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Salar de Uyuni

The largest salt flat in the world stretches far across across Bolivia’s remote southwest, at an elevation of 3,656 metres (11,995 feet). This seemingly endless white desert, comprising over 10,000km², can be seen from outer space. The salt is over 10 meters thick in the centre and it contains 50-70% of the world’s lithium reserves. Due to lack of conventional construction materials, many of hotels here are built with salt blocks. You can stay there overnight to see the Milky Way. In the wet season, during winter, the Uyuni is covered with a thin sheet of water. This shallow salt lake is still drivable and perfectly mirrors the sky, creating illusions of infinity.

In the middle of the Salar there is the Incahuasi Island, a hilly and rocky outcrop of land featuring gigantic cacti in different shapes. The place is the top of the remains of an ancient volcano, which was submerged when the area was part of a prehistoric lake, roughly 40,000 years ago. Another tourist attraction is the Train Graveyard, located 3 km (1.9 mi) outside Uyuni. The rail lines here were used by the mining companies to carry minerals.

Photo: Dorota Olender