Brazil: Iguazu Falls
Iguazu Falls: The Impromptu Trip I'll Never Regret
This trip wasn't planned. I was in Peru and was supposed to go home, but on my last night there it dawned on me that I was significantly closer to Iguazu Falls than I'd ever be if I tried to book a separate trip from home. So I booked a flight that night and jumped on a plane the next morning—Cusco to Lima to São Paulo to Foz de Iguaçu.
The overnight layover in São Paulo was the low point. Outside the airport was dirty with overflowing trashcans, and I waited 45 minutes for the hotel shuttle. I wouldn't do that leg of it again.
Everything else was worth the detour. I used Google to find a local driver in Iguazu Falls, and it turned out to be one of the better decisions I made on the trip. He picked me up at the airport and stayed with me the entire time—dropping me off at the falls, waiting while I explored, taking me to the Parque das Aves bird sanctuary, and recommending a helicopter tour that ended up being one of the highlights. The bird sanctuary is just across from the entrance to Iguaçu National Park on the Brazilian side and is absolutely worth a visit. Exotic birds fly around freely—a completely different experience from watching them through fences and cages at a zoo. Seeing the falls from the air is a completely different experience too, and I'm glad he pushed for it.
Iguazu Falls is made up of over 275 waterfalls stretching across 2.7 miles of the Iguazu River, sitting right on the border between Brazil and Argentina. Both countries have their own side and they offer different experiences. The Brazilian side gives you a wider panoramic view. The Argentine side puts you right up close to some of the more powerful falls. I did both, which required a little coordination I didn't fully understand until it was happening.
My driver took me across the bridge between the two countries and dropped me off just before Argentine border control. He told me to walk through and look for his colleague on the other side. I trusted him, walked through, and sure enough there was a driver waiting for me. He didn't speak much English, but we communicated well enough to get me to the hotel and coordinate a pickup the next morning for the Argentine side of the falls. I explored, he was there when I was done, and we went straight to the airport.
If you can get yourself close to Iguazu Falls for any reason, Go! Book a local driver, do both sides, take the helicopter tour, and make time for the bird sanctuary. The falls live up to every photo you've ever seen of them—and then some!