Salt flats are one of nature’s most beautiful features, providing a unique backdrop for some amazing travel photos, and no two are created alike. Some are primarily of dry, desolate, and deserted terrain, as otherworldly as an uninhabited planet. Others are home to many species of wildlife that are perfectly suited for the land and thrive therein.
Whatever your interests, Mother Earth has something that is sure to blow your mind and fill your heart with awe. Here are seven salt flats around the world.
1. Makgadikgadi Pan, Botswana
Located in northeastern Botswana, the Makgadikgadi Pan is one of the largest salt flats in the world. Covering an area of 3,900 kilometers, the pan used to be the huge Lake Makgadikgadi, which dried up tens of thousands of years ago. Today it is a national park attracting visitors from around the world who come to bask in its magnificence.
2. Bonneville Salt Flats, Utah
Similarly, Utah’s Bonneville Salt Flats were created when Lake Bonneville dried up. Located near the state’s border with Nevada, the flats span a whopping 300,000 acres. Just a quick 1.5-hour drive from Salt Lake City, the Bonneville Flats are a domestic wonder every American should consider visiting.
3. Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia
Likely the most beautiful and well-known of all the world’s salt flats is Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni. It covers over 4,050 square miles, making it the Earth’s largest. When lakes nearby overflow at certain times of the year, the flats are covered with water and turn into a huge mirror that perfectly reflects the sky. Interestingly, the world’s first salt hotel is located at Salar de Uyuni.
4. Atacama Salt Flat, Chile
Chile’s Atacama Salt Flat is the country’s largest, spanning an area of 750,000 acres. It contains many holes and lagoons housing various species of wildlife. Among them are Andean seagulls, red-gartered coots, guallatas, burrowing owls, swallows, and Hudson Mohawks.
5. Chott El Djerid, Tunisia
Tunisia’s Chott el Jerid is located in the country’s southwest region, near its border with Algeria. It covers around 5,000 square kilometers, and is the largest salt pan in the Sahara Desert, and one of the largest on the African continent. The flats are known for being a filming location for Star Wars films.
6. Etosha Pan, Namiba
At 4,800 square kilometers, Namibia‘s Etosha Pan is large enough to be visible from space. Despite very little vegetation growing there, it is the country’s only known mass breeding ground for flamingos, with there being as many as one million of the birds present at certain times of the year.
7. Salinas Grandes, Argentina
Argentina’s Salinas Grandes (Great Salt Flats), are said to be the remnants of an ancient river that used to flow in its location long ago. Having the Andes Mountains as a backdrop makes the salt flats even more beautiful. Salinas Grandes also feature unique sculptures and salt carvings created by local artists.
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