Laguna Colorada: The Red Lagoon of the Eduardo Avaroa Reserve

The Red Water, Explained

The lagoon sits at 4,278 m (14,035 ft) above sea level and is very shallow, less than 1 m (3 ft 3 in) deep. The red colour comes from the effect of wind and sun on pigmented micro-organisms, algae, that live in the water. The shade shifts through the day, because the light angle and the wind change how much pigment shows. Because the depth is under 1 m, the whole surface responds to the same wind and light, which is why photos of the lagoon range from pale pink to deep rust.

The site has formal protection on top of the reserve status. Laguna Colorada was designated a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance in 1990, and the protected area was expanded in 2009 from 513.18 km² to 14,277.17 km² to include surrounding high-Andean lakes and wetlands.

Where It Is and How High the Reserve Goes

The lagoon lies in the Eduardo Avaroa reserve, established in December 1973, which covers 714,745 hectares with altitudes between 4,200 m (13,800 ft) and 5,400 m (17,700 ft). That altitude band matters. Uyuni town, where most tours start, sits around 3,656 m to 3,700 m depending on the source.

The reserve's floor of 4,200 m is already 500 m or more above town, and the geysers at about 4,900 m sit roughly 1,200 m higher than your starting point. The jump is steep enough that altitude sickness is a real risk on this route, and it is covered in detail in the Uyuni altitude guide.

Key Figures

The table below compares Laguna Colorada with the other named lagoons and landmarks on the southwest route, using the elevations and physical figures published for the reserve and its main sites. Conflicting figures are shown as conflicts.

Three Species, One Lagoon

Laguna Colorada hosts James's, Andean and Chilean flamingos. James's flamingos are the most abundant species at the lagoon, with Andean and Chilean flamingos present in smaller numbers. The lagoon matters well beyond Bolivia: nearly a third of the entire James's flamingo population breeds here, so the shore you walk is one of the species' main nesting grounds.

How Many Birds, and When

The population swings hard with the seasons. Published counts report peak austral-summer concentrations above 40,000 birds and austral-winter lows under 1,000. A record 41,050 James's flamingo adults was counted at the lagoon in 1987. Nearly a third of the entire James's flamingo population and about 65% of the global Andean flamingo population breed at Laguna Colorada.

The practical consequence for travelers is simple. Visit in the southern summer and the shore can be crowded with birds. Visit in the southern winter, June to August, and the count can fall below 1,000 birds, still worth the stop but not the spectacle of summer. Note that the winter is also when the reserve is coldest, with Uyuni town itself averaging night lows of about -3.7°C to -4.0°C in June to August and the higher passes colder still.

What You Pay and How

Foreign visitors pay 150 Bs (about $13) to enter the Eduardo Avaroa Andean Fauna National Reserve, while Bolivian nationals pay 30 Bs (about $3). The fee is cash only and is usually not included in tour packages, so carry bolivianos in small notes. There are no ATMs once the jeep leaves Uyuni. The same rule applies to other stops: the Isla Incahuasi entrance on the salar runs around 30 Bs (about $3) per person, although one day-tour listing quotes 35 Bs or $5 for the same island, and the Termas de Polques changing facilities cost around 5 Bs.

One caution on the exchange rate. Bolivia has run a dual system since late 2025, with the official central bank rate alongside a higher market rate, so what your dollars fetch in the street can differ from the official figures quoted here.

Cash Costs on the Southwest Route

The table lists every fee published for stops on or near this route, all payable in bolivianos at the site. None of them comes from an official government fee table, because no SERNAP fee schedule was found published online. The figures come from travel-publisher pages and tour listings, and where two sources disagree both are shown.

• Tours that cross into Chile add a transfer cost on top, for example an optional $25 onward bus to San Pedro de Atacama on the Tours Transandino 3-day listing.
• Sleeping bag rental is excluded on some 3-day tours, so ask before you pack.

The Listed Tour Prices Behind the Route

Because the fee is extra, the headline price is not the trip's price. The 3-day Andes Salt Expeditions route lists at $290, but the booking platform adds $62 of mandatory extras for a real total of $352 per person, with national park entrance fees and sleeping bag rental excluded on top of that. The Tours Transandino 3-day route lists at $309.90, mandatory extras add $10 for a total of $319.90, and the 150 Bs reserve fee and 30 Bs Incahuasi fee are separate again.

The On Experiences 3-day tour ending in San Pedro de Atacama costs $450 with meals and the Chile transfer included but entrance fees excluded.

What the Refuges Are Actually Like

The accommodation is basic and the listings are honest about it. One 3-day tour puts night 2 in the Hostal Los Andes at Laguna Colorada, a shared room with a shared bathroom. Another puts it in the Laguna Colorada Refuge, a shared dormitory with 2 to 6 beds and a shared bathroom, described as basic with no heating, where hot showers work about 75% of the time and a sleeping bag is included from May to September for the cold winter nights. Internet access is very limited on day 2 of the route.

The reason for the spartan standard is the location. The lagoon sits at 4,278 m, inside a reserve where altitudes run up to 5,400 m, far from any town with infrastructure. Expect freezing nights, thin air and short hot water.

Who Should Skip the Night There

One 3-day listing advises passengers with altitude sickness risk, pregnancy or back problems against the route outright, and another is not suitable for children under 3, pregnant women or people with back problems. If you sleep badly at altitude, or you have never been above 4,000 m, read the Uyuni altitude sickness guide and acclimatise in Uyuni or La Paz first. The CDC advises moving your sleeping altitude by no more than about 500 m per night above 3,000 m, which this route does not do, so the risk is yours to manage.

Árbol de Piedra and the Siloli Desert

The Árbol de Piedra, or Stone Tree, is a volcanic rock formation in the Siloli Desert shaped by wind into a tree-like silhouette about 6-7 m tall. The Siloli plateau's elevation is a documented conflict in the sources, with figures from roughly 4,000 m up to about 4,500 m, and about 4,575 m at the viewpoint itself. The 3-day listings from Uyuni name it as a day 2 stop, reached before the jeep drops toward Laguna Colorada at 4,278 m.

The High Lagoons

Day 2 of most routes crosses a chain of altiplano lagoons including Cañapa, Hedionda and Chiar Khota, sitting between roughly 4,100 m and 4,700 m and ringed by volcanoes. Laguna Hedionda itself sits at about 4,532 m with a surface of roughly 3.2 km², and flamingos feed on several of them. No single authoritative elevation exists for Laguna Cañapa specifically, so listings that name one exact figure are guessing.

Sol de Mañana Geysers

The Sol de Mañana geyser field sits at about 4,900 m (16,100 ft) per Wikipedia, making it among the highest geothermal fields in the world. Two other figures circulate, 4,850 m from operator and guide sources and about 4,905 m from a sign at the site reported secondhand. The basin covers roughly 10 km², with spring temperatures reaching about 30°C and fumaroles about 70°C. At about 4,900 m it is the highest named stop on the route, roughly 600 m above the lagoon where you slept, so walk slowly between the vents.

Polques Hot Springs

The Termas de Polques thermal pool holds at about 29°C against ambient air that can drop to -5°C to -10°C, on the shore of the Salar de Chalviri inside the reserve. The springs come from volcanic activity linked to the nearby Polques volcano. The pool's elevation is commonly cited at about 4,400 m, with one source giving 4,394 m.

Changing facilities cost around 5 Bs and the pool itself has no separate admission charge. Bring a towel and dry layers, because you climb out into air that can be 34-39°C colder than the water.

Dalí Desert, Laguna Verde and Licancabur

The Salvador Dalí Desert sits at about 4,750 m average elevation and covers roughly 110 km² in Sur Lípez Province. Its name comes from wind-carved rock formations that resemble the painter's surrealist landscapes. The route then reaches Laguna Verde at 4,310 m, whose vivid green-turquoise colour comes from mineral suspensions including arsenic, shifting as sediment is disturbed.

The nearly perfect cone of Licancabur, an inactive volcano of 5,868 m (19,252 ft), stands over the lagoon. The Hito Cajón border pass at 4,480 m sits within the reserve near Laguna Verde, and tours ending in Chile hand over there. The crossing itself is covered in the San Pedro de Atacama to Uyuni guide.