This historically-focused tour explores Bolivia's ancient restored missions. Visit the center for the mission restoration project, Concepcion. While you are there walk through the restored Catedral de Concepcion and the museum that highlights the restoration project. The capital of the Jesuit missions is San Ignacio, where you learn about the largest and most elaborate mission church. This region is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site because of its cultural accomplishment and history!
Highlights
Explore the capital of the Jesuit missions, San Ignacio
Visit the oldest mission town in the region, San Javier
Learn about the history of the mission church restoration project
Involves minimal physical effort and is typically associated with leisurely activities. Activities are low-intensity or last less than a few hours each day.
Travel southwest from Santa Cruz into the Cordillera Oriental and pass the volcanic crater lakes as you make your way with your guide to Samaipata for a full day excursion. Samaipata's Quechua name means "rest in the Highlands" and is home to El Fuerte, a hilltop pre-Inca site that inspires much-debated theories. With its giant, carved rock slabs, it is considered to have once been a ceremonial center for an ancient urban settlement, and there have been New Age claims that it was a landing zone for ancient, alien spacecraft.
This morning, depart with your guide on a four hour drive to San Javier, the oldest mission town in the region. After visiting the city and enjoying lunch, continue for one hour to Concepcion, center for the mission restoration projects. Visit the restored Catedral de Concepcion and the museum that highlights the restoration of the various churches in the region.
Day 4: Jesuit Missions of San Miguel, San Rafael, Santa Ana, and San Ignacio
After breakfast, transfer for three hours to San Ignacio, the current "capital" of the Jesuit missions of the region. Learn the story of how the largest and most elaborate of the original mission churches was demolished and replaced by a modern structure that was destroyed after some hindsight and replaced with a reproduction of the original structure.
After lunch, continue to San Miguel to visit one of the most beautiful of Bolivia's Jesuit missions before going to San Rafael, home of the first mission church to be completed among the villages in the circuit.
On the way back to San Ignacio where you overnight and have dinner, stop in Santa Ana. The church in this village is more rustic than the others and provides a good depiction of the original missions with its earthen floor and palm-frond roof.
Day 5: Return to Santa Cruz
1 Breakfast, 1 Lunch
Return to Santa Cruz with a stop en route in Concepcion for lunch. Connect to an evening international flight, spend extra time in Santa Cruz, visit Noel Kempff Mercado Park, or fly to La Paz to explore the highlands and Lake Titicaca.
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$1,5812-3 travelers
Notes
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Contact us for flight costs and availability for flights to/from La Paz.
Initial deposit is $400, and most travelers will call our office and pay the deposit with a credit card.
Final payment is due 70 days (10 weeks) prior to departure by bank transfer, check or credit card. All final payments by credit card may be subject to a surcharge and maximum of $20,000 charge
Everything was amazing! The planning with Adventure Life went smoothly. The actual trip was fantastic! One of the best trips I have experienced. The cruise staff members were knowledgeable and attentive. I will be writing more about this on the blog!
Justin Chappelle
TrustScore 4.8 | 176 reviews
TrustScore 4.8 of 5
Based on 176 reviews on
9 hours ago
Adventure Life is always an excellent choice when planning complicated, extreme, or exotic vacations or expeditions. They provide friendly professional services and advice and are enthusiastic and encouraging in helping us to prepare and thoroughly enjoy our trip. They handle all the details which greatly reduces the stress of planning a difficult trip. I'm very impressed with Adventure Life and definitely recommend them to friends and family.
Scott Trochim
2 days ago
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
4 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
5 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.