Coroico

Coroico sits at around 1,700 metres on a ridge in the Nor Yungas, the belt of steep subtropical valleys where the eastern Andes drop toward the Amazon basin, and the change from La Paz is the point: three hours down from the altiplano brings you into warmth, green, banana and citrus trees, and cloud filling the valleys below the town in the mornings. Coffee and coca are the crops, with plantations on the slopes and a strong Afro-Bolivian presence in the villages nearby, communities descended from people brought to the silver mines who settled in the Yungas. The town has a plaza, hotels along the ridge with long views, waterfall walks and swimming pools. It is where La Paz goes to be warm.

What you actually see

• The valley views - ridges dropping away with cloud filling them at dawn.
• Coffee and coca terraces - the Yungas crops on the steep slopes.
• Afro-Bolivian villages - communities in the valleys around the town.
• Waterfall walks - paths to falls and pools from the ridge.

When to go

May to September is drier and clearer. The wet season brings heavy rain, landslides on the roads and cloud that hides the valleys, though the vegetation is at its most lush. It is warm year round.

Honest expectations

The road down is prone to landslides and closures in the wet months. Mosquitoes and biting insects are present at this altitude. Coca cultivation is ordinary agriculture here and visible everywhere, which surprises some visitors. Facilities are modest.

Nearby

The old Yungas road descends here; Chulumani lies south.