Rurrenabaque is a small town in the north of Bolivia on the

Beni River The Beni River ( es, Río Beni) is a river in the north of Bolivia. It rises north of La Paz and flows northeast. The Madre de Dios River is where its mouth is at. In the upper portion of its course it flows through highland forest and rainforest ...

. It is the capital of

Rurrenabaque Municipality Rurrenabaque is a municipality in the José Ballivián Province José Ballivián is a province of the Beni Department in northern Bolivia. It is named for José Ballivián, a general and former president of Bolivia who lived from 1805 until 18 ...

. In recent years it has become popular with

international tourism International tourism is tourism that crosses national borders. Globalisation has made tourism a popular global leisure activity. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual en ...

as it is an easy gateway for visits to

Madidi National Park Madidi () is a national park in the upper Amazon Basin, Amazon river basin in Bolivia. Established in 1995, it has an area of 18,958km². Along with the nearby protected (though not necessarily contiguous) areas Manuripi-Heath, Apolobamba, and th ...

(within the Bolivian rainforest), as well as the surrounding

pampas The Pampas (from the qu, pampa, meaning "plain") are fertile South American low grasslands that cover more than and include the Argentine provinces of Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Santa Fe, Entre Ríos, and Córdoba; all of Uruguay; and Brazi ...

. Locals commonly refer to the town by its shortened nickname, "Rurre." Rurrenabaque is located in

José Ballivián Province José Ballivián is a province of the Beni Department in northern Bolivia. It is named for José Ballivián, a general and former president of Bolivia who lived from 1805 until 1852. The province has a north-south extent. To the west the province ...

in Beni Department, Bolivia. Rurrenabaque Municipality, the fourth municipal section of José Ballivián Province, had 19,195 inhabitants as of 2012, of which 13,446 lived in urban Rurrenabaque itself.

Transportation

Rurrenabaque is reached by bus, from La Paz (18 hours), by hired taxi (12 hours) or by airplane (45 minutes-1 hour). Amaszonas have flights to Rurrenabaque. Ecojet offers flights to Cochabamba. The buses from La Paz pass through

Coroico Coroico is a town in Nor Yungas Province, in the La Paz Department of western Bolivia. History Coroico Viejo (Old Coroico) was founded above the river Quri Wayq'u ( Quechua ''quri'' gold, ''wayq'u'' valley, hispanicized spellings ''Coriguayco'' ...

, from La Paz. A new road on this route opened at the end of 2006, decreasing most motorized traffic on the older, more dangerous

Yungas Road The Yungas Road is a cycle route about 60 km long that links the city of La Paz and the Yungas region of Bolivia. It draws about 25,000 tourists per year and is a major La Paz tourist attraction. Many tour operators cater to downhill moun ...

, also known as 'Death Road,' now highly popular for mountain bike tours. Rurrenabaque Airport was paved in 2010. Sometimes, low clouds over nearby mountains can hinder planes' visibility and can prevent planes from landing. A nearby airport can also be used, Reyes Airport, which is and about one hour by bus. There are no mountains near Reyes, and the airport often has better weather and fewer low clouds. Reyes is the capital of

in the Beni Department. Rurrenabaque lies on the east bank of the Beni River. A bridge over the Beni River connects with the town of San Buenaventura on the west bank. The bridge is a part of a regional road project, promoted as a way to improve the economic relationship between the two towns, which had been described as stunted because of limited and expensive transport by boat. An argument in favor of the proposed bridge is that the shallows and strong currents at the San Buenaventura section limit the types of boats and motors capable of crossing the stretch of river, representing an investment beyond the means of most individual Bolivian families; a bridge would allow San Buenaventura to enjoy the same accessibility as that enjoyed between Rurrenabaque and the neighboring town of Reyes. Researchers cite economic and social harm for the area because of environmental damage from the road project and the location of the bridge, which may reduce the town's appeal as a destination/gateway for eco-tourists.
''The Rurrenabaque-San Buenaventura Bridge: The responsibility of the IDB and the State in a work without territorial consensus'' (The title is translated from the original Spanish.)

Climate

Rurrenabaque sits on the Beni River as the waterway exits the Andean folds of western Bolivia into the

Llanos de Moxos The Beni savanna, also known as the Llanos de Moxos or Moxos plains, is a tropical savanna ecoregion of the Beni Department of northern Bolivia. Setting The Beni savanna covers an area of in the lowlands of northern Bolivia, with small portio ...

. The city has a

tropical rainforest climate A tropical rainforest climate, humid tropical climate or equatorial climate is a tropical climate sub-type usually found within 10 to 15 degrees latitude of the equator. There are some other areas at higher latitudes, such as the coast of southea ...

bordering on a

tropical monsoon climate An area of tropical monsoon climate (occasionally known as a sub-equatorial, tropical wet climate or a tropical monsoon and trade-wind littoral climate) is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification category ...

with a noticeably drier part of the year. Rurrenabaque, like much of Bolivia, is subject to annual climactic variation, particularly as a result of climate change.

Tourism

From Rurrenabaque popular tours go to the

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''ja� ...

/ rainforest ("selva" in Spanish) and to the

. The jungle/rainforest is south and west of Rurrenabaque (including a part of the Madidi National Park), and the tours leave by boat and foot. There are many tour agencies in the town offering similar tours. Rurrenabaque is a starting point for

ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide fund ...

, and some eco-lodges are found in the area. The following is a list of the community based Eco-Lodges-: Mashaquipe; San Louis Grande (Mosetén); Berraco del Madidi (Quechua-Tacanas); San Miguel del Bala (Tacanas); Chalalán (Quechua-Tacanas); Mapajo (Tsiman-Mosetén) Events, festivities: The 2nd of February: Fiesta de Rurre - Anniversary of Rurrenabaque - The day of La Virgen de Candelaria.

External links

References

{{Authority control Populated places in Beni Department