Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Puma Punku
Set apart from the main complex, some 3km to the south on the other side of the road and the
abandoned railway, are the ruins of another major pyramid,
Puma Punko
- the Gateway of
the Puma. Similar in style and function to Akapana, though slightly smaller, this pyramid is
believed to have been built some two hundred years later, in around 700 AD. The skill and
exactitude with which the massive stone blocks were carved is deeply impressive, particu-
larly in a society without iron tools.
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: TIWANAKU
By minibus
Minibuses to Tiwanaku depart from the corner of Aliaga and Eyzaguirre in the
cemetery district in La Paz (every 30min; 1hr 30min); on the way back they leave from the
square in Tiwanaku town, just under 1km walk away down Av Ferrocarril, though you can
flag them down as they pass the entrance to the ruins.
Tour operators
Most
tour agencies
in La Paz run full-or half-day trips to the site.
ACCOMMODATION AND EATING
Hotel Akapana
Av Manco Kapac 20, just across from the site entrance 02 2895104,
hotel-akapana.com
.
You can't miss the incongruous, quasi-temple-like exterior, though
rooms are far more basic, if clean enough, with parquet floors and modern en-suite bath-
rooms. There's also a small library and garden, a decent restaurant, and, if you're feeling at
all sp
iritually inadequate
, they
offer purification ceremonies every Thurs. Breakfast included.
Bs80
; Aymara New Year
Bs200
