Chasing waterfalls
I've spent a fair few days in Foz de Iguazu in Brazil and I've spent 2 of those days enjoying the amazing Iguazu Falls - once on the Brazilian side and once on the Argentinian side. Now, there are much discussion of which side is the best one but I don't think that's a fair question to ask and here is why.
Brazil
When I went to the Brazilian side it also happened to be pouring down with rain but in the end it didn't really matter as you get more or less soaked on this side anyways.
The Brazilian side consist of a fairly short walk along the river banks through the jungle to reach the main attraction; the Devil's throat. It gives some really nice viewing points of the smaller falls (there are 289 individual falls that create the Iguazu Falls so a fair few to catch).
But of course the main attraction is Devil's throat - an incredible fall! On this side there is a bridge that allows you to walk out half way through the falls and you have a chance to see it partly from above but also down to the bottom of the river.
It's spectacular but as I mentioned a fairly short walk but with quite a few steps to climb. Unless you do extra add on activities such as boat trip or helicopter tour you can easily do the Brazilian side in half a day.
Argentina
Argentina on the other hand you can't really do in just one day. On this side there are 4 different trails taking you around the park and along the river (one trail is the same route as the train). On the map from the park there are estimated times for each trail however, for the upper trail it said 120 minutesbut we did it in 35 minutes (including photo stops).
Instead of the buses that takes you from the entrance of the park in Brazil and along all the stops along the river trek, and has a bit of a Jurassic Park feel to it, Argentina use to different train lines. Now, in my opinion I prefer the buses as they are a lot more frequent and feel more effective in transporting that, let's be honest, crazy amount of people that visit the park every day.
Because of this we actually started out our day by taking the upper and lower trails before lunch, in the hope that the queue would reduce after lunch - which it didn't really do, perhaps a few minutes only.
But the final trail or train took us to a little stop at the very end of the park, another short walk from the train station and we had once again reached Devil's throat but this time from the top. Once again an amazing fall and spectacular views.
As the weather was better today we got to see the classic rainbow over the falls but the force of the water still made it unclear where the bottom of tha falls were.
Like most things there are two sides to every story and so is also the case for Iguazu falls and which one is best is a personal opinion. There are pros and cons with both sides and it simply depends on what you are after. A short walk with several view points over the main fall and a few smaller ones or several walks which allows you to see a few more falls and nature but with one viewing platform of the main fall? My verdict is simply to go to both sides and decide for yourself which one is the one for you!
Brazil
When I went to the Brazilian side it also happened to be pouring down with rain but in the end it didn't really matter as you get more or less soaked on this side anyways.
The Brazilian side consist of a fairly short walk along the river banks through the jungle to reach the main attraction; the Devil's throat. It gives some really nice viewing points of the smaller falls (there are 289 individual falls that create the Iguazu Falls so a fair few to catch).
But of course the main attraction is Devil's throat - an incredible fall! On this side there is a bridge that allows you to walk out half way through the falls and you have a chance to see it partly from above but also down to the bottom of the river.
It's spectacular but as I mentioned a fairly short walk but with quite a few steps to climb. Unless you do extra add on activities such as boat trip or helicopter tour you can easily do the Brazilian side in half a day.
Argentina
Argentina on the other hand you can't really do in just one day. On this side there are 4 different trails taking you around the park and along the river (one trail is the same route as the train). On the map from the park there are estimated times for each trail however, for the upper trail it said 120 minutesbut we did it in 35 minutes (including photo stops).
Instead of the buses that takes you from the entrance of the park in Brazil and along all the stops along the river trek, and has a bit of a Jurassic Park feel to it, Argentina use to different train lines. Now, in my opinion I prefer the buses as they are a lot more frequent and feel more effective in transporting that, let's be honest, crazy amount of people that visit the park every day.
Because of this we actually started out our day by taking the upper and lower trails before lunch, in the hope that the queue would reduce after lunch - which it didn't really do, perhaps a few minutes only.
But the final trail or train took us to a little stop at the very end of the park, another short walk from the train station and we had once again reached Devil's throat but this time from the top. Once again an amazing fall and spectacular views.
As the weather was better today we got to see the classic rainbow over the falls but the force of the water still made it unclear where the bottom of tha falls were.
Like most things there are two sides to every story and so is also the case for Iguazu falls and which one is best is a personal opinion. There are pros and cons with both sides and it simply depends on what you are after. A short walk with several view points over the main fall and a few smaller ones or several walks which allows you to see a few more falls and nature but with one viewing platform of the main fall? My verdict is simply to go to both sides and decide for yourself which one is the one for you!
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