Andes Mountains
The Andes Mountains, home to the ancient Tiwanaku civilisation and their descendants, the Incas and more recently the Quechuas (Perú) and Aymaras (Bolivia), are steeped in traditions, myths, and ancestral practices that have endured through centuries
This land is full of diverse natural wonders: desert landscapes, surreal stone trees, salt flats of Uyuni, sky mirrors, vibrant lakes, pink flamingos, and majestic peaks like Illimani and Huayna Potosí.
Visit each of the unmissable Andes' highlights
About the Andes
Approximately 120 million years ago, at the start of the Mesozoic Era, the Andes Mountains began to form due to the subduction of the Nazca Plate beneath the South American continental platform. Around 45 million years ago, a series of uplift pulses started, eventually shaping the mountain range as we know it today.
The first humans arrived in the Andes approximately 21,000 years ago, migrating from Asia via the Bering Strait.
The Chavín culture was the first great unifying civilisation in the Andes, spreading ideas and technological innovations around 1,800 BC.
From AD 600 to 1,000, the Tiahuanaco and Huari states dominated the region. In AD 1,476, the Inca Empire expanded but eventually fell to the Spanish conquest in AD 1,532.
However, the Andes remain a culturally rich and diverse region, with many indigenous communities preserving their traditions and striving to safeguard their cultural heritage.