KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK TOUR – 4D SANTA CRUZ

GENERAL DESCRIPTION

The Kaa Iya del Gran Chaco National Park is the largest National Park in Bolivia and the second-largest national park in South America. It protects the most complete remains of the dry forests of the Gran Chaco and is home to the largest known population of the jaguar. The Bolivian Gran Chaco is a dry forest landscape with high temperatures and little rainfall. The enormous extension of mount is considered one of the last regions of virgin dry forests.

DESCRIPTION KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK

The Kaa Iya National Park is located in the southeastern region of the department of Santa Cruz, it remains a well-kept secret. The starting point to visit this park is in San José de Chiquitos, well-connected today by the railway network and the trunk road between Santa Cruz and the border cities with Brazil, Puerto Suárez and Puerto Quijarro. This area has been rich in nature and cultural heritage since the time of the first settlement established by the Jesuits and has maintained much of its charm and originality for 300 years. On the Kaa Iya Tour you can enjoy the natural beauty.

This park constitutes the largest protected area in Bolivia. It is also the only Area intended to protect the remains of the once extensive South American Chaco. This park of Gran Chaco is home to characteristic ecosystems of the Chaco.

If you want to see mammals, such as the jaguar, the tapir or a puma in the wild, then with the Kaa Iya Tour you will have a high chance of seeing it.

You can also opt for other tours here.

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Itinerary
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Recommendations
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Important Data

Itinerary

DAY 1. SANTA CRUZ – SAN JOSE DE CHIQUITOS – KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK.

We leave at 08:00 a.m. to the town of San José de Chiquitos, located 265 km from the city of Santa Cruz and 97 km from Kaa Iya. During this vehicle tour, you can see large areas of crops, mostly soybeans and sunflowers. On this tour you can also see different species of birds, herons, ostrich, among others. This area of Santa Cruz is known as the Eastern Lowlands. For this reason, the land in this area is suitable for agriculture. After approximately 2 hours of travel, you can see the Mennonite colonies that exist in large numbers on both sides of the road along the route.

We will arrive at the first part of the trip, which is San José de Chiquitos at approximately 11:45, where we will have our lunch, then we will go directly to the Kaa Iya tour. In some high places of the road you can appreciate the green surroundings of the Chiquitano forest and a panoramic view of the city of San José de Chiquitos. They are approximately 3 hours away. During the trip, on the way you can see a variety of birds every certain distance and with luck some mammals such as herdsmen, foxes, Jochis among others. Later, at night, it will be to travel the roads in a vehicle with the reflector to have more possibilities to observe animals. This day, finally, we will arrive at our camp, after enjoying a dinner at Kaa Iya.

DAY 2. KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK TOUR.

Very early in the morning, we will take a tour of the area to appreciate life in the early hours of the day. After breakfast, we will take a walk to observe birds and other animals that pass along the road that runs parallel to the gas pipeline. We do this tour by vehicle and on foot. The road is a place where you have more chances to observe mammals, especially the jaguar, because it likes places where the wind blows more easily and cools the warm environment of this part of the Chaco. In this way, finishing the tour, we will have lunch at the park ranger camp or somewhere on the only road inside the park or near a lagoon. In the afternoon we will taste a dinner and rest for the next day.

DAY 3. KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK TOUR.

We start the day very early at 04:30 in the morning to have better opportunities to observe mammals. Along the way we will have great opportunities to see some wild animals such as: troopers, anteater, ocelot, fox, deer, turtles, monkeys, Mountain pig, Puma and Jaguar, among others, and nocturnal birds, owls. But always keep in mind that we do not guarantee the observation of any animal. It is also possible to take a short walk through the virgin forest to one of the many small “lagoons” that exist in the area. This walk can take about 20 minutes. These small water reserves are found in the dry season, an excellent point to find abundant wildlife. At night, we have another excursion in the park to have more opportunities to find wildlife. Likewise, we will have our dinner and accommodation in the Kaa Iya National Park.

DAY 4. KAA IYA NATIONAL PARK – SAN JOSE DE CHIQUITOS.

Before breakfast, we will take a walk through the trails that exist within the National Park. The real chances of spotting some large mammals like the tapir or the jaguar are quite great. The birds also have intense activity in the early hours of the morning. After breakfast, we will return to San José de Chiquitos. We will make our lunch on our route. Arriving in San José we continue our trip to Santa Cruz de la Sierra, we will arrive at approximately 7:30 p.m. End of our services.