Samaipata Region, Santa Cruz

Declared in 1999 by the UNESCO as "Humanity Cultural Heritage", Samaipata offers to his visitors a pre-incan civilization rest.

All kind of tourist attractions, excursions to the ruins, trekking in the Amboro Nacional Park, follow the trace of Ché Guevara. One or more days offers.

Traveling for the old highway between Santa Cruz and Cochabamba, about 120 Kms. from Santa Cruz, we find the town of Samaipata, a place of pleasant weather, his exuberant vegetable beauty and the biggest work in prehispanic rupestre architecture of South America: the ceremonial center of Samaipata, but well-known as the "El Fuerte" (The Fort), declared in 1999 by the UNESCO as "Humanity Cultural Heritage".

The Archaeological Place of "El Fuerte de Samaipata", it is only at 6 kilometers of the town of Samaipata, and their main attraction is the biggest carved stone in the world, that is in the back of a hill of sandstone. This Archaeological Place dates the XIV century, and it is believed that it was the religious and cultural center of that area among the XIV and XVI centuries.

It is an extraordinary and mysterious place whose origins and meaning are still study reason. At these remains of a native culture coming from the low lands, have been added constructions of evident Andean origin. Ruins of Spanish origin also exist.

We also find the South entrance to the National Park Amboró - one of the biggest ecological and natural reservations in Bolivia, with their accessible forests of bicentennial arborescent ferns and their cloudy mountain forests covered with mosses, lichen, orchids and bromelias, habitat of the spectackled bear, of the more and more numerous jaguar, of the rare black and chestnut eagle, of the condor, the migratory swallow tailed kite, guacamayas, hummingbird, quetzales and green emerald toucans and many other species in extinction, protected in this ecological sanctuary.

Among the trekking offers we have "La ruta del Ché". Ernesto Ché Guevara, better known as the "El Ché", mystic socialist guerilla leader, who acted in Samaipata and finished their days in the near towns of the Higuera, Pucará and Vallegrande. The Ché seems even to guide groups, this time of desirous visitors of knowing the scenario of its fight, its people, history, nature and landscape.

Samaipata, also offers to the visitor a place of rest in atmosphere of colonial style and with pleasant fresh climate. Rivers of crystalline water that throw in small cascades forming natural spas. The hospitality of its residents is worthy of highlighting for those that want to travel the countryside and mainly to know this important center of rupestre architecture.