Isla del Sol Travel Guide

There is not much alive on this island, few vegetation, only some Llamas...but there is sooo much history to live, to see, to feel. inca culture and other precolumbian culture.

Favorite thing: The Isla del Sol, measuring only 5 1/2 miles (9km) long by 3 3/4 miles (6km) wide, is one of the most spectacular places in all of Bolivia. There are daily tours by boat to the island to the south end from where you can take a walk to the famous inca ruins at the north end.

Favorite thing: On the north end are Challapampa and some fascinating Inca ruins. Yumani, on the south end, is the largest town on the island and also the site of the Inca steps.

A visit to Challapampa is the highlight of the Sun Island. Here are the ruins of Chinkana (labyrinth). It's a huge stone complex full of mazes, believed to be a seminary for Inca priests. The construction is actually a bit sloppy, which is very uncharacteristic of the Incas; some archaeologists theorize that the Incas must have been in a rush when they built it. A natural spring here runs under the island and appears again in a sacred stone fountain in Yumani. On the path back to the town of Challapampa, about 90 yards (100m) from Chinkana, you will pass by the sacred rock, carved in the shape of a puma. As you continue along this path toward Challapampa, look down: You will soon see two very large footprints, said to have been created when the Sun dropped down to earth to give birth to Manco Capac and Mama Ocllo, the Adam and Eve of the Incas.

Favorite thing: the lago titicaca is located at an altitude of 3800m. It is the second biggest sea in southamerica after the lake Maracaibo and the highest navigabel sea in the world. The sea has got an average wide of 50 km and a length of 190km.