The Salar de Uyuni

The Salar de Uyuni, high on the altiplano of southwest Bolivia, is the largest salt flat in the world and one of the most surreal and spectacular landscapes on earth, a blinding white expanse of hexagon-patterned salt stretching over 10,000 square kilometres to a perfectly flat horizon. In the dry season it is a dazzling desert of salt, ideal for playful perspective photos, while after the rains a thin layer of water turns it into the world's largest mirror, reflecting the sky in an infinite, otherworldly illusion.

What you actually see

• The white salt desert - the vast, dazzling flat of hexagon-patterned salt.
• The mirror effect - the flooded flat reflecting the sky in the wet season.
• Incahuasi Island - the cactus-covered rocky island in the salt.
• The wider tour - the coloured lagoons, flamingos and geysers beyond.

When to go

The two seasons offer different magic: the dry season, roughly May to November, for the classic white salt desert and easy travel, and the wet season, roughly December to March, for the spectacular mirror effect, though rain can limit access to parts of the flat.

Honest expectations

It is very remote and high, at over 3,600 metres, so acclimatise and expect cold, especially at night on the multi-day tours; altitude sickness is a real risk. It is visited on rough four-wheel-drive tours from Uyuni, over rustic terrain with basic accommodation, so it is an adventure. The mirror effect depends on the right amount of water. The surreal landscape, though, is unlike anywhere on earth.

Nearby

The coloured lagoons, geysers and the town of Uyuni are within the region.