Samkani Camp, a new property from A&K Sanctuary, will open on Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni in late 2027, giving guests the rare chance to spend the night on the world’s largest salt flat. The camp comes from AKTG’s boutique collection of luxury lodges, camps and riverboats, and is built entirely from Airstreams, with five suites and a sixth trailer at its centre for dining and lounging.
The Salar de Uyuni ranks among Bolivia’s most visited destinations, yet overnight accommodation directly on the salt remains rare. Samkani Camp will offer total privacy and comfort in a place where scale and silence set the tone, and A&K Sanctuary has now shared the first details of its design, its name and the experiences that come with a stay.
Six Airstreams arrive on Bolivia’s salt flat
Each of the five suites at Samkani Camp is a self-sufficient, architect-designed Airstream, its metal exterior chosen to echo the surrounding salt and sky so that the camp settles quietly into its surroundings rather than standing apart from them. Inside, the suites are finished in blue Bolivian marble with chrome detailing, while the sixth Airstream at the heart of the camp houses the dining room and lounge and anchors the camp with its own bar.
The design draws on A&K’s experience of developing low-impact mobile camps across Africa, adapted here for one of the most exposed environments in South America. The aim is a camp that draws guests into the landscape while holding on to every comfort of a five-star retreat.
The name comes from Aymara, the indigenous language of Bolivia’s Altiplano, in which Samkani translates as “the one who dreams”. On the salar, nightfall brings a full 360 degrees of stars reaching right down to the horizon, beneath some of the clearest skies in the Southern Hemisphere.
Samkani Camp opens the salar to overnight guests
The Salar de Uyuni covers some 12,000 square kilometres and shifts in character across the year, moving between a cracked mosaic of hexagonal salt tiles and a vast mirror that holds the reflection of the sky. Guests at Samkani Camp will typically find themselves 20 to 30 kilometres from any other human presence, a degree of solitude that few places, even the world’s most remote luxury lodges, can offer.
Every stay includes a private guide and driver, with more than 30 experiences available across the salar and a number of them offered exclusively to A&K Sanctuary guests. Highlights include visits to the salar’s hidden islands and volcanic caves, along with stargazing sessions where the Milky Way can be seen in remarkable clarity. A&K’s Bolivian team leads every excursion, drawing on decades of local expertise.
Samkani Camp to take bookings ahead of a late 2027 opening
Samkani Camp will welcome its first guests in late 2027 and can be booked as part of an A&K Tailormade journey or a Small Group Journey to Bolivia, with the on-sale date to be announced soon. A&K Sanctuary’s portfolio already spans safari camps and lodges across Eastern and Southern Africa, including Kitirua Plains Lodge in Kenya’s Amboseli, along with riverboats in Egypt and Peru.
For travellers drawn to the Salar de Uyuni, Samkani Camp offers what the destination has rarely been able to provide, a night spent at its centre with the stars stretching down to the horizon on every side and nothing but salt for kilometres in any direction.
Quick summary – Samkani Camp
- Style: a camp built entirely from Airstreams, with five architect-designed suites and a sixth trailer at its centre for dining and lounging
- Location: Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia, typically 20 to 30 kilometres from any other human presence
- Suites: self-sufficient Airstreams with metal exteriors that echo the salt and sky, finished inside in blue Bolivian marble with chrome detailing
- Dining: the central dining Airstream, with its own bar
- Experiences: a private guide and driver on every stay, with more than 30 experiences across the salar including hidden islands, volcanic caves and stargazing
- Opening: late 2027
- Booking: as part of an A&K Tailormade journey or Small Group Journey to Bolivia, with the on-sale date to be announced
- Ideal for: stargazers and travellers seeking total solitude
