La Paz rewards thin wallets as much as thin air: the best views cost nothing, four colonial museums share a single 20 Bs ticket, and a full market almuerzo rarely passes 18 Bs. Three days built on walking, minibuses and Bolivianos rather than tours.
Bolivia's political heart, framed by the Palacio Quemado, the Congress clock that runs backwards and the 1835 cathedral. The square is free and open day and night; a bag of pigeon feed is 2 Bs from the corner vendors.
A cobbled colonial lane of four municipal museums — Costumbrista, del Litoral, Metales Preciosos and Casa de Murillo — sharing one 20 Bs ticket. Open Tuesday to Friday 09:00–12:30 and 15:00–19:00, weekend mornings only.
The MUSEF occupies a 1775 mansion, with halls of Andean dance masks, Chipaya artefacts and a textile room ranking among the continent's best. Entry is 20 Bs and drops to free on Sundays; closed Mondays.
A free hilltop terrace 200 metres above the centre giving a full circle over the brick bowl of the city with Illimani behind it. Twenty-five uphill minutes from Plaza Murillo via Calle Indaburo, or 15 Bs by taxi.
The city's largest street market runs ten blocks along Calle Rodríguez from 07:00, densest on Saturdays. Walking it is free; a kilo of mandarins is about 7 Bs and a glass of fresh papaya juice 5 Bs from the corner carts.
Upstairs comedores at this working market plate a full almuerzo — soup, main and refresco — for 12 to 18 Bs, served 11:30 to 15:00. At the entrance stalls, api morado with a fried cheese pastel costs about 8 Bs.
El Alto's Thursday and Sunday feria sprawls across roughly 70 blocks of second-hand clothing, tools, llama-wool knits and food carts, among the largest markets in South America. Browsing costs nothing.
Carts ring this plaza frying tucumanas — beef, egg and olive empanadas — from around 16:00 until they sell out, at 5 to 7 Bs each. The communal jars of ají and llajwa on the counter are free to spoon on.
Eroded clay spires south of the city with two marked loops of 15 and 45 minutes over narrow ridges. Entry is 15 Bs, open 09:00–17:00; minibus 231 or 273 from Calle México takes about 45 minutes for 3.50 Bs.
A free canyon of pale eroded pinnacles beyond Ovejuyo that draws a fraction of Valle de la Luna's crowds. No gate, no ticket and no shade — walk in from the road end and follow the dry riverbed between the spires.
A hilltop park above the Prado with a walled mirador over the whole central valley, plus a small planetarium and playground. Entry is 3 Bs, open Tuesday to Sunday 09:00–18:00, reached by stairs from Parque Urbano Central.
A quiet Sopocachi hilltop of eucalyptus, a small white chapel and stone benches facing Illimani, free and open until dusk. Paceños treat it as the sunset spot that the tour groups at Killi Killi have not found.