Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia — gateway to the eastern lowlands

— Department · Chiquitanía · Pantanal · Eastern Bolivia

Department of Santa Cruz

Bolivia's largest and most biodiverse department. Hub for eastern Bolivia, with UNESCO Chiquitanía, Pantanal, Cerrado, Amboró, Noel Kempff and 6 baroque Jesuit missions.

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Capital

Santa Cruz de la Sierra

Area

370,621 km²

Population

~3.5 million inhabitants

Capital alt.

416 m.a.s.l.

Alt. range

200 – 1,800 m

Languages

Spanish · Chiquitano · Guaraní · Mojeño

— The Department

What is Santa Cruz?

370,621 km²

Bolivia's largest department

3 UNESCO sites

Chiquitanía · Noel Kempff · Samaipata

6 missions

17th-century baroque Jesuit missions

830 birds

Amboró National Park — Bolivia's bird record

The Department of Santa Cruz is Bolivia's largest (370,621 km²) — bigger than Germany. It's also the most biodiverse and fastest-growing economically. Its capital, Santa Cruz de la Sierra (~2.5 million inhabitants, 416m), has Bolivia's best-connected airport and serves as the natural hub for exploring eastern Bolivia.

The department holds an extraordinary concentration of UNESCO heritages: the Chiquitanía (six 17th-century Baroque Jesuit Missions, UNESCO 1990), the Bolivian Pantanal (the world's largest wetlands), Noel Kempff Mercado National Park (UNESCO 2000, tepuis and waterfalls in the Cerrado heartland), and El Fuerte de Samaipata (UNESCO 1998, the world's largest petroglyph).

Santa Cruz is also Bolivia's main South American entry point: Viru Viru Airport has direct flights from Buenos Aires, Lima, Bogotá, São Paulo and Miami. The city has a pleasant historic centre, excellent gastronomy and Bolivia's most comfortable climate.

— Ecosystems

Santa Cruz's ecosystems

UNESCO · Tropical dry forest

Chiquitanía

6 Baroque Missions · Chiquitano Baroque

Wetlands · Jaguar · Giant otter

Pantanal

San Matías · Otuquis · Puerto Suárez

Savanna · Maned wolf · Noel Kempff

Cerrado

San Ignacio de Velasco · Noel Kempff UNESCO

Spectacled bear · Amboró · Samaipata

Tucumano Forest

Amboró Park · Samaipata Valley

— Destinations

What to see in Santa Cruz

416m

Santa Cruz de la Sierra

Bolivia's largest city · Eastern hub

UNESCO

Samaipata

Pre-Inca El Fuerte · Cloud forest

830 aves

Amboró National Park

Bolivia's most bird-diverse national park

1691

San Javier

First Jesuit mission in the Chiquitanía · 1691

1709

Concepción de Chiquitos

The most harmonious of the Jesuit circuit

Cerrado

San Ignacio de Velasco

Maned wolf · Noel Kempff · Missions

UNESCO 2000

Noel Kempff Mercado

Tepuis · Waterfalls · Giant otters

Pantanal

San Matías Reserve

Bolivian Pantanal · Jaguar · Giant otter

— Love Bolivia Routes

Routes through Santa Cruz

El JaguarPantanal

Kaa-Iya · Pantanal · Chiquitanía · 8–12 days

8–12 days · from $2,065

El Oso HormigueroChiquitanía

San Javier · Noel Kempff · 10–14 days

10–14 days · from $2,254

El Lobo de CrinCerrado

San Ignacio · Noel Kempff · 10–14 days

10–14 days · from $2,154

El PumaTucumano Forest

Samaipata · Amboró · 7–10 days

7–10 days · from $1,766

See all 19 Bolivia routes →

— Getting there

How to reach Santa Cruz

✈

By air

Viru Viru International Airport (VVI): direct flights from Miami (American Airlines), Buenos Aires (LATAM/Aerolíneas), Lima (LATAM), Bogotá (Avianca), São Paulo (LATAM/GOL) and Madrid (Air Europa, seasonal). Bolivia's second airport after El Alto (La Paz).

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By bus

Santa Cruz–La Paz overnight bus: 14–16h. Santa Cruz–Cochabamba: 10–12h. Santa Cruz–Sucre: 12–14h. Santa Cruz–Puerto Suárez (Pantanal): 12h. Santa Cruz–San Ignacio de Velasco (Chiquitanía): 6–8h.

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By road

Santa Cruz–Samaipata: 2.5h on paved road. Santa Cruz–Concepción (Chiquitanía): 5h. Santa Cruz–San Ignacio de Velasco: 8h. For the Pantanal (San Matías): 12–14h, partly dirt road. For Noel Kempff: charter flight from Santa Cruz (recommended).

— When to visit

Best time for Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz has a warm subtropical climate. The dry season (May–September) is best for national parks and Chiquitanía. Avoid January–March (intense rains close roads).

May – SepDry season (ideal)

Pleasant weather (22–28°C), dry and accessible roads, wildlife concentrated near water. Best time for Pantanal, Chiquitanía and Noel Kempff.

Oct – NovPre-rains

Increasing heat (28–35°C), vegetation greening. Good for Chiquitanía. Pantanal wildlife becomes more active with first rains.

Dec – MarRainy season

Intense rains (Dec–Feb), many roads closed. Pantanal and Noel Kempff very difficult to access. Santa Cruz city is visitable but intensely hot (33–38°C).

AprTransition

Excellent transition month. Rains ease, roads open, vegetation at its peak. Ideal timing for the International Festival of Renaissance & Baroque Music (biennial).

— People & culture

Identity & traditions

Indigenous people

Chiquitano

The Chiquitano people are the most numerous indigenous nation of eastern Bolivia (~60,000 people). Their history is deeply linked to the 17th-century Jesuit missions, which created a unique culture: Chiquitano Baroque — with its own music, architecture and crafts. The Chiquitanía Music Festival (biennial) is one of the world's most important early music events.

Indigenous people

Guaraní

The Guaraní people live mainly in the department's south, at the edge of the Gran Chaco. The Guaraní nation is one of South America's most extensive, and their language is one of the continent's most spoken. In Bolivia, the Guaraní have historically been affected by the gas industry in the Chaco.

Regional culture

Camba

The term 'camba' designates the cultural identity of eastern Bolivia (Santa Cruz, Beni, Pando). Camba culture is mestizo, with indigenous, Spanish and Brazilian roots, expressed in music (cumbia boliviana, sarao), gastronomy (majao, locro, sonso), speech patterns and a strong regional identity.

— Gastronomy

What to eat in Santa Cruz

Santa Cruz's gastronomy is one of Bolivia's richest, based on yuca, plantain, rice, maize and eastern meats.

Majao con yuca

The eastern region's most representative dish: rice with charque (dried meat), fried yuca and egg. Hearty, tasty and ubiquitous in Santa Cruz restaurants.

Locro cruceño

Thick soup of fresh maize with meat — ideally chicken or pork. A celebration dish with each family having their own variant.

Sonso de yuca

Cooked and kneaded yuca dough, stuffed with cheese, baked in motacú leaf. A simple delicacy showcasing camba cooking's creativity with few ingredients.

Cuñapé

Bolivia's most famous cheese bread — crispy outside, soft and fluffy inside. Essential at any Santa Cruz breakfast.

— Gallery