Cercado: Puerto Ballivián and the Río Ibare

Puerto Ballivián is a specific reason to visit Cercado: it is promoted for its beautiful scenery, typical local gastronomy and the Río Ibare. Also on offer are boat trips on the river, as well as a variety of dishes and natural refreshments. This gives you a combination of views, regional cuisine and an experience on the water to consider when planning your trip.

Scenery and a family weekend

The scenery is one of the explicitly highlighted reasons to visit. Puerto Ballivián is also promoted as a destination for a family weekend. Nature and a weekend getaway are presented side by side. If you are planning a weekend with your family, you can take this focus into account when choosing a destination: it combines the appeal of the scenery with a specific reason for spending time together.

Gastronomy overlooking the Río Ibare

For its culinary offerings, Puerto Ballivián promotes a variety of dishes and natural refreshments. Typical local gastronomy is paired with panoramic views of the Río Ibare. The visitor experience therefore encompasses not only the views, but also food and drink as interests in their own right. If you are planning your trip around nature and food, you can enjoy both aspects together in Puerto Ballivián.

Boat trips on the Río Ibare

The Río Ibare features in two distinct ways: as a panoramic view in the culinary experience and as a river for promoted boat trips. Puerto Ballivián is promoted as a starting point for these trips. This distinction makes the choice of experience more specific: the panorama is all about the views, while a boat trip focuses your attention on the river itself. When planning, you can decide whether the landscape or the boat trip is more central to your plans.

Culture and nature in the wider Beni region

As a broader travel destination, Beni complements the local perspective of Cercado with its own cultural themes. Handicrafts made from palm fibers and fine woods are produced in Beni. These materials add a craft dimension to the cultural overview alongside its festival traditions. In Beni, the Gran Fiesta de la Santísima Trinidad is known as the Chope Fiesta. Forty-eight groups take part in the main procession of the Ichapekene Piesta. They wear masks depicting ancestors and animals, highlighting the importance of respect for nature.

Nature and rivers are also part of the wider Beni context. Beni is home to the bufeo and the blue-throated macaw, also known as the Paraba Barba Azul. Visitors are invited to travel along the Río Mamoré into the vast expanses of the Bolivian Amazon; the bufeo, a freshwater dolphin, lives there. The rivers of Beni include the Mamoré, Beni and Iténez; they also serve as transport routes.

For orientation, the river names are important: the boat trips near Puerto Ballivián are on the Río Ibare, while the trip into the vast Amazon region promoted in Beni is on the Río Mamoré. This makes it possible to distinguish the local excursion from the river attractions of the wider travel destination.

Discover more destinations: Trinidad, José Ballivián, Vaca Diez, Moxos, Marbán.

View the broader travel overview: Beni.