The Great Brazil Adventure continues today with Iguazu Falls. Today I'm featuring the Brazil side!
Hi friends!
I've been looking forward to sharing this part of the Brazil trip with you since the day we came back! Seeing Iguazu Falls was by far my favorite part of our entire Brazil trip.
Iguazu Falls (also called Iguazú Falls, Iguassu Falls, or Iguaçu Falls) are taller than Niagara Falls, twice the width and covers a giant horse show area over two miles. It's considered one of the biggest attractions to see in South America.
It is nothing short of breathtaking.
The falls sit on the border of Brazil and Argentina. Each country has a national park set up to explore and enjoy the falls from dozens of different views. I took so many pictures and loved this place so much, I decided to divide my posts up in two parts... The Brazilian side (today) and the Argentine side (coming soon!)
If you are just joining the Brazil Adventure, catch up first! ---> Back from Brazil, Rio de Janiero, Ilha Grande (remote tropical island,) & Paraty (old colonial town)
Just a reminder, I hurt my foot in Paraty and I can't walk. So during this part of the story I get to ride around in a wheel chair. I was kind of embarrassed, so you don't see any pictures of it, but I do refer to it a few times in the post 🙂
Iguazu Falls Blog, Brazilian Side
Day 1
The hubs and I catch a late afternoon flight from Sao Paolo to Iguazu. We arranged for an English speaking tour guide to pick us up at the airport and help us get around for a few days before we left. After our language struggles so far on the trip and now with the added trouble of me not being able to walk, we weren't taking any chances!
Our guide picks us and immediately takes us to Parque das Aves, or the bird park.
I'm taken aback by the gorgeous floral and fauna. I love tropical plants!
The birds are so pretty and many of them are kept in huge aviary's where you can walk in with them.
They are all so colorful!
This toucan is actually friendly. A staff member even allows me to pet him!
By far my favorite part of the bird park is the giant Macaw aviary. There are so many and they are all different colors!
I roll (yes, roll) over a small bridge and look up to see this!
A Scarlett Macaw flying right at my head! It ends up flying several feet over my head, and I'm never in danger, but WOW! What an experience.
I quickly discover the macaws love to fly over this one particular spot. I sit there forever trying to get a better picture, but I'm just not quick enough!
I seriously could sit here all day, but the hubs finally talks me into leaving.
Our guide drives us into the park and to our hotel. We splurged for the Hotel das Cataratas, which is actually IN THE PARK! It's incredible.
We quickly check in and head back out because we want to catch the sunset! To get to the falls we just walk/roll down the hill and reach an observation platform. Our first glimpse of just a small part of Igauzu is at sunset. Even this small section is gorgeous.
We could not be happier or more excited to explore the falls over the next few days.
We go back to our hotel and eat one of the best meals of our life in the restaurant with the sounds of the falls crashing in the background!
Day 2
The next day we wake up super early and go to breakfast. I enjoy more fresh fruit and some pao de queijo, a Brazilian cheese bread.
One of the perks of staying at Hotel das Cataratas is getting access to the Brazilian side of the park before it opens to the public. We are excited to have the chance to take in the views without the crowds. Before we even leave the hotel property I spot a toucan in the tree!
Our guide meets us at the hotel and is super helpful showing us around. The falls are so huge, it's impossible to view them all from one location. So you take in smaller sections at various viewpoints.
The first stop has birds flying in formation, pale rainbows and huge cascading falls. This one is not wheel chair assessable, but the hubs is awesome and carries me down so I don't hurt my foot more.
The second viewpoint is different, and just as amazing. You start at a high platform and take an elevator down to be eye level with the falls.
There are butterfly's and rainbows everywhere!
The high viewpoint is cool because you can see so much.
We even get a perspective of how calm the river is approaching the falls.
Our tour guide takes great pictures!
He even has some fun ideas for poses. Can you tell he's done this a few times!
After we take in the high view, we head down to ground level via elevator. The path goes all the way to the base of the falls. It is still completely empty and it is like we have the park entirely to ourselves.
We walk right to the base of the falls and the power of the water is tremendous.
It's a stark contrast from the calm gorgeous rainbows floating above.
We can even see the powerful cloud produced by Devil's throat, which is on the Argentina side. It is where the entire falls start (picture to come in my Argentina post!)
We are lucky enough to see a full rainbow. The mist coming off the falls creates the ideal conditions for the colorful arches.
We follow the bridge to the middle of the river to catch the end of the rainbow.
No pot of gold, but views like this are priceless.
I take a thousand pictures, but also try to put the camera away and just enjoy the beauty.
I can't get enough!
The waterfall mist is so strong in the middle of the river, we use a raincoat as a barrier to protect my foot. With new sutures it can't get wet.
And even with my injury and the silly chair, this is a moment I will never forget!
I still have the entire Argentina side of the park to share with you! It is a rougher, up close look at the falls that simply can't be missed. Coming soon!
Reflections
I am so in love with the Igauzu Falls. Even with being hurt, I loved this part of our trip. Hiring an English speaking guide and staying at the Hotel das Cataratas, in the park, made the trip so much more enjoyable. The hotel was gorgeous and had impecable service, but just being able to access the park before the crowds made it worth it. The places you see in the pictures get so crowded later in the day that it is hard to impossible to take pictures. I felt like I had the park to myself.
From the waterfalls, to the rainbows, to the butterfly's - this place is enchanting and magical. I tried all my photography tricks to try to take you there, but pictures don't do it justice. I would go back in a heartbeat. I would love to explore without the retrictions of not being able to get wet and having to stay in a wheelchair. If I could have gotten wet, we would have taken a boat right to the base of the falls!
If you ever have the chance to go, GO!
Tomorrow I’m sharing how I dress up my favorite veggie burger for grilling. I hope to see you then
And of course, have a Marvelous Monday! Thanks for the linkup Katie.
Your turn!
Where would you go back in a heartbeat?
Margie says
Hi Julie, enjoyed your pics. I am planning a trip to Iguazu and wonder if you could email me the contact details of your guide. Many thanks!
Sarah Laurello says
Julie! I love this and had the exact same question. We are going in November to both sides. We would love a guide, especially to help with boarder crossing and transportation.
Lisa says
Hey! I found this blog by googling "running in Iguassu Falls" as I am going there for 10 days for a conference in October. I am training for a half marathon so want to try and keep up my running while I'm away, so I'm looking for information. I see you were actually injured when you visited this area, so maybe you don't know, but if anyone has any tips I'd be grateful! Specifically, I was wondering if there are any running groups I might be able to join Foz do Iguassu (maybe something like parkrun, or free evening runs?), or popular places where locals go to run. I'm also wondering about safety...I have heard that crime can be a problem in Foz do Iguassu, and seeing as I will probably have to do my running in the early mornings will I be safe??
JulieWunder says
Hey Lisa!
Yes, I was injured while I was there. I cut my foot on coral pretty badly in Paraty. I don't recommend doing that 🙂 Brazilian hospitals aren't fun!
I don't know about running in parks or groups. I didn't see anyone running during that part of the trip. I did read about safety issues in my tour books and I would not have felt comfortable running around by myself.
I did see a lot of runners in Rio and Sao Paulo, but I'm not sure that helps you!
We hired a guide (with the exchange rate it wasn't that bad) and it was very helpful!
Best of luck! Seeing the falls was one of the top experiences of my life! You'll love it.
Julie
Andrea says
Wow! The falls at sunset and with the rainbows are amazing! I can't wait to see it someday. You'll have to let us know if you preferred Brazil or Argentina side of things.
JulieWunder says
Thank you Andrea!!! You would LOVE it. I hope you get to go.
So... Both of us liked the Brazil side better... Just because we were out there all by ourselves, we had these perfect rainbows, butterflies and the views are more sweeping. Nothing against Argentina though, because it was amazing. It felt much more wild to us, especially at Devils throat. The power there was crazy... like nothing I've ever seen. So it was Brazil by a small amount.
Gingi says
Your photos are just stunning!!!! - http://www.domesticgeekgirl.com
JulieWunder says
Thank you :-))))
Beth @ Running with the Sunrise says
I am booking my trip there right now. Such a beautiful place! And I'm sure those waterfalls were even more amazing in person. I also have a huge love for toucans and I am so jealous you got to pet one. I was in Panama for a month both in 2009 and 2010 and one of the big highlights of my time there was getting to see a toucan in the "wild," that is, perched in one of the trees in the neighborhood. Glad you guys had a great trip!
JulieWunder says
Thanks Beth! It is an amazing place! I'm so grateful I got to go!
Blane Sherer says
Beautiful pictures Julie ! I'm so sorry that you got hurt, but I am glad that you were still able to enjoy your trip. I especially like the rainbow effect shots above the waterfall.
JulieWunder says
Thank you! I'm lucky I got to still enjoy it!
Farrah says
Those photos are breathtakingly gorgeous. I want/need to go to South America at some point in my life!!! Yay for those rainbows! <3
+ totally random, but I rescued a butterfly that looked like that one on the railing earlier today! :O
JulieWunder says
🙂 You rescued a butterfly? This is why we are blog buddies 🙂
You would love Brazil. It's rough around the edges, but a really cool place.
Anne says
Omg your pictures are sooo so beautiful!!! I love how you captured all those magnificent rainbows! 😀
JulieWunder says
Thanks Anne! I feel so lucky that I got to see it in person!
tiff @ love, sweat, & beers says
Beautiful! You got some really great shots.
JulieWunder says
Thanks Tiff! Great to see you today!
Jaime says
The falls are AMAZING!! I can't imagine seeing them up close! I've been to Niagara so many times, and those are crazy enough for me.
JulieWunder says
It was a real joy to see!
Jess @hellotofit says
Look at all of that tropical goodness! Thanks for sharing all of these beautiful pics 🙂 can't imagine seeing a waterfall bigger than Niagra 🙂
JulieWunder says
It was really really cool! The Argentina side is pretty spectacular too in an entirely different way.
Annmarie says
Looks like such a picture perfect utopia!!! Gorgeous photos!
JulieWunder says
That's a great way to put it! Such a cool place!
Susanna @Zealous Mom says
Wow! These pictures are absolutely stunning. They look like magazine photos. The falls really do look enchanting and magical. Simply breathtaking.
JulieWunder says
Thank you! It's such a gorgeous place!
JulieWunder says
Thanks Susanna! It was such a joy to see them.