The Iguazu Falls are located in the jungle near the 3 borders of Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. I was excited to experience one of the natural wonders of the world from both Argentina and Brazil.
Best Thing I Ate This Week
Dulce de Leche Gelato from Cremolati Heladeria
An Interesting Fact I Learned
Iguazu Falls are the largest waterfall system in the world
The Iguazu Falls (Cataratas del Iguazu) are considered one system but are technically made up of nearly 300 waterfalls. When taking this into account, they are taller than Niagara Falls and four times as wide. However, Victoria Falls does have the claim to the largest single waterfall.
The Rio de Iguazu and the Falls are the border between Brazil and Argentina. Visiting each side of the park offers distinct vantage points and are worth checking out if time allows.
During our visit the water was running at nearly 5 times the normal volume and a few weeks prior was at 16 times the normal volume due to big rain storms in Brazil. One downside of the volume increase was that numerous parts of the Argentina park were closed. In fact, the entire walkway out to the Devil’s Throat (Garganta del Diablo) had been completely washed away and will be awhile before it is rebuilt. You can read more about our experience at the Argentine National Park here.
However, the upside of the increased volumes was that the falls were even more impressive than normal and the roar of the crashing falls was thunderous. Walking on the pathways was exhilarating to feel the rush of the river go by below and crash over the cliff nearby. A highlight was the Brazilian pathway to the Devil’s Throat where the blowing, overflowing falls soaked everyone. You can read more about our experience in the Brazilian National Park here.
My Travel Tip of the Week
Proper way to cross the Argentina border to Brazil by Bus
Near the Iguazu National Park, Argentina shares a land border crossing with Brazil and Brazil shares a land border crossing with Paraguay. In order to see both sides of the National Park, you must visit the Argentina and Brazil sides. On the Argentina side there is the town of Puerto Iguazu and on the Brazil side there is Foz do Iguaçu. We chose to stay in both during our time in the region.
Since we didn’t have a car, the best way for us to cross between the two countries was with one of the bus services operating in the region (Rio Uruguay, Crucero del Norte). Border crossing rules vary for people living in the region, so, as an American, you need to be sure to notify the bus driver about your travel plans.
We traveled from Argentina to Brazil on a bus and our first stop was at the Argentina border. An employee of the bus company escorted everyone through to the border agents and waited for us to get back on the bus.
The second stop was a flag stop at the Brazilian border, and we notified them in advance. This time, the bus driver pointed us in the direction of the border agents and told us to wait at the bus stop for his next colleague to pick us up some time in the next hour. Our ticket was valid for the next bus of the same company. However, to speed up the trip, we ended up buying another ticket on a different company’s bus.
My Additional Anecdote This Week
Embrace Being Sweaty and Wet
Our visit to the Iguazu Falls National Park timed up with their spring season. We knew it was going to be warm and upon stepping out of the airport it was immediately clear that it was stiflingly hot. The weather was near 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 Celsius) and humidity varied between 70 to 90 percent. Walking to the taxi, it was clear we would be covered in sweat the entire time. There was really nothing to do, other than embracing it, dressing for the conditions, using ample sunscreen, and hydrating properly.
Luckily the Iguazu Falls provided a natural way to cool down from the heat. We knew we would get wet in the national parks so we dressed for a day at the pool. On the Argentina side we were able to buy a last minute boat tour and ended up under the falls twice. On the Brazil side, we spent time on the pathway to the Devil’s Throat. In both situations, we got so wet that it was as if we had been swimming in a pool. It was a memorable experience laughing and soaking in an unforgettable experience with the other fellow travelers.
