Some travelers may have only one day to explore Iguaçu Falls. After spending a day in Argentina and another day in Brazil, we asked ourselves the question “which side would we go if we only had a day to spare?”
We arranged a one-day driver service for about $100 USD. The service includes picking us up from the Airbnb, helps us to cross the border to Brazil, drop us off at the Iguaçu National Park, and take us back to the Airbnb. It relieved us from the logistic distractions.
Across Iguaçu National Park, there is a bird park Parque das Aves. The bird park is among the best places for us to enjoy the exotic and colorful birds, not commonly seen in North America. Unlike its unassuming entrance, the park is well maintained showing great care to the birds. There are large aviaries and lots of spaces for the birds. There are restaurants and rest places for the travellers. The park is designed very well with beautiful flora, lots of educational signage along the trail and secure entrances/exits from one aviary to another. We ended up spending almost three hours in the park, appreciating the stylish Owls, the graceful Flamingoes, the beautiful Scarlet Ibis, the colorful Toucans, and many many more. We can spend more time there if not for the reserved admission time of Iguaçu National Park.
The logistics of Iguaçu National Park of Brazil are different from that of Argentina. In Argentina, helicopter service is prohibited due to environmental concerns such as noise level, impact to the animals. The Iguazu Falls National Park on the Argentina side is connected by trains and trails. In Brazil, there are helicopter services to see the falls and there are buses, with long queues, at the entrance to take you to a fixed number of stops in the park. We got off at the arguably most popular stop right across the Belmond Hotel das Cataratas inside the park. From there, there is an easy stroll full of photo opportunities of the Falls. This Brazilian side offers sweeping panoramic views of roughly 80% of the waterfalls located in Argentina and the staircase character of the falls. There are boardwalks to take you close to some individual falls to experience the waterfall mists and the winds. It was fun and wet.
So “where (which side) would we go if we only had a day to spare?” We think the Brazilian side has the edge with the amazing panoramic views to see its scale and the grandeur. For boat rides, Argentina has the edge. Our recommendation: It takes quite some logistics to visit Iguazu Falls. Why not spend more days in the biggest waterfall systems of the world?
Coming up : El Calafate Nov 17 to 21
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