There are places in Bolivia that feel entirely outside of time. Noel Kempff Mercado National Park is one of them — a 15,000 km² wilderness in the far east of Santa Cruz department where the only way in is a charter aircraft, and the Milky Way is the brightest thing in the sky.
The Huanchaca Plateau: A Billion-Year-Old World
The defining feature of Noel Kempff is the Huanchaca (or Caparú) Plateau — a Precambrian sandstone table that rises 600 m from the surrounding Amazon lowland. It is 1.5 billion years old, predating the formation of the Andes by roughly 1 billion years. The plateau was the inspiration for Arthur Conan Doyle’s 1912 novel The Lost World, and looking out from its edge over the endless Amazon canopy, you understand why.
The Arco Iris waterfall drops 80 m off the plateau’s edge into a canyon below — one of the most remote and spectacular waterfalls in South America.
Wildlife
The park’s biodiversity figures are extraordinary even by Bolivian standards:
- 620+ bird species including harpy eagles, Bolivian recurvebill, and large macaw colonies
- 4,000+ plant species documented — one of the world’s densest concentrations
- Jaguars, pumas, giant anteaters, tapirs across the lowland transition zone
- Giant river otters in the Paucerna and Iténez rivers of the Cerrado ecosystem (sighting rates above 80% on guided boat trips)
- Black spider monkeys — rare and threatened, reliably seen in the plateau forest
Practical Planning
When to visit: May–October (dry season). The wet season (November–April) makes most trails impassable and flights more difficult to schedule.
How to get there: Charter flights from Santa Cruz de la Sierra only. FAN Bolivia (Friends of Nature Foundation) is the only operator with park access permits. Trips are sold as 3–4 night packages.
Cost: $600–1,200 per person all-inclusive (charter flight, lodge, meals, guides, activities). This is one of Bolivia’s most expensive destinations, but also its most exclusive.
Accommodation: FAN operates two lodges inside the park — Flor de Mayo (river camp, 4 cabins) and Huanchaca (plateau, tent camp). Both have no electricity beyond solar, no Wi-Fi, and generator-powered lights at night only.
Health: Yellow fever vaccination required. Malaria prophylaxis recommended. The park is at 200–850 m altitude — no altitude sickness concerns, but heat and humidity are significant.
Conservation History
The park is named after Noel Kempff Mercado, a Bolivian botanist and conservationist murdered in 1986 while on a field expedition — killed by drug traffickers operating a clandestine airstrip inside what is now the park. His death galvanised Bolivian conservation policy. The park was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2000.
In 2005, a carbon offset scheme — one of the first in South America — paid local communities to protect the park’s 7.7 million tonnes of above-ground carbon stock.
Key facts
- → Noel Kempff Mercado NP covers 15,000+ km² in eastern Bolivia — UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.
- → The Huanchaca Plateau is 1.5 billion years old, predating the Andes by 1 billion years; it rises 600 m above the surrounding Amazon lowland.
- → The park documents 620+ bird species, 4,000+ plant species, and hosts Bolivia's last viable jaguar population in the east.
- → Arco Iris waterfall drops 80 m from the plateau edge — one of Bolivia's most spectacular and remote waterfalls.
- → The park is accessible only by charter aircraft from Santa Cruz; no roads penetrate the interior.
Frequently asked questions
How do you get to Noel Kempff National Park? +
Only by charter aircraft from Santa Cruz de la Sierra. FAN (Friends of Nature Foundation) organises all access and operates the park's two lodges. There are no roads into the park. Trips cost $600–1,200 per person for 3–4 nights all-inclusive.
What wildlife can you see at Noel Kempff? +
Jaguars, pumas, giant otters, harpy eagles, scarlet macaws, tapirs, giant anteaters, black spider monkeys, and over 620 bird species. The Huanchaca Plateau hosts species found nowhere else in Bolivia.
