10 Day The Mission Guided Motorcycle Tour in the Lowlands of Bolivia

Overview

The Mission tour takes to the 300-year-old and only remaining Jesuit missions of South America. The seven remaining of these spectacular mission churches have been classified as UNESCO World Heritage sites since 1991. In addition to this cultural aspect of the tour, the Chiquitania region offers a wealth of unique natural attractions, all listed on day 6 of your itinerary.

Highlights

• Starts and ends in Santa Cruz
• See the the giant 180-meter rock tooth
• Ride to the archeological site of El Fuerte
• Admire the grandeur of the first mission church in San Javier
• Ride to the newly rebuilt mission church in San Ignacio
• Visit a wood art workshop in San Miguel
• 9 nights accommodations
• All meals

Itinerary

1. Day 1: Airport pickup at Viru-Viru, Santa Cruz

   - Altitude: 400 meter You will be picked up at the airport of Santa Cruz, Bolivia from where you will drive to the small town of Samaipata (120 kilometers, three hours). There you will check into a comfortable hotel and spend the rest of the day relaxing and discovering. If your flight arrives late, you need to spend the night in Santa Cruz. In that case, the following day is considered as day 1.

2. Day 2: Samaipata

   - Altitude: 1650 meters Start with a briefing where you will learn more about safely riding, the route, and the local traffic rules and get to know each other. To get used to the bikes, you will go for a ride to the archaeological site of El Fuerte, classified as a world heritage by UNESCO, which is an old Inca town built around the much older and largest stone sculpture in the Americas. Some people believe it to be an ancient alien landing field!

3. Day 3: To San Javier (380 kilometers / 236 miles)

   - Altitude: 540 meters - Terrain: 100% asphalt Early in the morning, you will start the tour on a winding asphalt road, towards Santa Cruz. After dealing with the traffic chaos, you will cross the Rio Grande over a huge modern bridge that runs parallel to the old railway / road bridge built in 1959 in Puerto Paila. After two hours of relaxed driving, you will stop to admire the grandeur of the first mission church in San Javier.

4. Day 4: To San Miguel (270 kilometers / 168 miles)

   - Altitude: 485 meters - Terrain: 20% off-road After the village of Concepcion, the capital of the missions, where you will visit the great mission church, you will ride a special dirt track to a mysterious black rock into the jungle. Next stop is the completely rebuilt mission church in San Ignacio. After a short visit there you will begin the off-road part of this tour and if you are lucky you will see some Capivaras (big rodents) along the road. Forty kilometers later you will arrive in the small village of San Miguel, where time flows at a more relaxed pace. You will visit a wood art works

5. Day 5: To Santiago de Chiquitos (330 kilometers / 205 miles)

   - Altitude: 620 meters - Terrain: 60% off-road Early in the morning you will take a dusty road in the direction of the impressive mission church of San Rafael. This mission and its contents have been preserved for 300 years. After a chance to take photos, you will continue your journey to the hidden Santa Ana mission. For lunchtime, you will stop at a tavern in a Mennonite religious community center. Then you continue on a strait jungle track for about to hours. Five wooden bridge crossings and then rubber touches the asphalt again. Late afternoon, you will arrive at your destination - San Jos

6. Day 6: Santiago de Chiquitos - Excursions day

   For day 6 and the morning of day 7 the group can decide which excursions they want to do or use it as a rest day. The following excursions are your options if you choose not to rest: - Aguas Calientes consists of a hot water river that is fed by multiple sources of 35 to 40 degrees Celsius and that are said to have healing powers - Further exquisite swimming possibilities - 10-meter waterfall with a sandy beach - Dark, mysterious crater, with luck you can observe turtles during the descent - Two impressive waterfalls (one with sandy beach) after a secured descent and five water crossing with s

7. Day 7: San José de Chiquitos (150 kilometers / 93 miles)

   - Altitude: 300 meters - Terrain: 100% asphalt In the morning you continue with the excursions the group has selected around, After lunch you will ride via the Brazil expressway and follow a good asphalt road to the small village of Chochis. No tour would be complete without seeing the giant 180-meter rock tooth which stands solitary and dominates the landscape. After a short visit to the sanctuary, you will reach your hotel in San José de Chiquitos, the last mission church of the tour. This final church is architecturally different compared to the other mission churches, but no less spectacul

8. Day 8: Samaipata (390 kilometers / 242 miles)

   - Terrain: 100% asphalt With amazing memories and experiences from your adventures, you head back to Samaipata. You will continue over the recently asphalted Brazil expressway, crossing again the Rio Grande, in the direction of the metropolis of Santa Cruz. Following a winding mountain road, you will reach Samaipata, where you started eight days ago. The hotel's pool awaits you.

9. Day 9: To Santa Cruz

   Late in the morning, you will set off for Santa Cruz where you can relax, hang around the plaza, and do some souvenir shopping. In the evening you will have a farewell dinner.

10. Day 10: To the airport

    On the last day, it's time to say goodbye and the arranged taxi will take you all to the airport.

Ride Details

Terrain

mostly asphalt with 15% dirt-road

Bike

rental bike (Suzuki DR650SE)

Mileage

1520 kilometers / 944 miles

Daily rides

150 - 390 kilometers / 93 - 242 miles

Riding gear

not included: helmet, boots, pants, jacket, and gloves

Meals

all meals

Accommodation

During this tour, you will stay in various hotels along the route as mentioned in the itinerary.

Food

All meals are included in your package. During breaks, Bolivia Motorcycle Adventures will provide you with snacks and coca tea. In some restaurants in bigger cities, the fish and the veggie food is available.

Getting There

During this tour, you will visit Samaipata, San Javier, San Miguel, Santiago de Chiquitos, and more. [+](https://www.tripaneer.com/bolivia-motorcycle-adventures/10-days-the-mission-motorcycle-tour-in-the-lowlands-of-bolivia# "Zoom in") [−](https://www.tripaneer.com/bolivia-motorcycle-adventures/10-days-the-mission-motorcycle-tour-in-the-lowlands-of-bolivia# "Zoom out") [+](https://www.tripaneer.co