Ruta del Che
The Che Route (Ruta del Che)
The ruta del Che tour will re-trace the final steps of the legendary guerrillero Che Guevara. The well-known communist revolutionary was captured in La Higuera , a small settlement close to Vallegrande, in Bolivia.
The consciousness of Ernesto “Che” Guevara, born in 1928 in a high class family in Argentina , was awakened at an early age. Ernesto Guevara decided that personal sacrifice and violent revolution was the only way to create an equal society. Rejecting his comfortable life, he set off to travel around Latin America. The book and bestseller “Motorcycle diaries” and later the film (watch the movie trailer) with the same name, describe the early travels of marxist and revolutionary Ernesto Che Guevara with his friend Alberto Granado, both in their early 20s. The adventure that turns an intense young man into a revolutionary
In Mexico, Che met Fidel Castro. With a small army they overthrew the administration of president Batista in Cuba. Che Guevara got Cuban citizenship and after having worked as a doctor, military commander, president of the National Bank and Minister, he set up his base in Ñancahuazu, 250 km southwest of Santa Cruz , Bolivia.
The support Che received from the local people and local communist party was poor, and eventually in 1967, after months of guerrilla , Che Guevara was captured by the Bolivian army and executed in La Higuera. His body was flown to Vallegrande, where it was displayed and later buried. In 1997 Che’s body was reburied in Cuba .
Relive Che’s last days with the ruta del Che tour. Visit the places where Che travelled around with secrecy and a rifle, together with his guerrilla, up to the little rural school in La Higuera, where he was executed.
The last days of Che during the Ruta del Che in Bolivia.
REFERENCE PROGRAM
DAY 1 Santa Cruz-Samaipata
At 07:00 am we will pick you up from your hotel in Santa Cruz and drive you to Samaipata.
Samaipata was once taken by the guerrilleros following Che Guevara.
Samaipata – Vallegrande. After a brief visit to Samaipata we will head off towards Vallegrande where we will arrive approx 2 hours hours later. Vallegrande is a picturesque old town of traditional colonial architecture.
After lunch you will visit the ¨Che places¨ in Vallegrande like the laundry room at the hospital, where Che´s body was laid out for display to the public and the press, the Che museum, and the memorial erected at Che´s newly
found burial site, which was recently found after years of mystery. You will spend the night in Vallegrande.
DAY 2
After breakfast you continue towards La Higuera. You will stop in Pucará, a picturesque village, typical of the Bolivian valleys. After visiting Pucará we will continue our travel to La Higuera, the site of Che´s execution. We will visit the school where Che was kept captive, and we will take a walk to Quebrada del Churo, place of his last resistance.
Return to Vallegrande where we will spend the night in a hostal.
DAY 3
Today you will take the return trip back to Samaipata.
On the way back you can stop at the waterfalls of Cuevas for a refreshing swim OR visit el Fuerte near Samaipata.
You will be back from la Ruta del Che in Santa Cruz around 6:00 P.M. and you will take you to your hotel.
The scheduled visits and itineraries are subject to change based on the road conditions.
There is also the possibility to do the Ruta del Che in 2 days / 1 night. However we strongly recommend 3 days / 2 nights as the distance from Santa Cruz to La Higuera is 300 KM, of which 60 KM over unpaved roads. It takes approx. 7.5 – 8 hours to get from Santa Cruz to La Higuera, depending on the state of the roads and weather conditions.
Please contact us for more information or for making a reservation.
The Che Guevara tour is intented to re-trace the steps of che Guevara in Bolivia during the last months of his life, through small and rustic rural villages in the valleys of Santa Cruz, Bolivia.
What we recommend you to take with you:
- Comfortable shoes to walk
- Insect repellent
- Sun block
- Hat against the sun
- Trousers and shirt with long sleeves
- Warm sweater
- Bathing clothes
- Your passport and visa
