That’s what Eleanor Roosevelt said when she saw Iguazu Falls for the first time. I’ve never been to Niagara Falls, but if a native New Yorker was willing to throw her state’s landmark under the bus, I’m inclined to trust her. And why not? Iguazu is the widest waterfall in the world, and the second-highest after Victoria Falls in southern Africa. It is, in a word, extraordinary.
Iguaçu National Park, Brazil
Composed of roughly 275 waterfalls, this immense aqua curtain divides Argentina and Brazil. At the heart of the falls is Garganta del Diablo (Devil’s Throat) a 300-foot wide, crescent-shaped cataract that plunges 260 feet to the bottom of a canyon. The powerful thrash of the larger falls is beautifully juxtaposed against the smaller cascades—iridescent threads woven into a luxurious rain forest tapestry.
Devil’s Throat, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Argentina and Brazil both offer access to the falls, and everyone who visits has the same question: “Which side is better?” The diplomatic answer is that the experiences are completely different. 80% of the falls are in Argentina, so almost all of the viewpoints are directly next to or above individual cascades. To fully appreciate how expansive the falls are, you have to head to the Brazilian side.
Iguaçu National Park, Brazil
Both sides are well worth the trip, and since buses run from the Argentine side to the Brazilian side (and vice versa) all day long, there’s really no reason to skip one. (Alternatively, you could spend a couple of nights on each side like Sean and I did. That’s an especially good option if you’re planning on visiting other destinations in Argentina and Brazil on the same trip. It’s much cheaper to cross the border by bus than on an international flight.) But if you’re wondering which side we preferred; which side totally transfixed us; which side we found ourselves unable to leave. Well, that was Argentina.
Devil’s Throat, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Iguazu National Park in Argentina is divided into three hikable circuits: upper, lower, and Devil’s Throat. Each one is “paved” with rustic boardwalks that wind through thickets of vines and trees, over trickling streams, and past raging torrents.
Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Spider, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
The cataratas (“waterfalls” in both Spanish and Portuguese) are the main attraction, but we also saw spiders as big as our hands, toucans perched in palm trees, and crocodiles wallowing in the weeds. Hoards of monkeys hovered in the trees around picnic areas, squadrons of raccoon-like coatis marched along sidewalks hunting for crumbs, and butterflies hitched rides on our hats.
Monkeys, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
Coati, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
We had to ride a mini train to reach the beginning of the Devil’s Throat circuit, but otherwise the park felt very natural and undeveloped. We arrived at 10am, and before we knew it we were running along deserted pathways to catch the bus back to town at 6pm.
Iguazu National Park, Argentina
The views from Iguaçu National Park in Brazil were pretty spectacular, but the experience wasn’t as overwhelmingly magical. While we were able to wander pretty much wherever we wanted in Argentina, we had to take a bus from place to place in Brazil, and the only attraction included in the ticket price was a two-mile circuit and an elevator ride to a raised viewpoint. We preferred the freedom of Iguazu National Park, but we got our most “extraordinary” photo in Iguaçu National Park. You just gotta do both *shrug emoji*.
Iguaçu National Park, Brazil
(A word to the wise here: We went on a boat ride underneath the waterfalls on the Argentine side, but it took so much time that we found ourselves scrambling to complete all three circuits. In hindsight, we should’ve taken our boat ride on the Brazilian side where there wasn’t as much to do.)
Boat ride, Iguazu National Park, Argentina
I may not have enough experience to proclaim Iguazu Falls the world’s best waterfall, but I’ll tell you this: I’ve seen my share of South American landmarks—Machu Picchu, the Galápagos Islands, the Atacama Desert—and Iguazu blows ‘em all out of the water. If it wasn’t on your list before, it should absolutely surge to the top now.
What’s the first thing you think of when I say Colombia? Cocaine? Pablo Escobar? Narcos? FARC? Terrorism? That’s fair. But what if I told you everything you thought you knew about the country is wrong?