BootsnAll Travel Community

Hello! A friend and I will be heading to Iguazu Falls in January, and staying about 3 days. I'm wondering which is the better side to stay on? We will be visiting both the Brazilian and Argentine side, but what are pros/cons for spending the night on each side? thank you!!

Fro m the Brazilian side you can see the whole panorama, but from a long distance. From the Argentinian side you come really close to each part of the waterfalls. The Argentian side is far better. You can take a boat trip too.
Leave the biggest one, Gorgonta del Diablo for the last.

quote:

Originally posted by moniak:
Fro m the Brazilian side you can see the whole panorama, but from a long distance. From the Argentinian side you come really close to each part of the waterfalls. The Argentian side is far better. You can take a boat trip too.
Leave the biggest one, Gorgonta del Diablo for the last.

I can't add much to this. The town on the Argentine side (Puerto Iguazu) is also much more pleasant than the Brazilian city (Foz do Iguacu), which is somewhat dangerous.

I personally like Puerto Iguazu myself..of course i was not on the Brazilian side. The size of that city was not to my taste. Argentina was smaller and really chill.

The falls themselves are different on both sides...i liked both the experiences but liked the very close encounter in Argentina in a boat.

If you are going to stay in the hostel there its really nice..pool and all.

I would recommend rent a car and drive around...best decision we made there at the airport.

Also, remember you will need a Brazilian visa to stay in Brazil and I hear it costs around $100 for US citizens.

quote:

Also, remember you will need a Brazilian visa to stay in Brazil and I hear it costs around $100 for US citizens.

You can take a daytrip from Argentina into Brazil without getting a visa. If you are headed further afield in Brazil, there is a consulate in Puerto Iguazu that can turn around visas in an afternoon.

Thanks for all the responses guys! I think I'll go with the Argentina side.
In regards to visas..I will already have my Brazilian visa, as I'm going on to Rio...but is it worth crossing the border into Paraguay's Ciudad del Este? And do I need a visa to do that?

quote:

...but is it worth crossing the border into Paraguay's Ciudad del Este?

If you'd like to stay in Paraguay and visit other places, yes. But, if it is only Ciudad del Este, then I'd say leave it out. The place is just a huge market, selling lots of fake stuff.
I suppose that Am citizens need visa for Paraguay - you'd need to check that.

Ciudad del Este is a dump, and South America's biggest contraband market. If you're into things like that (or good Korean food), it's worth walking across the bridge from Foz do Iguacu. US citizens don't need a Paraguay visa for Ciudad del Este, but do for any travel beyond.

Here's a photo walking across the bridge from Brazil:

thanks for the info! ..and the picture Felix

Argentina's side has better hotels, is cleaner and better tourism infrastructure - I'd go for that option.

Iguasu Falls Hotels Run-down

Did I miss something in that article? Like the part where it says anything about hotels in Foz being rundown?

I stayed in a perfectly nice, inexpensive place (with a pool and ac)in Foz called Hotel del Rey and encountered absolutely no problems around town.
All I saw of Puerto was the bus station, so I can't comment on ambience.

Both sides of the falls are worth visitng for the different views--and there are boat rides under Garganta de Diabo from both sides.

i'm heading to Iguazu from Rio around 11th feb 08.

i can find flights from rio to the brazilian side but not to the Argentinian side.

am i right in thinking that these just aren't available?

how does one cross to the argentinian side from the Brazilian airport??

reading this thread i'm thinking get to Foz mid morning, spend a few hours there then cross to Puerto for a hotel and stay 2 or 3 nights thn onto BA?

what do you think?

edit - [reading the airport codes - is it just one airport?????]

There's an airport on the Brazilian side and one on the Argentine side. Flights from Brazil land in Brazil. The flights to BsAs from the Brazilian airport go back to either Sao Paulo or Curitiba, so it is easier and cheaper to get your onward flight by crossing to the Argentine airport.
There are buses that go between the town and the falls/park on either side (bus passes the airport and one hostel onthe Brazilian side; for Argentina, I don't know.
Another bus runs between the two towns (Foz de Iguacu and Puerto de I).

Notyor - good idea - crossing the border is quick and easy.

You may find it cheaper to stay on the Brazilian side of Iguazu since the Argentinian hotels there tend to charge higher rates for tourists. But it's well worth visiting both sides of the falls - spend one day on each side.

You're sure to be impressed with the huge size and beauty of the falls and the wildlife in the area like the thousands of butterflies: Mariposas de Iguazú

I stayed on the Argentina side for two weeks after getting injured at my hostel. Despite having difficulty getting around and the dreadful heat I really enjoyed the town. I'd definitely recommend it.

I went to the Brazilian side yesterday and it was amazing. Went rafting and repeling (abseiling down with an amazing view of the falls). We were allowed go swimming during rafting and then went walked up near the falls. With the new elevator there you can go right up next to one of them. And with the bridge we were right over the action too.
We had a really great day there.

I went almost a year ago and stayed on the Brazilian side. The city's okay but from what I've heard, the Argentinian side is a little smaller/less congested and prices are lower. The Argentinian side of the Falls is amazing - it's all footpaths and walks to let you get close. Unfortunately I was there when there'd been a record amount of rainfall (so that the falls were running at something like 18 cubic meters per second), so they'd closed off access to the Devil's Throat.

The Brazilian side is a park developed by UNESCO and definitely more slick than the Argentinian side. As others have said, you will definitely get the panorama view being on that side of the river - really impressive after being on the Argentinian side. Otherwise my impression is that side is way overdeveloped for tourism - I skipped the overpriced helicopter ride and 'wild bird park.'

Ciudad del Este is probably the grossest/sketchiest border town I've ever been to (including Tijuana) and probably only worth going for bragging rights. The day that I went, the border was completely open with no checks, which is why it has a repuatation for being the center of smuggling and supposedly a favorite spot of both Hezbollah and Al Quaida. You definitely can get anything, including rifles and guns, from the street vendors in the market.

Since the OP has 3 days, I'd vote for the Argentine side. One can see the Brazillian side as a "day trip" from the Argentine side & not feel rushed at all. And, it gives two days for just taking one's time to take in the "close up" trails/views the Argentine side offers, the lower circuit, the upper circuit, the jungle trail (can't recall the name) and S. Martin Island. IF you're there when there's a full moon, think about taking one of the Argentine park's "moonlight walks"---amazing. And, I'd lean toward the Argentine town (Puerto Iguazu) over the Brazillian one (Foz de Iguazu).

I blew an ungodly amount of hotel points to stay at the Sheraton inside the park on the Argentine side. Again, a boatload of hotel points...but so worth it. While there, I did hear a lot of good reports from people in the park about the hotels & hostels in town (Puerto Iguazu, Argentine side).

Getting to the Argentine side is an easy flight from the domestic airport (AEP, or Aeroparque) in Buenos Aires on either Lan Argentina or Aerolineas Argentinas (I've flown both, and would go with LAN again). There's also backpacker/tour outfitters that run weekend & 2/3 day excursions to Igauzu from Buenos Aires, usually a really nice overnight bus (with flat-bed seats, movies, dinner, wine, etc.) there each direction.

If you want a little peek at the beauty you're in for, rent "The Mission" w/ Robert DeNiro, Jeremy Irons, Liam Nisson, etc. It's kind of slow paced for this decade, but a great story that's a good look at the history of the place, and INCREDIBLE shots of the falls!