La Paz is a city in northwestern Bolivia, capital of the department of La Paz and constitutional capital of the nation, although the official title of capital corresponds to Sucre. It has a population of 2,030,422 inhabitants, not including El Alto with 1,184,942 inhabitants.

The city center is about 3,650 meters above sea level and, along with the city of El Alto, the first and largest urban settlement of Bolivia.

The center of La Paz is composed of three main points that form a triangle which develops much of the economic and social life of the city. These are:

• The Plaza Murillo, which is a place where we find the buildings of the executive and legislative branches of Bolivia.
• The atrium of the lower basilica of San Francisco, is considered one of the main social meeting places of the city along with Heroes' Square (Plaza de Los Heroes) being an area of social expression.
• The square Lucio Pérez Velasco, almost adjacent to the Plaza of Heroes, commonly called "La Pérez", is a point which articulates vehicular traffic form lots of places of the city.

Avenida 16 de Julio (July 16th Avenue), better known as "El Prado", with beautiful gardens, is the center of entertainment, commercial and financial activity of La Paz.

From the south comes a long canyon through the middle part of the city and forms a spectacular landscape. This canyon (now converted into a park) is one of the most attractive places in the city: Laikakota Park (now the Urban Park Central Grand), which is a hill that rises from the canyon and has the most spectacular 180 degree view of the city of La Paz

The city has, like many cities in Latin America, a "Plaza de Armas", which was named after "Pedro Domingo Murillo". The square and its surroundings are a major tourist destination and the main meeting center of La Paz. It has also the Church and Convent of San Francisco (built between the XVI and XVIII) which is the most representative example of the architectural style known as "Mestizo Baroque" in Bolivia. To the west and north are the most poor and marginal parts of the city, which form the boundary of the cities of La Paz and El Alto. To the south, separated by deep canyons, lie the suburbs of the city.