Transport from the airport into La Paz
There are two options for leaving the airport:
A taxi. This should cost 35 bolivianos per person or maybe this has gone up slightly. But don’t let them rip you off by charging much more than this. Ask in advance how much it is per person. Also, even though this is a cab, there's a chance it won't leave the airport till it has four passengers, depending on how much of a hurry the driver is in. Or he may ask you to pay the price of four passengers in order to leave immediately. (Around $20.)
A "minibus" (basically, a collective van). As you walk out the airport, the stop is just past the taxis on the right. Or you can always ask for ¿la parada del minibus? But it’s practically at the exit to the airport. And unlike most places in Bolivia, there is a little covered bench – it looks like a real bus stop! It costs about 5 bolivianos per person ($.80). The driver will help get your luggage in the van – he’ll probably want to put it on top of the vehicle. Let him do this. No worries.
If you take the minibus, you’ll need to know where to get off. If you're headed into La Paz to a hotel, I suggest the Plaza de San Francisco. It’s the famous church in the middle of La Paz filled with tourists and Paceños. (See photo on page 2.) When you first get on, once the passengers have settled in and the driver can hear you, ask him: ¿Nos puede avisar cuando lleguemos a la Plaza San Francisco? Basically, it will be about a forty-five minute drive down down downhill from El Alto to La Paz. Once things start looking less like a eucalyptus forest and more like a city, the Plaza de San Francisco will be one of the first stops. Lot of people will surely also be getting off there.
La Paz is not known for its street crime, but since this is a tourist area, try not to look too lost. Put on a scowl, walk to the nearest corner and hail a cab to your final destination, either to a hotel or one of the Copacabana bus stops. (If you didn’t have luggage, I would say to take a look around. But it’s a crowded plaza, especially at night, and you’re probably going to want to get out of there quickly.)
A taxi. This should cost 35 bolivianos per person or maybe this has gone up slightly. But don’t let them rip you off by charging much more than this. Ask in advance how much it is per person. Also, even though this is a cab, there's a chance it won't leave the airport till it has four passengers, depending on how much of a hurry the driver is in. Or he may ask you to pay the price of four passengers in order to leave immediately. (Around $20.)
A "minibus" (basically, a collective van). As you walk out the airport, the stop is just past the taxis on the right. Or you can always ask for ¿la parada del minibus? But it’s practically at the exit to the airport. And unlike most places in Bolivia, there is a little covered bench – it looks like a real bus stop! It costs about 5 bolivianos per person ($.80). The driver will help get your luggage in the van – he’ll probably want to put it on top of the vehicle. Let him do this. No worries.
If you take the minibus, you’ll need to know where to get off. If you're headed into La Paz to a hotel, I suggest the Plaza de San Francisco. It’s the famous church in the middle of La Paz filled with tourists and Paceños. (See photo on page 2.) When you first get on, once the passengers have settled in and the driver can hear you, ask him: ¿Nos puede avisar cuando lleguemos a la Plaza San Francisco? Basically, it will be about a forty-five minute drive down down downhill from El Alto to La Paz. Once things start looking less like a eucalyptus forest and more like a city, the Plaza de San Francisco will be one of the first stops. Lot of people will surely also be getting off there.
La Paz is not known for its street crime, but since this is a tourist area, try not to look too lost. Put on a scowl, walk to the nearest corner and hail a cab to your final destination, either to a hotel or one of the Copacabana bus stops. (If you didn’t have luggage, I would say to take a look around. But it’s a crowded plaza, especially at night, and you’re probably going to want to get out of there quickly.)