Private Tour: Tiwanaku Archeological Site from La Paz
Description
Visit the World Heritage-listed archeological ruins of Tiwanaku, near the shores of Lake Titicaca, on this private half-day tour from La Paz. With a knowledgeable guide, tour the site’s adobe pyramids and temples, and learn about the fascinating history of the Tiwanaku civilization, which flourished for hundreds of years before disappearing inexplicably around the year 1000. Hotel pickup and drop-off and transport by private vehicle are included. You have your choice of a morning or afternoon tour.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Tiwanaku was one of the most significant Andean civilizations. Its influence extended into present-day Peru and Chile and lasted from around AD 550 to 1000. Explore its capital - the monumental city of Tiwanaku, located at the center of the state's core area in the southern Lake Titicaca Basin, where scientists have discovered plenty of archaeological evidence, and are still piecing together the meanings of the religion and how it may have contributed to the state’s expansion. The pre-Columbian archaeological complex is one of the largest sites in South America. Surface remains currently cover around 4 square kilometers and include decorated ceramics, monumental structures, and megalithic blocks.
Our accredited guide will accompany you in the onsite museum, explaining what you'll see at each level.
Included on this tour at no extra charge. Visit bewildering constructions at the mysterious Puma Punku archeological site that helped organize the ancient Tiwanaku state.
Highlights
What's included
Pickup Locations & Times
We pick up travelers from all hotels in downtown La Paz
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- It is recommended that you wear comfortable shoes and clothing and bring bottled water, sunscreen and a hat
Reviews(13)
This trip was bad. The car had no seat belts. The car had the exhaust returning to inside the passenger cabin. The guide spoke bad English and was not knowledgeable. The trip was also very expensive.
Thank you Michael for sharing this feedback — we really appreciate you took the time to reflect on your Tiwanaku excursion with us. We deeply regret that you had a bad time. We would like the opportunity to talk and investigate your feedback further. I’d like to take this up with you personally and see how we can best rectify the situation with you. Please do not hesitate to contact our customer service management team at the phone number provided on your original voucher and ask for Cintia. We look forward to your call.
Our guide Juan was amazing! He was a great driver and very knowledgeable at the history of the archeological sites. I highly recommend this tour!
The trip to Tiwanaku was nice. The company gave us a hotel name and address as a meeting point; unfortunately, the hotel no longer existed which made it somewhat confusing to find our tour guide. But we did finally find him. And the miners were protesting that day in La Paz and we had a terrible time getting out of the city. But our driver did a fantastic job, negotiating, narrow, crowded streets, and we finally were able to get on the highway. All in all a great experience. When we returned to La Paz the tour guide accompanied us on the teleferico (given the blocked streets due to the protesters), and all the way to our apartment to make sure we got home safely.
I’ve wanted to come to Tiwanaku and Puma Punku for years to tour the archeological sites. I wasn’t sure who to book with because I am deep into the history of the area. Juan Mercado exceeded my expectations in every way. His knowledge of the site was unparalleled and gave me incredible information every step of the way. The day was absolutely perfect. When I come back to Bolivia next year, I will request him personally for all my tour needs.
What an incredible day! My exceptional guide Juan and I took a journey across the North Bolivian Plateau to visit this important archeological. It was breathtaking not only because of the ancient expansive megalithic complex, but because it sits at 12,631 feet above sea-level. The site of Tiwanaku is located in the valley between two sacred mountains, Pukara and Chuqi Q’awa. At the temple, in ancient times, ceremonies were conducted to honor and pay gratitude to the gods. Walking around the complex, you are greeted by Andean Yakayaka (woodpeckers), guinea pigs, and brilliant Marguerite Daisies. The archeological site is a maze of megalithic blocks, impressive gateways of monumental scale, and sunken courts pieced together with perfect symmetry. Thanks for a memorable experience!
We changed our mind and instead visited Lake Titikaka and surrounding area. Nice spot to walk down the hill and rest on the shores of the Lake. Scenery from the road was spectacular
First of all, you should know that the price is more than double what TripAdvisor advertises, I think because you are forced to buy two places in the minibus. Apart from this inconvenience, communication was excellent and we coordinated an earlier departure to see three of the four possible museums on site. I highly recommend taking this guided tour to learn about the ancient Tiahuanacota culture that had so much influence over the Inca and many other highland cultures. It is an essential stop especially if you plan to continue to know the ancient cultures of Peru. My guide Omar (a thousand apologies if I am wrong) was exceptional and answered my questions with patience, clarity and enthusiasm. He also explained to me about the other highland cultures and also about the general geography and anthropology of Bolivia and those that he has in common with Peru. It was an excellent moment of reflection and learning that will inform much the rest of my trip and my future Spanish classes. My students will surely appreciate learning about this fundamental culture of the region. A highly recommended experience.
As you tour this archaeological area, you realize the greatness of this civilization of the pre-Inca culture that expanded throughout the central Andes. Excellent ceramics, textiles and architecture in many cases are based on astronomical behavior so getting to know each other more deeply is wonderful.
<p>The Tiwanaku site was a fantastic site to visit, with a lot of interesting archaeological detail on pre-inca and inca times. Our tour guide, Oscar, was even quite helpful in answering questions we had throughout the site. He did spend a lot of time on the phone, checking it many times during our tour, and also jumping on a couple of phone calls. We were even somewhat happy with the tour until the very end, when the tour was complete, and our guide took us to a restaurant to eat. After eating, he and the driver disappeared, and the restaurant came to our table with the bill -- we had to pay for his and the driver's lunch because he was MIA -- very shady!!! He then proceeded to fall asleep in the car during most of the ride back to La Paz. Unfortunately as a result I wouldn't recommend this tour, unless you can guarantee you'll have a different tour guide that won't pull the same shade.</p>
<p>The picture is very deceptive, but in spite of it, the tour was great.The tour guide, Oscar, was excellent and we enjoyed the tour on the whole a lot. People, however, should be aware that they are not going to see much of what they see in the picture because it is no longer there. The museum at the site gives a good sense of what is no longer visible, and the artifacts are interesting. The drive from La Paz is also very interesting.</p>
