isla del sol

The mytical birthplace of the Inca people, was on the island ! The famoues village of "Chinkana" with a suffering place on the mountainhill was a wonderful hike from the boat ! But the patch rises around 70-90 meter from the lake, and it was not easy to get up ! Look up for slippery places ! On the top I will beleve we was at 3900 m level ! Fashinating view from the Chinkana with the lake on both west and east side of you ! Souvernirselling with low prises at Chinkana ( Aymarapeople ).

Went with two other friends of mine who I had met earlier in Bolivia. Got there no problem and were told that we had an hour to explore the island. That was supposed to be more than enough time to climb to the top and back down, or grab lunch and relax while enjoying the view. We had taken our sweet time climbing and decided to head back down after half an hour. Leaving us another half hour before the boat was scheduled to take us back. Unfortunately the boat decided to leave half an hour early without making sure they had everyone on board. We were completely stranded and had to pay a 12 year old local boy about 150$ USD to drive us back on his fathers boat. Other than the miscommunication the view was beautiful! Just make sure you don't stray too far from the group or this will probably happen to you too.

Isla del Sol is a really nice island with great views once you get on the top of it!First we weren't sure whether to do a 2 day trip with a tour agency or simply on our own...The agency told us that it would cost 700 pesos per person! We were lucky to get to talk to two young guys from the tourist information saying that this is way to expensive! They told us to do it on our own and thats what we did!We went from La Paz to Copacabana, took a ferry to the island and spend a lovely but cold night in a hostel.In fact we only paid 200 pesos for the trip! So you can really just do it on your own! Just make sure you leave La Paz early enough to get the last ferry to the island at 1pm.Buses to Copacapana leave from Cementerio and cost 15 pesos.There more enough decent budget options to stay at on the island! So you dont have to book in advance!

We enjoyed so much our stay on the island. One day, while my wife and grandson toured the island and Isla de la Luna, I stayed at our hotel and walked over to the village of Estancia nearby. Carnival was ongoing, and the children of the village were dancing and playing, many in costumes that were outrageous and comical. The adults were mostly getting drunk. The town is pretty basic, with adobe and brick houses, many animals (sheep, donkeys, pigs), and a central field where the activities were going on, complete with a very loud amplifier.

It is a beautiful Island. The Bolivian definitely knows how to cater for tourists than the Peruvians. Good restaurants and cafes await you on arrival. Many travellers choose to stay here instead of Copacobana.It is so easy to walk along the island and I can understand why.Pity the boat only allows you an hour on the island when you go on a one day trip.

Overall it is a beautiful place, we were planning on doing the 3 hour hike from the North to the South. We took the early boat ride out at 8:30 but even then after the long boat ride and paying for tickets on the island there was not enough to time to the the hike. You would have to stay a night on the island to do this hike. We did the 45 minute hike around the North part of the island, then met back at the boat to go to the south part of the island. Only had 45 minutes to explore the south area so just enough time for a quick bite to eat then back on the boat at 3:30 to go back to Copacabana. If you want more time to look around you will want to spend the night on the island, because to see it in a day you spend quite a bit of time on the boat!

I looked forward SO MUCH to visit Isla del Sol... I took a boat from Copacabana shore and it cost me about $6 (return ticket). When we arrived to the Isla there was a "voluntary ticket" of about 5 Bolivianos which some people complained about as they couldn't step on a soil UNLESS they paid this "VOLUNTARY TICKET."Boat driver gave us three hours to explore which is NOT enough if one wants to go to the top and explore a bit around. At the first look from the boat all one sees is BUNCH OF HOSTELS which take away from the beauty of the island...that made me sad. However I tried to look only at the right side of the island in order to ignore the spoilage of the island. Soon after we docked bunch of tourists "ran" to the stairs that took us to the hill of the island. BOY there are LOTS OF STAIRS, but with the lots of stops and gasping for air I finally made it to the top where my FUN BEGUN - there were many little ones selling trinkets. I have bough just so many of themas I couldn't refuse children, youngest being ONLY TWO YEARS OLD. There are many ladies on a hill also selling their crafts which are their ONLY source of income. View from the hill is just PHENOMENAL and photo opportunities are limitless. There also was an Alpaca that I was able to cuddle and take a picture with, BUT there was also an Alpaca that tourist could take a picture with for a price of course. From this Isla we went to the Isla De La Luna which was included in the price.

When we left Copacabana on a little old boat in the pouring rain, we wondered why we'd chosen to go to Isla del Sol...! However, after the 2.5 hour long boat ride, when we arrived, the sun started to come out. The walk (which is essentially the length of the Island) is fantastic if you like hiking. You have to keep moving, because you need to get to the other end before the boat back to Copa leaves! But it is definitely doable if you're used to hiking. One thing to note is, you has to pay for each section of the trail. It only adds up to about 50 bolivianos (not very much) but you pay it all in separate chunks to different local people! So take change. Well worth it.

We loved being on the island! We would definitely recommend doing a one way boat ticket and staying the night at a hostel on the island. They are the same price if not cheaper than on the main land and the sunsets are great!! We stayed one night right where the afternoon boat drops you off and enjoyed the mountain view, and the second night we stayed on the top part of the island and enjoyed the sunset and amazing pizza!! Check out photos of the island and more of things to do on the island on our Lake Titicaca blog at arboursabroad.wordpress.com

This is a great island to visit. The history of this island goes back for ever. The view over the lake from the top of the island is stunning. There are many hostels and restaurants on the island.

Our coach group travelled to island by Transturin Tours' own large "Catamaran Cruise Ship". Vessel was comfortable. No safety briefing was given on vessel. Food & drink provided was reasonable. Isla del Sol was steep & at this altitude, two of our group were unable to climb the very steep stone steps where we disembarked. Island not as picturesque as Isla Taquile. (If possible, visit both islands as singles or a small group & not as coachload.) Museum is underground & has numerous examples of ancient ways of life, including mummification & the practice of compressing heads of children from birth. Unfortunately our Transturin Guide rushed us through museum & restricted our ability to see & understand more of the ancient indigenous culture. Island tour included a shaman's ceremony and individual blessings of those present.Tour also included walk through enclosure of cameloids. This element of the trip was rather poor & akin to seeing the animals in a zoo. A short trip in a "traditional reed sailing vessel" was provided. The catamaran style vessel had a sail, but relied on a concealed engine for propulsion. The reed vessel was not traditional and I cannot recommend it.Island is not suitable for people with mobility or cardiac problems.This island is much more commercialised than Taquile & had less charm.

We also visited Isla del Sol, a rocky and hilly sacred Inca island with no cars or paved roads. It is sacred because it is believed the Sun God was born here. The boat ride was slow and cold. We arrived in Yumani (the most scenic village on the island) an hour and a half later. We followed the (steep) ‘paths’, got lost when we mistook some flat ground as path, huffed and puffed, rested on uncomfortable rocks, bumped into random donkeys and pressed our ears each time they decided to belt out their harsh loud brays, took in the nice scenery...We were originally planning to stay on the island but it seemed pretty dead around the area we were in and after the sun set, what would we do when we could no longer enjoy the views...so we heading back to Copacobana for the night

A wonderful Island. Packed with inka history and natural beauty. I spent the night in a small familj hostel. 15 bolivianos per person and night. A tip os to bring a roll of toilet paper and sun protection!!Have a great stay Clara

If you got to the lake, you have to visit the island! Walking around, seeing the temple and enjoying the view onto the lake and the sourroundings (Andes Cordilliera) is just amazing!

We took a half day tour and found this to be too rushed. We arrived at the main landing point (which is full of tourists) and had 50 minutes to climb to the top. This was difficult due to the volume of people doing the same but also the altitude and steep nature of the steps. The terraced gardens along the way were very picturesque with lush plants ... Veges and ornamental flowers growing in abundance. The next stop for us was the temple of the sun, where we had 15 minutes. It was an interesting ruin, but again it was over before we had real time to explore the area. Please note ... On the first landing you have to pay 5 bolivianos per person as a landing fee. You receive a ticket and this is valid for the second landing, so don't lose it. Overall, we spent more time on the boat than we did on land, and in hindsight a full day of wandering would have been a better experience.