A white salt plain high in the Andes. When thin water covers it, the sky is mirrored on both sides of the horizon.
About Salar de Uyuni
Salar de Uyuni is the largest salt flat in the world, about 10,582 km² at 3,656 m in the Bolivian Andes. It formed as prehistoric lakes dried up. A crust of salt several metres thick now covers a brine rich in lithium, and across the whole surface the height varies by less than a metre. After rain, a thin layer of still water turns it into the world’s largest mirror, 129 km across. Flamingos breed here. Aymara legend says the salar formed from the tears and milk of Tunupa, a mountain giantess, after her husband left her.
Getting there
- Best months
- Flooding, which creates the mirror effect, happens mostly in January
- Nearest airport / gateway
- Uyuni Airport (UYU), with flights from La Paz and Cochabamba. Tours start in Uyuni town; Tupiza and San Pedro de Atacama (Chile) are alternative starting points.
- Permits & fees
- No fees or permits are needed for the salt flat itself.
- Sources
- en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Salar_de_Uyuni
en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Uyuni
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salar_de_Uyuni
Photos of Salar de Uyuni
