Palacio de Sal
Bolivia's answer to eco-friendly construction is the world's first hotel made entirely of salt. The building material was sourced from the Salt Plains of Uyuni, one of the country's biggest spectacles. Apart from the architectural uniqueness, the interior scent and the salt's natural healing properties make this hotel worthy of a visit.
The exceptionally flat salt plains in southern Bolivia are the largest in the world, covering over 4000 square miles. They are rich in minerals and contain around 60% of the world’s Lithium.
Extracting and exporting the minerals has been big business, and a railroad was constructed by the British in the late 1800s. By the 1940s, the business was abandoned, and now hundreds of old trains are abandoned in this desert of salt. Visiting the train graveyard would be a poignant and unusual experience.
Building materials are scarce around here, so the Palacio de Sal is built entirely from salt. They used over one million 14-inch (35 cm) blocks of solid salt to build the hotel. But don’t lick the walls, as this is prohibited (I know, party-poopers, huh?).
The first salt hotel in the world was built in 1998, just 25 kilometers from the city of Uyuni.
Juan Quesada Valda, a pioneer hotelier from Bolivia, came up with the innovative, crazy, and creative idea. Every building block in this establishment is made of 100% salt.
The new hotel was constructed in 2007 after the original salt hotel was closed due to sanitation issues.
The building was erected on a more remote site surrounded by endless stretches of salt flats that end in an imposing mountain range, making you think they are in the middle of nowhere. There are also flocks of pink flamingoes nearby.
The "Palace of Salt" building was constructed from blocks of salt, which were used for the floor, walls, ceiling, and furniture, including beds, tables, chairs, and sculptures. The building blocks are grains of salt compressed into bricks.
Without a doubt, this is a place that you should be on your bucket list.
Expect a breathtaking display of the stunning views of the Salar de Uyuni, the starry night sky, the vibrant colors of sunrise or sunset, and the salt sculptures adorning the hotel's interiors.
Palacio de Sal has 30 rooms, 9 of which have double beds and the rest with twin beds.
The hotel's spa has a dry sauna and steam room, a saltwater pool, and hot tubs.
Among the area's attractions are motorcycle tours of the salt flats, wine, and snacks while watching the sunset, a tour of the colonial cities, a visit to Incahuasi Island, and tours of the salt dunes.
A specially designed golf course can be organized (it needs to be ordered one month before your arrival) for those who want the unique experience of playing on a salt plane. I imagine the balls are not colored white...
During the dry season, the salt flat looks like a whitewashed desert. When the rainy season comes, the wet layer above the ground creates the famous mirror effect and offers plenty of cool photo ops for visitors.
