: 5% off!)
So you love to see cities from above? What about getting kicked out of a window of a skyscraper at a high of 70m and walking down the facade of the building with a free fall at the end?
Ok, the guys from Urban Rush will not “kick you” out of the window but they'll practice with you and hand out a nice spiderman costume before you go over the edge. You can decide by yourself if you like to go face first or not – I highly recommend it because the experience is great.

Skywalk, Miraflores, Witches Market (free)
Don't miss out to go for a walk in the city center and the area of Miraflores. By walking you experience the real life in the streets of La Paz – you'll go up and down and should definitely have a look at the weird shops around the witches market where you also have the chance to shop clothes for the cheapest prices you can find in South America (don't forget to bargain!).
The “skywalk” you can find in Miraflores is a good opportunity to have a great lookout to the innercity and up to “El Alto”.

I'd highly recommend to ask in your hostel for a map and advices where to go and which areas to avoid!

Restaurants & Cafés

Bolivia is one of the countries in South America you should always eat out as it is almost more expensive to buy groceries and cook for yourself!

Alexander Coffee (Breakfast)
This is possibly the best spot for breakfast and a decent coffe in town. As this place is also the meeting point for gravity's death road trips you should use this opportunity for a great breakfast.

Address: Av. Montenegro #1369 Bloque B

Set lunch menus (Lunch)
Around the city center you can find the set lunch menus called “almuerzo” (= lunch) in a lot of restaurants. For around 1€ you'll get a salad, a soup and a main dish!

The Steakhouse (Dinner)
Possibly the cheapest tasty steak you've ever had! Though it's pricey for Bolivia it's still an awesome deal for travelers from abroad. I ordered a huge Jack Daniel's steak, had a wine and enjoyed the salad buffet for just 12€ !!!

Address: Calle Tarija 243B

Nightlife

Let's face it: La Paz is one of the most popular party places for young travelers down here because of the low prices for alcohol (..and also drugs…). Hit the dancefloor, celebrate the fact that you survived the death road in one of the highest cities on earth.
But please make sure to don't walk home alone and drunk!

Malegria
The night club Malegria is the only one I went to and we had good fun there as it has not been only a disco – there was also a live salsa-percussion performance on stage in between the disco beats.
Address: Pasaje Medinacelli, Sopocachi

Find more clubs on this Blog!

Party Hostel Pubs
La Paz means also: Party Hostels! The most popular are Wild Rover and Loki – both are located in the same area just a few steps away from each other. Meet fellow travelers and get ready for insane party nights.
But keep in mind that these hostels are far more expensive than the average bar in LaPaz – on the other hand they are also more safe.

Where to sleep

As already mentioned La Paz is the place to stay in a party hostel. The best thing about that: you can even have a private room for a really good price – so treat yourself and enjoy having privacy to recover after a long night out.
I chose the Wild Rover for my stay and enjoyed the fact that they also had a really good restaurant inside the hostel. Moreover there is a Tour Operator Office, a TV Room and of course a bar with good parties every night (and free shots!).
Nevertheless the breakfast is pretty basic and the WiFi is really slow like everywhere in Bolivia. The fact that there was no kitchen to cook your own stuff didn't bother me, cause I used to eat out every day.

Address: Calle Comercio 1476

Have you ever been to La Paz? Anything to add to the Travel Guide La Paz, Bolivia? Tell us more!

If you have any tips or hints feel free to join the conversation – post a comment below and share your experience!
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Disclosure:
My accommodation in La Paz was supported by Hostelbookers.com – together with Traveldudes they help me to show you South America on my #HolaGringo trip.
All the content I provide from my travels is completely my own – this goes for opinions and views as well as for recommendations.

This post is also available in: German