Uyuni · With kids

A day trip onto the salt and back is roughly eight hours with frequent stops; the southwest circuit is three days of rough driving above 4,000m with basic lodgings and no medical help. With children under about ten, the day trip is the version that works.

The locomotive graveyard on the edge of town is open ground a short walk or tuk-tuk from the plaza, and children can climb straight onto the engines. It is unfenced, rusted and sharp-edged throughout, so proper shoes and a look at where they are putting their hands.

A walled thermal pool inside the Reserva Eduardo Avaroa, on the standard circuit route at around 4,400m, warm enough to sit in while the air outside is below freezing. Changing facilities are minimal and the walk back to your clothes is the difficult part.

One of the shallow lakes north of Laguna Colorada, usually holding flamingos close enough to see without binoculars. The name means 'stinking' and the sulphur smell is real; children find this funnier than adults do.

Ferroviaria Andina runs passenger trains through Uyuni on the line between Oruro and the Argentine border — reserved seats, a slower ride and far more civilised with children than an overnight bus across the altiplano. Days and fares change, so check the operator before you plan around it.