Minimum age: 18 years old

Route: La Paz - La Cumbre - Yolosa - La Senda Verde Animal Refuge - La Paz

We begin the ride at wind-swept La Cumbre, where you’ll see fantastic views of several snow-covered peaks, including Huayna Potosí. From here, we descend rapidly down a twisting asphalted road, among mountain peaks, grazing llamas, alpacas, and tiny villages. We stop for refreshments, photos, and rests along the way, all the better to give us time to take in the scenery: towering cliff faces, dramatic drops and ever greener vegetation; while preparing ourselves for the next breath-taking section.

After a snack, we descend further, and after a brief, undulating section of road, we enter the jungle itself - and the most challenging part of the ride. This infamous narrow dirt road is cut precariously into the side of the mountain, and descends 2,000m (6,500 feet). With 1,000m+ (3,300 feet) sheer drops off to our left, and hulking rock overhangs and cascading waterfalls to our right, we ride through mist, low cloud and dust. With your positive attitude, and our expert instruction, coaching and supervision, you can safely enjoy some of South America's most dramatic and beautiful scenery as you hurtle down the road.

As we near the end of the ride, it gets progressively hotter and dustier. By the time you arrive at the bottom in Yolosa, you will be tired, hot, dirty and exhilarated. Just below the village of Yolosa, we ride down to La Senda Verde Animal Refuge. Here, we can enjoy a late pasta and salad buffet lunch, take in the magnificent scenery, spend time relaxing with a cold drink, and get to know the rescued animals. Alternatively, you can experience Zzip The Flying Fox, Bolivia's most exciting zip line (for more information, read the FAQ section). After, we will head back to La Paz.

For those that wish to finish at Coroico instead of coming back to La Paz: After the visit to La Senda Verde Animal Refuge in Yolosa, the tour guide will organize a taxi for you to Coroico, which is 20 minutes away from La Senda Verde Animal Refuge.

Note: Please inform us of your insurance details. If you do not have insurance, go to the FAQ section.

IMPORTANT: People under 18 years old are required to have a guide with them as a safety measure. This has en extra cost of 35USD that will be paid directly to the operator at the beginning of the tour

07:00 - 07:30

Meeting point Café del Mundo and breakfast

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08:20 - 08:30

Arrival at La Cumbre

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08:30 - 09:10

Try bikes and equipment; get instructions from guides about the ride

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09:15 - 09:30

Departure from La Cumbre on the 22 km of asphalt

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10:30 - 13:00

Snack time

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13:50 - 14:00

Arrival at La Senda Verde

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14:00 - 16:30

Free time at La Senda Verde

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17:00 - 17:10

Departure from La Senda Verde to La Paz

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20:00 - 21:00

Approximate time of arrival to La Paz

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- The bike - Kona Entourage or Process with double suspension and hydraulic disk brakes
- The gear (helmet, gloves, goggles, buff, jacket, pants, safety vest)
- Breakfast: coffee, tea or infusion, scrambled eggs (cheese/ham or cheese/vegetables), juice and a fruit.
- 2 snacks during the ride (ham and cheese or cheese and cucumber), with a bottle of water (refillable with a filtered water tank that we have on the bus)
- Pasta and salad buffet lunch
- 1 cold beer
- Ride back to La Paz
- One of our famous Gravity t-shirts (red or black)
- A dropbox link to your email with pictures of the day trip

- Entrance fee 25 Bs
- Exit fee 25 Bs
- Insurance
- Zzip The Flying Fox $32 USD per person
- Pickup and drop off in your hotel or hostel

- Insurance
- Sunscreen
- Sunglasses
- A change of clothes
- Toiletries
- Camera
- Extra money
- Insect repellent with low DEET content

IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

NOTE:
If you do not have insurance, Gravity Bolivia can provide you with temporary insurance on the day of the tour for an additional fee. For more information, please go to the FAQ section.

Cancellation or changes of this tour:

CHANGES: If you change before 5:00pm (La Paz time) 2 days before the tour begins it is free of charge. After this time, there is a 100% change fee.

NO SHOWS & CANCELLATIONS: If you cancel before 5:00pm (La Paz time) 2 days before the tour begins, there is a 10% administration fee (+ the card fee). After this time, there is a 100% no show or cancellation fee.

You must email bookings@findlocaltrips.com (include the name of the tour and the reservation number) to cancel this tour or to make any changes.

1. Do I need insurance?

   Yes, you will need to provide us with your insurance details. If you do not have insurance, we can provide you with one for the duration of 3 days for an additional fee: - $24USD: up to $1,600USD in medical expenses - $27USD: up to $2,000USD in medical expenses - $31USD: up to $3,000USD in medical expenses. The insurance can be paid in cash to the guide on the day of your tour. In order to buy the insurance, you will need your passport, or a copy of it. Note: If you are in an accident, there is an extra cost of $50USD that you must pay to the clinic for administration costs.

2. What is Zzip The Flying Fox?

   It is Bolivia's most exciting zip line, located in the tranquil town of Yolosa. Zzip features a 1500-metre zip line, which sees you whizzing rapidly along cables suspended above a valley or forest, through the use of a harness and pulley system attached to the cables. There are three different zip lines to experience: The Highest – taking you across a 350 metre drop to the jungle floor, The Fastest – hurtling you at up to 85km per hour, and The Most Scenic – providing magnificent scenery as you pass over the animal reserve below. You can choose how you want to go down these lines: head first and harnessed lying down (superman style), or old fashioned sitting up, harnessed around the legs.

3. How can I book the Zzip The Flying Fox?

   You can book online through this site, as a combo add-on to your "Death Road" bike ride. The combo add-on is $159 USD per person. After we finish the Death Road ride, we will go to Yolosa where you will ride along the zip line. It will take around 30 to 45 minutes, depending on the number of passengers. We will then head back to La Paz.

4. How safe is Death Road?

   With our professional equipment, your positive attitude, and our expert instruction, coaching, and supervision, you can safely enjoy some of South America's most dramatic and beautiful scenery as you hurtle down the road. On top of that, you should note that since March 2007, the majority of traffic has stopped driving down Death Road, and now takes a new route... Leaving Death Road for us to enjoy, without having to battle the trucks, buses and cars! Before the actual start of the tour, you will of course get the chance to practice using your mountain bike.

5. What happens if it rains on the day of our Death Road trip?

   From the beginning of December until the end of February, it is the rainy season in Bolivia. If you can, you should try to do the ride outside of that season. But if you cannot change your travel itinerary, you can still do the trip! Rain does not stop the tour from going ahead, unless it is so bad that the guides consider it to be too dangerous - we have not known this to happen, ever. You are provided with wet weather gear (a jacket and trousers) and goggles, so that rain and mud don't get in your eyes. If things get muddy, of course that can slow things down, but it does not stop the trip from going ahead. You cannot decide to cancel on the day because you don't want to get wet, sorry!

6. What should I bring to the tour?

   Please bring lots and lots of layers of clothing. Remember, it’s freezing at the top of most of our rides, and really warm at the bottom! Bring t-shirts, thermals, a fleece, a waterproof jacket, and glove liners to wear under or over the downhill cycling gloves provided. You’ll need to start the ride with long trousers, but on some days you can expect to change into shorts and a t-shirt towards the bottom. We don’t allow you to wear sandals during the ride, but anything from trainers to hiking boots will do. Make sure you’ve got a good pair of sporty UVA-UVB sunglasses, both for ray protection and to help keep the dust and grit out of your eyes. Goggles are included in the package, however. Bring your swimming togs if you wish to jump in the river at the bottom!

7. I heard I can finish this tour in Coroico... Is that possible?

   It is possible to get a transfer onto Coroico. After the visit to La Senda Verde Animal Refuge in Yolosa, the tour guide will organize a taxi to Coroico, which is 20 minutes away from La Senda Verde Animal Refuge. The tour price includes the transfer onto Coroico.

8. Do I need to bring extra money?

   Yes. Please note that the Municipality of Coroico introduced a small charge for bikers riding the “World´s Most Dangerous Road”. It is 50 Bs now – 25 Bs at the start of the road, and 25 Bs at the end of the road. The money raised from this entrance fee will be used to fund much needed infrastructure projects such as: cleaning public toilets on the route, safety, emergency and rescue facilities, and road maintenance (since the road is not used by many vehicles now, without this fee it could be closed without maintenance).

9. Are the bikes safe?

   We have a group of mechanics who maintain the bikes on a daily basis. A mechanic will also be present on every tour, so if anything should go wrong there’ll be someone who can fix the issue. Otherwise, we’ll give you a replacement bike.

10. Are the guides trained in first aid?

    The guides are all trained in First Aid and Rescue. We have assessed all the risks, and have systems to minimize these risks. When things do go wrong, we have a professional team that will care for you, from the time of the accident to recovery. We also have access to the best clinic and doctors in La Paz.

11. Will I have problems with altitude sickness on this tour?

    Altitude sickness can catch many travellers a little bit off guard. Not everyone gets sick in high altitudes, and it is difficult to predict who is likely to be badly affected by it. For most people, it is nothing more than a headache and a dizzy sensation that diminishes over a short period of time, 1 to 2 days for most people. If you want to limit your chances of getting sick, there are a few things you can do. Firstly, do not fly directly into high altitude - proceed slowly, allowing your body time to acclimatise as you ascend gradually. However, for many that is not possible, so it’s important to drink lots of water, and to slow down! This sounds simple, but both of these things are very important. Your body is struggling because you don’t have enough oxygen, so avoiding any strenuous activity is a good idea. Chew some coca leaves - the native people of South America have been chewing coca for centuries, thanks to its ability to alleviate mild altitude sickness symptoms. Coca leaves can be bought in any supermarket, and even souvenir shops or street stalls. Take altitude sickness pills (Soroche): these are sold over the counter all over Peru and Bolivia, and are just a few dollars. If you are flying straight into altitude over 2500 metres without spending any time at an intermediate elevation, and you’re worried about getting sick, you can ask your doctor for more specific and stronger altitude sickness medication in advance. In the rare case that your symptoms are more severe than a headache and mild dizziness, you should descend in altitude and seek medical assistance.

12. Why book with FindLocalTrips.com?

    Apart from our low-price guarantee, with us you can be 100% assured that your booking is made. We provide instant email confirmation, and have live spaces and availability for each tour. You are in the capable hands of our team here on the ground, with 20 local experts who speak perfect Spanish and English, always ready with a quick response to any of the questions you might have. Tour operators are experts at operating their tours, and we are the experts at reservations, organisation, and assistance with your plans for these tours.

13. How will I receive the link with the photos and videos of the tour?

    The operator will send you a dropbox link for the photos via email on the day of your tour.