Last Updated on February 14, 2025
When traveling through Bolivia, you’ll find that your expenses are generally much lower than in other countries, even compared to other South American nations. You can expect to pay only a few tens of dollars for plane tickets and just a few dollars, or even cents, for travel within a city.
In Bolivia, a round-trip plane ticket costs around $120 on normal days and close to $200 on holidays. A round-trip bus ticket for intercity travel averages around $24 but can increase to $40 during holidays. Renting a car will cost you between $300 and $500 per month.
We are Bolivian citizens and real estate experts (you can see our Bolivian real estate website) who have lived here all our lives. Therefore, we’ll provide you with all the details about the actual costs of traveling within our country, whether by air or ground. You’ll also learn about the costs of renting a car and the expenses associated with traveling between Bolivia’s most important tourist destinations.
The Real Cost of Traveling in Bolivia
Traveling within Bolivia is generally quite affordable. The table below shows the general transportation costs *for a Bolivian tourist* traveling across the country.
For tourists from overseas, these costs will typically increase by 10% to 30%, but no more (see details in a later section). This increase is due to the practice of many travel companies in Bolivia charging higher prices to tourists from other countries. It’s an unfortunate habit, and we don’t condone it, but it’s how things often work here.
| Type of Cost | Avg. Spending in Bolivia |
| Travel (1 Bolivian person / Trip) | $50 |
| Trips to Tourist Destinations | $3 to $400 |
| One-Way Flight Ticket (Intercity) | $70 |
| Round-Trip Flight Ticket (Intercity) | $120 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket (Intercity) | $12 |
| Uber Ride | $3 |
| Standard Taxi Ride | $3 |
| Public Transportation Ticket | $0.30 |
| Car Rental (1 month) | $280 |
As you can see, there are numerous tourist destinations within Bolivia that you can visit. To travel to each one from a major city like Santa Cruz, *you’ll spend between $3 and $400 in most cases*. For example, to travel from Santa Cruz to the Uyuni salt flats, transportation alone will cost around $100, and a full tourist package is approximately $250 per person.
Prices are similar for almost any other tourist destination within Bolivia, and a traveler will typically spend between $100 and $300.
However, if you break down the expenses to focus solely on transportation costs (air or ground), you’ll see that, on average, a one-way plane ticket costs around $70, and a one-way bus ticket is around $12. This means that, for example, if you want to travel from Santa Cruz to La Paz by air, you’ll spend approximately $60, and by ground, around $15.
You can also rent a car and travel across Bolivia independently, spending around $280 per month for a compact car and $350 per month for a family-sized vehicle. When traveling within a city, you’ll spend no more than $3 per ride on Uber or taxis, and $0.30 per ride on public transportation.
Price List for Traveling in Bolivia
In this section, you can find detailed costs for both air and ground travel between Bolivia’s most important cities.
As you can see in the table below, traveling from Santa Cruz to La Paz City *is one of the most expensive trips you’ll take*. However, if you travel from Cochabamba to any other destination, the cost will be almost half.
Further down in the table, you can also see *the travel costs* from Santa Cruz city to Bolivia’s most significant tourist destinations. Remember that for tourists from overseas, these costs will increase by an average of 10% to 30%.
At the bottom of the table, you’ll find the average expenses per ride for transportation *within a city* in Bolivia’s three major cities: Santa Cruz, La Paz, and Cochabamba. In almost all cases, these costs won’t exceed $3 per ride.
Finally, at the end of the table, you can see the average rental prices for different types of cars you can rent in our country (see our comprehensive guide on how to rent a car in Bolivia for all the details on how to do this and save money in the process).
| Type of Travel Cost | Avg. Cost (1 person) |
| Santa Cruz – La Paz | |
| One-Way Flight Ticket | $75 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket | $17 |
| Santa Cruz – Cochabamba | |
| One-Way Flight Ticket | $40 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket | $9 |
| La Paz – Cochabamba | |
| One-Way Flight Ticket | $35 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket | $7 |
| Santa Cruz – Other Cities | |
| One-Way Flight Ticket | $70 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket | $18 |
| Santa Cruz – Tourist Destinations (round trip) | |
| Uyuni Salt Flat (combined trip)* | $300 |
| Madidi National Park (flight ticket) | $300 |
| Lake Titicaca (combined trip)* | $200 |
| Oruro Carnival (flight ticket) | $200 |
| Laguna Colorada (combined trip) | $150 |
| Chiquitos (road trip) | $30 |
| Death Road (flight ticket) | $200 |
| Samaipata (road trip) | $25 |
| Laguna Colorada (combined trip) | $300 |
| Within Santa Cruz | |
| Uber Taxi Ride | $4 |
| Standard Taxi Ride | $4 |
| Public Transportation Ride | $0.30 |
| Within La Paz | |
| Uber Taxi Ride | $3 |
| Standard Taxi Ride | $3 |
| Public Transportation Ride | $0.30 |
| Cable Car Ticket | $0.40 |
| Within Cochabamba | |
| Uber Taxi Ride | $3 |
| Standard Taxi Ride | $3 |
| Public Transportation Ride | $0.30 |
| Car Rental | |
| Compact Car (cost per month) | $280 |
| SUV (cost per month) | $350 |
| Gasoline Cost (1 gallon) | $1.80 |
| Traffic Ticket (avg. cost) | $15 |
*Combined trip refers to a journey that includes both air and ground transportation.
When visiting tourist destinations within Bolivia, as mentioned earlier, you won’t spend more than $400 for a round trip (in most cases, the cost will be around $150), *including the potential overcharges* from some tourist companies. It’s rare to spend $500 or more on a tourist trip for one person.
These prices can increase significantly during holidays, up to 100% in extreme cases. The costs shown are for ordinary days, not holidays like Christmas or Carnival. If traveling during holiday periods, you should add at least 50% to the costs listed above.
Different Incomes and the Cost of Travel
When Bolivian tourists travel within the country, their expenses vary significantly based on their income. As an international tourist, you should compare yourself to an upper-middle-class Bolivian when traveling here if you want to experience a similar level of comfort to that of a developed country.
Lower-class Bolivians typically travel exclusively by ground, using the cheapest bus companies available. As a result, they spend around $15 for a round-trip intercity ticket and approximately $2/day on transportation within the city they’re visiting.
The situation isn’t drastically different for middle-class Bolivians. They almost always travel solely by ground, though they may choose better bus companies, providing greater comfort. They’ll also occasionally use taxis to move around within a city. Consequently, they’ll spend around $50 for a full seven-day trip.
It’s a very different scenario for upper-middle-class Bolivians and some wealthy individuals. In many cases, most of them will travel exclusively by air, and they’ll also use Uber and taxis much more frequently for transportation within a city. Therefore, their travel costs will be significantly higher, averaging around $130 for a full seven-day trip.
| Lower-Class Bolivian (1 person) | Middle-Class Bolivian (1 person) | Upper-Middle-Class Bolivian (1 person) | |
| Avg. Travel Expenses / 7-Day Trip | $30 | $50 | $130 |
| Avg. Travel Expenses / Day | $4 | $7 | $19 |
As we just stated, you should compare yourself to an upper-middle-class Bolivian if you desire to travel quickly, comfortably, and without significant inconveniences. *However, if you’re a budget traveler*, you should be perfectly comfortable spending around $50 on travel expenses for a full seven-day trip within our country.
Foreigners and the Cost of Travel
As we mentioned earlier in this article, travel agencies and companies in Bolivia *tend to inflate their prices* when dealing with tourists from developed countries. They assume you’re unaware of the prices charged to Bolivian tourists. Nevertheless, the price increase typically won’t be excessive, averaging around 10% to 30% in most cases.
| Type of Travel Expense | % of Overpricing | Avg. Cost for a Bolivian | Final Cost for a Tourist |
| Trips to Tourist Destinations | 100% | $3 to $200 | $6 to $400 |
| One-Way Flight Ticket (Intercity) | 0% | $70 | $70 |
| Round-Trip Flight Ticket (Intercity) | 0% | $120 | $120 |
| One-Way Bus Ticket (Intercity) | 50% | $12 | $18 |
| Uber Trip | 0% | $3 | $3 |
| Standard Taxi Trip | 100% | $3 | $6 |
| Public Transportation Ticket | 0% | $0.30 | $0.30 |
| Car Rental (1 month) | 20% | $280 | $336 |
When traveling by air in Bolivia, you also have the option of securing the most affordable flights, just as in any other country (you can use TripAdvisor to find the cheapest flight prices here in Bolivia as well).
However, when traveling by ground, there’s a considerable amount of hidden information and overpricing imposed by companies catering to foreigners from developed nations. This means that, on average, when purchasing a bus ticket to travel to a tourist destination or another city in Bolivia, you’ll generally encounter an overcharge of 50%. If you purchase your bus tickets online or visit reputable bus companies, this is less likely to occur.
When taking rides within a city, you’ll encounter two very different scenarios: when using Uber, you’ll face very fair prices, but when using regular taxis, many drivers will charge you significantly more than Bolivians. They might even inflate the fare by up to 100% or more in some cases.
Additionally, some car rental companies may overprice their services if they perceive that a tourist is attempting to rent a car from them. Therefore, if you find that a standard car costs more than $1,500 per month, you should consider another company. “EuropCar” or “Hertz” in Bolivia are excellent companies to consider. You can also find the best car rental prices on Kayak.
Comparing the Cost of Travel in Bolivia Versus Other Countries
Traveling in Bolivia, whether by air or ground, will be considerably less expensive than in developed countries like the US and Canada. However, these differences are more pronounced when comparing ground transportation costs. It’s worth noting that the UK, being a relatively small country, has air travel costs almost comparable to those in Bolivia.
Keep in mind that Bolivia is a country four times the size of Germany or twice the size of the state of Texas in the US, so it’s certainly not a small country. From La Paz to Santa Cruz, the two most important cities here, there are approximately 310 miles (500 km) *in a straight line* and about 528 miles (850 km) by road.
When purchasing plane tickets, the average cost in Bolivia will represent only about 25% to 40% of the average cost in countries like the US or Canada. When purchasing bus tickets, the cost will be even lower, representing only around 10% to 20% of the cost in those countries.
| Type of Travel Cost | Bolivia | Upper-Middle-Class Bolivian | USA | Canada | UK | India |
| Intercity One-Way Flight Ticket | $70 | $90 | $260 | $300 | $95 | $70 |
| Intercity One-Way Bus Ticket | $12 | $15 | $84 | $65 | $110 | $25 |
| Uber Taxi | $3 | $4 | $25 | $8 | $9 | $1.30 |
| Standard Taxi | $3 | $4 | $35 | $10 | $12 | $1.80 |
| Public Transportation Ticket | $0.30 | $0.40 | $2.50 | $2.50 | $2.10 | $0.25 |
| Gasoline Cost (1 gallon) | $1.80 | $1.80 | $3.50 | $5 | $7.50 | $5 |
When comparing transportation costs within a city in Bolivia, you’ll find that they represent only around 10% to 15% of the cost in developed countries, *regardless of whether it’s Uber, taxis, or public transportation*. Keep in mind that regular taxi drivers tend to significantly overcharge when they see tourists.
Another noteworthy fact is that gasoline in Bolivia has remained at a fixed price for over a decade, locked at $1.80 per gallon. This represents approximately 20% to 50% of the cost of gasoline in developed countries.
*In the case of India*, the costs of traveling within that country (even though India generally has costs that are half as much as Bolivia in most areas) are higher due to the vast distances involved. However, transportation within a city is again about 50% less expensive.
Conclusions:
In this guide to travel costs within Bolivia, you’ve learned that a round-trip plane ticket typically costs around $120, while a round-trip bus ticket averages around $24.
You’ve also realized that when traveling with a rented car, rental expenses will range from $280 to $350, and with gasoline costing $1.80, you’ll need to budget between $250 and $500 per month in most cases.
Finally, you now know that to travel to Bolivia’s most significant tourist destinations, you’ll typically spend between $3 and $400 per person, and the cost will rarely exceed this amount. Additionally, travel companies tend to overcharge tourists, and you should generally avoid travel costs and tourist packages that exceed $400 within the country.
We hope this information has been helpful. If you’d like to know more about the cost of living in Bolivia, including expenses related to food, clothing, transportation, entertainment, etc., please visit our dedicated guide: The cost of living in Bolivia: All you need to know.
CasasenBolivia.com, information on living, working, investing, and traveling in Bolivia.
