Make it quick..
Iguazu falls is the largest waterfall in the world and should not be missed by anyone stepping foot onto Brazilian or Argentinian ground. It is an absolute wonder and like nothing else you will ever see.
The following guide will help you plan your trip on the Brazilian and Argentinian side, with a few great places to eat and drink. Both sides can be easily done in 2-3 days, if your visa permits freely travelling between the two countries.
Foz do Iguazu - The Brazilian Side
The Brazilian side of the falls can easily be completed within a half day excursion. It provides you with a landscape view of the falls from more of a distance than the Argentinian side. Allowing you to capture most of the falls in one shot – it makes a great selfie background too!
You’ll also be able to walk to the bottom of the main fall, the Devil's Throat and check out a birds-eye view from the top via a lift. You’re best to do the falls in this order, as the bus taking you back to the exit can also be reached easily from the birds-eye view point.
You can also do a short boat trip from this side of the falls but if you are on a budget and are only planning on doing one boat trip, we would recommend doing this from the Argentinian side, where you are driven right into a section of the falls!
Itaipu Dam
Alongside the largest waterfall in the world, is also the largest dam in the world. Naturally.
This dam shares its generated electricity with Paraguay and Brazil. It provides Paraguay with 78% of their entire electricity consumption and nearly 20% of Brazil’s. Impressive considering the size of Brazil!
It is a remarkable infrastructure to see and the force of the water running down each generator unit makes it look like the water is dancing!
Definitely worth a visit if you have time. There are different tours available including a bus tour around the dam to a special tour taking you right into the dams infrastructure. Just ensure you wear closed toe shoes and bottoms that are below your knees, as this is a safety requirement for that tour.
Puerto do Iguazu - The Argentinian Side
First and foremost, this side of the falls needs a whole day to really enjoy all aspects of the park. There are three walking trails in the park, whereas Brazil only has one.
The Walkways
The top walkway should not be missed, it is visited by taking a short train to the Devil's Throat and walking along a pathway over the top of the Paraná River for around 30 mins. It takes almost 2 hours in total but is absolutely incredible. It genuinely made us speechless!
The other two pathways provide you with a similar view like Brazil from the bottom of the falls, and a middle walkway, which takes you through the forest and shows you an alternative view of the falls.
Things to note:
Ensure you give yourself time to get back to the train from the top walkway, there is a ticketing service which is free but it can take a while.
The trains are every 15-20 mins but you can be waiting for a number of trains as everyone is going the same way down.
Bring sunglasses as the bright white of the water can be hard on the eyes.
The Boat Tour!
If you’d like to do the boat tour, which takes you into the falls, the company you need is Iguazu Jungle. The cost of the trip is around £40 each. Unfortunately, there seems to be a danger hazard with the cheaper route, which only includes the boat tour. So you’re also taken through the jungle on a Jeep. It largely shows you some spiders and if you’re lucky you might catch some monkeys foraging for food. It’s not amazing, but the speed boat tour is definitely worth it!
Where to Eat
There are some cool places to eat and drink in Puerto Iguazu. We enjoyed some Happy Hour caipirinhas in a Mexican place actually called Happy Hour. They also came with free delicious nachos and tequila shots! If you’re a meat eater you can also eat here for a very cheap price.
Otherwise, go and enjoy some delicious fresh pasta at La Mamma. We tried the mushroom sauce and we’d recommend sharing one between two, especially if you filled up on nachos beforehand as the portions are huge!
Alternatively, Puerto Iguazu can seem like a ghost town if you don’t know where to go but there are also many restaurants down Av. Córdoba, just behind the bus station.
How to get there
Foz to Iguazu Falls
The bus (Linha 120) takes around half an hour to get to the falls and costs around 5 Reals. The falls are a major stop and very clearly signed so you’ll know where to get off.
Bus from Foz to Puerto
The bus between Foz and Puerto is an easy bus to find as it states the destination on the front. It costs around 7 Reals but you have to get off at the border to have your passport stamped and the bus does not wait for you.
You’ll be with many others doing the same journey, so if you’ve been given a ticket from the previous driver you should be able to walk onto the next bus without paying. Otherwise, you may have to pay again. After this part, you’ll have another quick check on the Argentinian side but the bus does wait for you this time and you’ll reach Puerto Iguazu in no more than 1 hour.
Puerto to Iguazu Falls
There is a regular bus service every 20 minutes from the Puerto Bus terminal, it takes around 20 minutes to reach the falls and a return bus ticket costs 150 Pesos, which you must buy from the Rio Uruguay bus kiosk before boarding.
Enjoy the falls!
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