Is Bolivia safe to travel?

The political and social situation keeps shifting and protests with road blockades can start without warning, in the cities and on the main roads between them. Take care when moving around and keep up with how the situation develops while you are in the country.

Travel is advised against in every border area away from public roads and official crossings, and mines may be present in some zones along the Chilean border. It is advisable to avoid the Chapare region, where clashes between police and coca growers can occur. Take particular care in mining areas, the isolated parts of the Andean altiplano and the rural areas of Santa Cruz, Beni and Pando departments.

Armed robberies have happened at Muela del Diablo and Palca near La Paz, and thefts have risen considerably on the Santa Cruz to Cochabamba road, mostly in the evening and where speed bumps force you to slow down. Violent robberies and express kidnappings for ransom have been reported against foreigners and tourists around Lake Titicaca, in tourist parts of central La Paz and in Santa Cruz, while money and documents are stolen at bus terminals and on public transport on the La Paz - Oruro - Salar de Uyuni route. Crime is now also growing in the residential districts of the main cities.

Petty crime keeps rising, especially in border areas and the biggest cities, in central and nightlife districts, even in daylight. Do not leave belongings such as your phone, tablet, laptop or camera unattended or show off valuables: thefts are increasing near bus terminals and on coaches linking tourist destinations with the main cities. Do not resist if you are attacked.

Tourists have been robbed and assaulted by people claiming to be police, in uniform or plain clothes, who tell them to get into unmarked cars: do not get in, alert your embassy immediately and say you must first have its approval. In bars and clubs, drinks have been spiked with drugs that can knock people out and leave them open to theft, assault and sexual violence.

The ministry advises avoiding individual trips unless they are well organised through travel agencies of proven reliability. It advises visiting the Yungas valley from La Paz to Coroico, the Salar de Uyuni, the Rurrenabaque circuit and the neighbouring Madidi rainforest park with authorised guides, and checking that guides on trips far from towns carry satellite phones. Phone and internet coverage may not work around Lake Titicaca and the Islands of the Sun and the Moon, in Madidi National Park, in the Lagunas Coloradas region and at the Salar de Uyuni, so before leaving the big cities share the contact details of your hotels and agencies with your family.