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Most populous city in Bolivia
Photo: Aurimaz, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Santa Cruz (or Santa Cruz de la Sierra) is the capital of the department of Santa Cruz.
From the travel guide. Select a place for details, a map and what is nearby.
Of the Cathedral of Santa Cruz.
Zoológico Municipal
Not so big but quite pleasant zoo focused on South American animals. There is a food court and some kiosks inside. Many micros pass by the entrance, e.g. the one to Cotoca.
Go sloth "hunting" with your camera at the plaza of Cotoca and try if you can spot the 6ish sloths in the treetops without the help of the locals. Basically, they are high up in the trees, not moving and looking like a roundish part of the tree, but sometimes you can catch a face or their fingers. You probably will never see them move much, this is just the expectation you have from various documentaries about them, a slowly moving sloth.
A movie theater complex with a variety of film offerings, a food court, shopping mall, and some high-end cafes and restaurants. It also has a 3D movie theater, a video arcade, and an indoor playground for small children. A good place to go especially on Sundays.
Main Stadium
Hosts soccer games and the occasional high-profile concert. Can get crowded during The Clasico when Santa Cruz's two main soccer teams, Oriente Petrolero and Blooming, play against each other. Use caution when at the stadium due to often drunk and rowdy fans.
Bowling alley. Bowling shoes can be rented there, which is not included in the price per hour. There is a food and beverage kiosk inside.
Principal Plaza
The city's main plaza, where locals and tourists alike gather to hang out and observe each other. There are benches and small tables to play chess at, there are numerous pidgeons to feed, and several cafes and restaurants surrounding it. The city's main cathedral is here and is quite beautiful. During the day you can pay to enter the cathedral's small museum and climb to the top of the belltower (Bs 3), where you can get a nice view of the plaza from above.
Little houses close to the river, where people entertain, and where you can taste some local dishes.
People say, vegetation in Yvaga Guazu resembles vegetation in big national parks like Madidi, Noel Kempf Mercado, etc. So, if you can't visit these parks, try to visit Yvaga Guazu. They have guides in Spanish. The name of the park translates to "big paradise" in the Guarani language.
Quite impressive sand desert. You can walk over sand dunes, watch birds and ants (termites?). There is a marketplace close to the ticket office, you can buy water and food. From the ticket office to the desert is a 7.5 km road (single, you won't get lost) to the desert, takes 1.5 hr to walk but you can ask for a "mototaxi".
4 blocks from the central square, on the corner between Potosí and Ñuflo de Chavez. Very good place to try delicious Camba food in a beautiful setting. The restaurant is named for the traditional style well it has in its central courtyard (aljibe in Guaraní). Costs about Bs. 35 per main dish. The Majao del Pato (spicy rice dish with duck, egg and bananas) is very tasty, as is the Locro de Gallina (hearty chicken soup). Popular with locals.
There is a big food court with a lot of fast-food options: from vegetarian salads to Argentine-style grilled steaks. Inside the mall, you can also found several stores of famous brands: Calvin Klein, Hollister, Abercrombie & Fitch.
A delicious steakhouse offering a mix of traditional Argentine and Bolivian cuisine for a good price.
A lovely pastry and coffee bistro that has excellent desserts. The savory food is however not-that-great and very expensive (Bs 30 for a very small pizza).
A slightly pricey but delicious café that offers good food (including vegetarian options) and fair trade coffee. Like Starbucks, it's a great place to hang out for a few hours with their WiFi. Service is sometimes slow.
Sells wonderful frozen yogurt that rivals all the other ice cream shops in the city! You can choose your fruit and watch them make it for you.
Similar to Cold Stone Creamery in America, you pick you flavors of ice cream, toppings and they will mix it up for you. Sometimes they even throw your ice cream across the room and catch it for you!
Don't miss out on the chance to eat what most Bolivian families go out to eat for! Though restaurants selling pollo a la broasted abound, this is just one particularly good one. Chicken comes with rice, platano, and French fries.
Delicious Chinese food, offering excellent service and a clean, pleasing atmosphere. Other great choices include Shanghai (Avenida 26 de febrero #27) and Palacio del Dragón (Avenida Irala 679, tel. (591) 3-3335340.
Offers quality hot and cold beverages, including great iced cappuccinos, accompanied by fresh pastries for a moderate price. English-speaking environment. Has a New Zealand theme, and is cozy and comfortable with sofa seating available. The only smoking permitted indoors are shishas or hookahs (Arabic water pipes) which can be rented. Also has WiFi internet available.
Open late and often hosting live rock music, this little bar is great at night. It offers light food, coffee, and lots of alcohol. It is decorated with rock-memorabilia and has footage from rock concerts projected onto the walls, making it a nice place for rock aficionados.
Very beautiful bar with a large courtyard and Moorish tiles. Has a stage and live music on most nights. Good selection of cocktails and also has a food menu. Free WiFi.
As well as being a cafe/bistro during the day this turns into quite a nice little bar during the night. Good selection of drinks and there is frequently live music.
Based on Hemingway's favorite haunt in La Habana, this is a pleasant Cuban bar. Good place to drink mojitos and Cuba libres while listening to live Cuban music (varies depending on the night but they sometimes have Nueva Trova, as well as the ubiquitous Buena Vista Social Club Covers). Cheaper than most of the places actually on Monseñor Rivero
A very old beautiful house in downtown Santa Cruz. The decoration is eclectic, kitsch but very cute. The art collections is provided by local artists, it is always changing. “Cachivachero” also, but with taste.
Formerly Hostel Ambar
Clean place in centro near the First Ring. Breakfast, good wifi. Cheaper than other offerings in centro, though maybe not quite as nice.
Pool, Jacuzzi, pool table, cable TV, kitchen, breakfast included, WiFi and computers - dorms from Bs. 70. Strictly enforced rules but fair, clean and well-run.
Blocks northwest of main plaza. Tel: 334-6666. Probably the best value 3-star hotel in central Santa Cruz. Clean, large wood-paneled rooms with good beds and A/C. Some rooms have views. All have cable TV, WiFi on every floor. Friendly staff, breakfast on roof included. Singles for Bs. 200, Doubles for Bs. 240.
Tel: . Across the street from Amazonas and Bibosi. Friendly staff, clean and modern rooms with cable TV and WiFi throughout. Rooms are small, however, and the cheaper ones don't offer much privacy. Rooms with fans start at Bs. 144. for a single. Rooms with AirCon more. Simple continental breakfast included.
A bit run-down, entire place needs sprucing up. Supposedly has WiFi. "Breakfast" included, offerings of which are typically gone by 8:30AM. Most rooms have cable TV and air con. The big selling point of this hotel, however, is the pool - the only hotel in town in this price range to have one. Nice on those stifling hot Santa Cruz days. Singles start at US$25.
Hotel Lido offers single room, double room, triple room, family room, matrimonial room and suite with air-conditioning, cable TV and internet access. Its facilities and services include restaurant, fitness room/gym, room service and airport transfer.
Claims to be Santa Cruz's only boutique hotel. Overlooks the main plaza and the rooftop bar/restaurant offers a direct view on to the cathedral. Rooftop pool. Decorated in a minimal style. Multi-lingual staff.
Previously not a very clean place, but now polished up. You will be amazed of how cheap clothing and food is in here.
By bus
There are many bus companies from another cities, like Cochabamba, La Paz, Sucre, Trinidad, that go to Santa Cruz de la Sierra.
From Paraguay
Asunción (Paraguay) – The bus is extremely slow (the Transchaco Highway is only paved as far as the Bolivian border), buses generally travel only at night - meaning that you miss out on any views of…
By train
The "death train" (so named because of its history in transporting Yellow Fever victims) runs on bumpy tracks from Puerto Quijarro, close to Corumbá on the Brazilian side.
By plane
About Bolivian airlines and flying within Bolivia: Bolivia#Get_around
By taxi
Taxis in Santa Cruz are relatively expensive to other Bolivian cities. Make sure to settle on a price with a driver before heading to your destination. Fares are typically around Bs.
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Santa Cruz · Regional · SRZ
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Articles and travel topics about Santa Cruz (city, Bolivia) and Bolivia.
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