Yumani

Isla del Sol

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Yumani is the main village at the south end of the island. Most boats drop you at the village’s dock, about 200m downhill from the town proper. The small church, Iglesia de San Antonio, serves the southern half of the island. Nearby you’ll find an exploding cluster of guesthouses and fabulous views over the water to Isla de la Luna.

You can climb to the ridge (in about 30 minutes) for a view down to the deep sapphire-colored Bahía Kona on the western shore. From the crest you’ll also find routes leading downhill to the tiny pretty village of Japapi.

Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

  • Cathedral

    Cathedral

    9.89 MILES

    The sparkling white mudéjar (Moorish–style) cathedral, with its domes and colorful azulejos (blue Portuguese-style ceramic tiles), dominates the town…

  • Sampaya

    Sampaya

    4.46 MILES

    This is a beautifully preserved village where the homes are built with flat stones joined in an earthen mortar. There is a stone church on the hilltop…

  • Horca del Inca

    Horca del Inca

    10.14 MILES

    This hillside gate (named 'the Incan Gallows' by the Spaniards) is a fascinating pre-Incan astronomical observatory, surrounded by pierced rocks that…

  • Cerro Calvario

    Cerro Calvario

    9.44 MILES

    The summit can be reached in half an hour and is well worth the climb, especially for a view of the sunset. The trail begins near the church at the end of…

  • Escalera del Inca

    Escalera del Inca

    0.33 MILES

    Just uphill from the ferry dock at Yumani, along the beautifully reconstructed Escalera del Inca (Inca stairway), you’ll pass plenty of terraced gardens,…

  • Templo de las Vírgenes

    Templo de las Vírgenes

    5.21 MILES

    The ruins of an Inca nunnery and temple dedicated to the Virgins of the Sun ­– also known as Ajlla Wasi or Iñak Uyu – occupy an amphitheater-like valley…

  • Copacabana Beach

    Copacabana Beach

    9.85 MILES

    While Bolivia’s only public beach can’t hold a candle to its better-known counterpart in Rio de Janeiro, on weekends the festive atmosphere is a magnet…

  • Pilko Kaina

    Pilko Kaina

    0.94 MILES

    This prominent ruins complex near the southern tip of the island is about 30 minutes (2km) south by foot from Yumani. It sits well camouflaged against a…

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Nearby Isla del Sol attractions

1. Fuente del Inca

0.3 MILES

Early Spaniards believed Yumani’s spring was a fountain of youth and for the Incas the three streams represented their national motto: Ama sua, Ama llulla…

2. Escalera del Inca

0.33 MILES

Just uphill from the ferry dock at Yumani, along the beautifully reconstructed Escalera del Inca (Inca stairway), you’ll pass plenty of terraced gardens,…

3. Mirador Palla Khasa

0.47 MILES

Follow the well-signposted path from Yumani's ridgeline up to this small stone lookout atop Cerro Palla Khasa (4065m) for sweeping sunset views over the…

4. Ruins

0.5 MILES

Of the more than 80 Inca ruins on the island, most date to the 15th century AD. You could spend a week looking at them all.

5. Pilko Kaina

0.94 MILES

This prominent ruins complex near the southern tip of the island is about 30 minutes (2km) south by foot from Yumani. It sits well camouflaged against a…

6. Cha’lla

1.51 MILES

This agreeable little village stretches along a magnificent sandy beach that could be straight out of a holiday brochure for the Greek islands. The…

7. Lighthouse

1.61 MILES

This lighthouse on the tip of Kakayo-Queña Ridge is technically in an area tourists are allowed to visit, though access by land has been cut off by the…

8. Yampupata

2.36 MILES

This is a collection of lakefront adobe houses. If you ask around, you’ll find rooms for rent for about B$30. Asociación Transport Yampu Tour Lacustre…