In town: trufis, micros and minibuses
A trufi is a car, minivan or minibus on a numbered fixed route, shared for a set fare per seat and waved down at any corner; micros are larger buses on longer routes. Routes are learned from people, not signs: ask which line passes near where you are going, then “¿Va al centro?” before you get in. You pay on board with small change and get off by naming your corner: aquí nomás. In La Paz the voceador at the minibus door calls the route.
Taxis and radiotaxis
In most Bolivian cities taxis have no meter: the fare is agreed before you get in, through the window or by message. Ask “¿Cuánto me cobra?” and repeat the number back. In the evening or with luggage, people call a radiotaxi, a cab from a named company ordered by phone; hostal receptions and friends book one as a matter of course.
Ride-hailing apps work in the big cities: Uber in La Paz, El Alto, Santa Cruz and Cochabamba, inDrive in those cities and in Sucre, Tarija and Oruro, where most riders pay cash. Which app runs where changes, so check on arrival. Official travel advice recommends a radio taxi ordered by phone, or an app, over a taxi hailed in the street.
Sources: Uber, El Deber, travel.gc.ca, GOV.UK, France Diplomatie
Mi Teleférico in La Paz and El Alto
Mi Teleférico is the cable-car network thousands of people use every day between La Paz and El Alto. Its ten lines are named by colour, from Roja and Amarilla to Plateada, and changing lines is a transbordo; ask the clerk which line takes you. As of 2026 a ride costs Bs 3 for the first line and Bs 2 for each transfer (Bs 1.50 and Bs 1 at student and preferential fares), Monday to Saturday from 06:30 to 22:30, Sundays and holidays from 07:00 to 21:00. Pay cash or by QR at the ticket office, or with the Yala card. Directions follow the slope: up to the centre and El Alto, down to the Zona Sur. More in the La Paz city guide.
Sources: eju.tv, 2026-01, eju.tv, 2026-06, Visión 360, Ministerio de Obras Públicas
Between cities: the terminal and the flota
Long distances are covered by flota, the intercity bus. A big terminal is dozens of companies under one roof: voceadores shout destinations, but the time and platform are confirmed at the company counter. You ask for a pasaje and get a boleto with the route, hour, class, seat and price; check it at the window. The small uso de terminal fee is paid apart, at a booth.
Flotas leave from the Terminal de Buses in La Paz, Cochabamba (Avenida Ayacucho) and Sucre (Avenida Ostria Gutiérrez), and from the Terminal Bimodal in Santa Cruz, which also serves the train. Buy at the company counter: online resellers exist, but there is no official platform. Carry your passport, because companies record a passenger list and the police check it.
Night buses come in semi cama, cama and leito, the name many companies paint on the bus for bus cama; cama seats sell out first. Big luggage goes into the bodega against a numbered slip, the talón: keep it on you, it gets your bag back. Shorter hops by trufi or minibus often leave “cuando se llena”, when full.
Sources: eju.tv, Los Tiempos, Correo del Sur
Bloqueos and the road on the day
Journeys are counted in hours on the road, not kilometres. On the day of an intercity trip, ask the office that runs the route whether there is a bloqueo, a road closed by protest: “¿Está habilitada la ruta?”. If rain delays a departure, confirm the new time with the company, not with the murmurs at the stop.
During blockades, a ticket sold as “condicionado” does not guarantee you will arrive, and you should never try to cross a blockade. Before leaving, look at the road authority’s map of road conditions; on a long road trip, carry water, food and any medicine you need.
Sources: GOV.UK, warnings, GOV.UK, France Diplomatie, travel.gc.ca, ABC
Flights
Most domestic passengers fly BoA (Boliviana de Aviación), about 94 % in May 2026 according to the civil aviation authority; EcoJet and TAMEP also fly, while Amaszonas has not flown since its certificate was suspended in 2023. The main airports are El Alto (LPB) for La Paz, above 4,000 m, Viru Viru (VVI) for Santa Cruz, Jorge Wilstermann (CBB) a few kilometres south of central Cochabamba, and Alcantarí (SRE), about 30 km from Sucre: allow 40 to 50 minutes. El Alto has no official airport shuttle yet; most people take a radio taxi or a minibus.
Plan a flight day backwards from the boarding pass, treat a ride time like “como 40 minutos” as an estimate, and check your fare's baggage allowance: on BoA the cheapest fare includes no checked bag, and carry-on is 7 kg, 5 kg on the small planes to Potosí, Oruro or Uyuni. Foreigners fly with their passport. If the board shows DEMORADO, confirm the new time at the counter. Avionetas, small planes with strict weight limits, link La Paz with Amazon towns like Rurrenabaque.
Sources: DGAC, Air Journal, NAABOL, Correo del Sur, eju.tv, BoA, Ministerio de Obras Públicas
Cash, small bills and the pasaje
Fares rose after fuel subsidies ended (December 2025, then September 2026), and intercity fares were still being renegotiated in October 2026: ask the fare before you board or buy. Carry small bills and coins: a driver may have no change for a big note, and locals keep sencillo on purpose. On a micro, ask “¿Le pago ahora o al bajar?”. QR payments are everywhere and work across banks, but need a Bolivian bank app, so newcomers often pay cash at first. On signs and at counters, cancelar means to pay.
Sources: Los Tiempos, Visión 360
Altitude, safety and manners
Coming from the lowlands, many people feel the altitude in La Paz or Potosí: take the first day slowly and ask whether to see a doctor. Terminal and bus staff speak usted and may warmly call you joven. After a loss or theft, the Policía Turística helps visitors, and insurers ask first for a copy of the denuncia.
Official travel advice (UK, France, Canada) notes that long-distance bus accidents are common: where you can, avoid night buses and choose established companies, and on a night bus keep your documents on you, as thefts happen while passengers sleep.
Sources: GOV.UK, France Diplomatie, travel.gc.ca
