BRAZIL: Iguazu Falls
IGUAZU FALLS DAY BY DAY
DAY ONE - Fly to Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil to see Iguazu Falls
DAY TWO - Explore Brazilian side of Iguazu Falls with hired guide
DAY THREE - Explore Argentinian side of Iguazu Falls with hired guide
DAY FOUR - Fly back to Montevideo
Iguazu Falls, Argentina & Brazil side
You will find a few names for these famous falls depending on the language or where you are doing research. In the United States we call them Iguazu Falls. In spanish (Argentina side) it is Cataratas de Iguazú and in Portuguese (Brazilian side) it is Cataratas do Iguaću.
The Iguazu (also called Iguassu) Falls are composed of 275 separate cascades, which make it the largest broken waterfall in the world. Made up of a chain of waterfalls that are fed by the Iguazu River, this powerful phenomenon sits on the border of Argentina and Brazil.
GETTING TO IGUAZU FALLS FROM RIO: They have direct flights from Rio de Janeiro to Foz do Iguaçu which is on the Brazilian side of the famous Iguazu Falls. I love using Skyscanner to research all flight options and then buy the flight directly through the airline website.
TRANSPORTATION IN IGUAZU: Taxis and Ubers are easy to access.
WHERE TO STAY IN IGUAZU: We chose to stay on the Brazilian side of Iguazu Falls as they had more of a downtown we could walk to from our hotel. When we travel we like to get hotels near the city center (you can choose this filter option through Booking.com). For our budget we chose JL Hotel by Bourbon and were very happy with the location, service and food. If you feel like balling out the Belmond Hotel Das Cataratas is a beautiful, luxurious hotel located right next to the falls.
There are some hotels on the Argentina side if you are traveling in this country and prefer to stay there, however there is not much more to explore as far as food, drinks, shopping, entertainment.
TWO SIDES OF THE FALLS: There are two different sides to see the falls. You can visit the falls from the Brazilian side and from the Argentinian side. The Brazilian side has the view points of the overall falls. The Argentinian side, you get to walk through the jungle and on platforms over the falls to get up-close.
VISITING THE FALLS: If you rent a car you can easily get to the National Park entrances yourself, park your car and buy a ticket to get inside the park and walk the trails on your own. Remember, if you decide to go the the Argentinian side you will have to go through the border so don’t forget your passport and be prepared to wait in line. We opted to skip all of this waiting and hired a private tour guide for two days to see both sides through my goto, Viator. Extra bonus of having a tour guide is you get to skip the lines in the national park and there is a quick pass line for the border to make it fast as possible.
WHAT SIDE OF THE FALLS SHOULD YOU VISIT?: In my opinion (and many others) they are both so different you should give yourself two days and just do both sides while you are there.
23 FEB 23 - FLY TO FOZ DO IGUAÇU, BRAZIL AND REST DAY
From Rio, we took a mid-day non-stop flight to Foz do Iguaçu. We landed in the late afternoon and took an Uber to our hotel, which was about a 20 minute drive. Exhausted from our non-stop days in Rio, we ate dinner at the hotel restaurant and watched a movie and went to bed early. A nice unwind evening before exploring Iguazu for two days.
24 FEB 23 - EXPLORE BRAZILIAN SIDE OF IGUAZU FALLS
We got picked up from our hotel at 8:30am and arrived for the 9am opening at Parque Nacional do Iguaçu. With a guide you are able to skip the main line, present your ticket, then wait for your guide to bring their car in and drive you through the park. If you go without a guide you have to wait in line and wait to get on the buses that take you into the park. Another bonus of booking a private guide is the vip access of a driver taking you from location to location within the park.
It is easier if you buy your tickets in advance here. They are $18 USD and $3 Kids. The hours of Parque Nacional do Iguaçu are 9am to 4pm daily.
We followed the easy paved trail along the river to get different views of the magnificent Iguazu Falls. If you have seen Niagra Falls, they have nothing on these (sorry Niagra). There are over 250 different falls and they are incredible to see and hear in person. Even on a cloudy day, the falls were beautiful.
Our guide said that the falls always look different based on the blue sky, or how much rain they have had. Sometimes there is less water and sometimes there is so much you don’t get a lot of distinction between the different falls. You never know what you are going to get.
Keep your eyes open for some wildlife. We got to see a Toucan in real wild life. It was soooo pretty and their raccoon which is called a coati. They were everywhere looking for food. Along the way there were different platforms where you could walk closer to the edge for a better view. The best platform was at the end called “The Devil’s Throat”. Be prepared to get wet from the waterfall’s mist as you walk out to the edge of the waterfall.
At the end of the paved path, you can take an elevator up to get an overall view of “Devil’s Throat” to the left and an overall view of some of the falls.
If you are up for an adventure you can pay extra to do a boat trip under the falls (these tickets you buy at the entrance). So we decided this was a must and drove to the entrance for this section. You take a small train through the jungle and have the option to walk through the jungle for 20 minutes or stay on the train. At the end you get on a zodiac boat and they take you to the bottom of the falls.
They intentionally drive the boat into the falls so you get soaked! If you plan on doing this part of the trip make sure you bring a change of clothes. They have lockers you can rent for your bag of clothes you will change into (or your guide can watch your things). We didn’t bring any phones to keep them from getting damaged, and they have a person on the boat taking photos with a GoPro that you can purchase after the 20 minute boat ride adventure.
After our tour of the falls our guide took us to his favorite Chinese Restaurant Hokila when we asked him where was a good place to eat Asian food - we had been craving this for a few days! It was a buffet style and you pay based on the end weight of your plate. Rating 4/5
We returned back to our hotel for some relaxation before we decided to walk a mile to downtown for some dinner and see some of the shops. I was obsessed with this beautiful tile artwork right next to our dinner spot. We chose Confins Steakhouse and it was delicious. Great service, cocktails and food. Rating 5/5
25 FEB 23 - EXPLORE ARGENTINIAN SIDE OF IGUAZU FALLS
We got picked up at our hotel at 8am and drove to the Argentinian side. DON’T FORGET YOUR PASSPORTS FOR THE ARGENTINA SIDE. The benefit of hiring a guide or using a taxi is they have a “quick pass” line where we were able to get through the border quickly.
The entry fee for Iguazu National Park is $32 USD for adults and $10 for children. The park is open from 8:00 AM to 4:30 PM (last entrance).
From the border it is about another 20 minute drive to the park entrance. We showed our tickets and started the adventure through the park.
The Iguazu National Park on the Argentine side has 6 different circuits to do. It is definitely a lot more walking than the Brazilian side. However, when we were there a few of the trails were closed due to flooding earlier in the year. We focused on the Lower Circuit and the Superior Circuit.
When you enter the park you have the option to wait for a small train to take you to the main entrance of the trails. We opted to walk the Sendero Verde trail instead of waiting for the train which came every 30 minutes.
There are easy walkways and paths that go through the jungle and lead you to different viewpoints. You are literally right over the falls for a lot of the points where you can see the water rush over the edge.
It’s a different perspective to be on the Argentinian side and see the falls up-close. You really get a sense of how massive and powerful they are.
Keep an eye out, if you get lucky you will see tons of wildlife including their raccoons (coati), monkeys, different birds, tapir and more. Be prepared for some of the walkways to be closed, but either way it is such a great experience to be up-close to these world famous falls. Travis and I are pretty fast walkers so we did the major highlights within 3 hours.
After we saw the falls from the Argentinian side our tour guide drove us to the border to see Paraguay and Brazil. Standing in Argentina we were able to see all three countries that meet at this point. Of course I also got a photo in front of the Iguazu sign. I am quickly learning having these letters in different cities in South America is a “thing” and I am so here for it.
We stopped for some tasty ice cream, recommended by our guide, before crossing back over the border and returning to our hotel. We had an early morning flight to get back to Montevideo the next day so we packed up and ate dinner at the hotel before calling it an early evening. What a wonderful trip to Brazil!
Learn more facts about Iguazu Falls Here.
26 FEB 23 - FLY BACK HOME TO MONTEVIDEO
If you have the flexibility to fly on different days during the week you can score a non-stop flight back to Montevideo from Iguazu. Unfortunately, we had to get back Sunday night so two planes later we made it back home!
As always, leave a comment below if you have any questions about planning your trip to Brazil! I can try and help as much as possible. Or contact me via email.
Looking to add more Brazil travels to your Iguazu Falls trip after or before. Check out my Rio de Janeiro Blog post.
RIO DE JANEIRO DAY BY DAY
DAY ONE - Arrive in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and watch access group at Sambadrome
DAY TWO - Rest and then watch special group at Sambadrome
DAY THREE - Relax at Copacabana Beach
DAY FOUR - Visit Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain with tour
DAY FIVE - Personal walking tour of Rio de Janeiro, Aquarium and Ipanema Beach
DAY SIX - Fly to Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil to see Iguazu Falls
Our Iguazu Falls travel dates were 24-26 February 2023. THE ABOVE INFORMATION IS PROVIDED BASED ON MY OWN EXPERIENCE. THESE ARE MY PERSONAL OPINIONS AND ALL FACTS, DETAILS AND INFORMATION ABOVE COULD CHANGE WITHOUT MY KNOWLEDGE. I AM NOT RESPONSIBLE IF COPYING THIS ITINERARY DOES NOT GO EXACTLY AS PLANNED OUT. SOME LINKS ABOVE ARE AFFILIATE LINKS WHICH MEANS IF YOU CHOOSE TO MAKE A PURCHASE I MAY EARN A SMALL COMMISSION. AFFILIATE LINKS COST YOU NOTHING AND HELP KEEP THIS CONTENT FREE. THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!