Foz De Iguacu Advice for first time visitor
Replies: 20 - Last Post: Oct 15, 2012 12:48 PM Last Post By: beerfree
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Foz De Iguacu Advice for first time visitor
Hello,I am planning a day trip to Foz de Iguacu in March.
What should/can I do in FDI in one day as a first time visitor?
Can I visit both sides in one day? How to travel inside Foz De Iguacu (is it large?).
What should I not miss? (P.S. I am a serious photohrapher).
Where to stay for overnight?
I know everybody will say one day is not enough, may be I can extend it to 2 days but no more.
Thanks
1
If all you have is one day, then that gets spent only at the Falls and most likely only one side. If you can extend to two days, you should visit the Argentine side as well.We spent a full day exploring the Argentine side and about half a day on the Brazilian side. The only other interesting item for us was the Itaipu Dam straddling the Brazil-Paraguay border which can also provide some good photo opportunities of the dam and surrounding reservoirs.
2
Make it two days if you can. Otherwise, its rather difficult to see both.As for photographing, take some ND filters and be aware that you'll be getting a lot of water on the lens (so take a cleaning cloth). And also a tripod.
If one day is all you have, then tha Argentine Falls are better for 'vantage points' and being close. Though the Brazil side does have some great close ups at the end. It may be possible to see the falls after the park closes (if you stay at the hotel in the park).
3
If you are going to try and do it in a day, the only conceivable way to see both sides is to book a tour. They'll then help you get through the Argentinean border, etc. It's a bit of a faff on your own, finding the right buses etc - perfectly doable in a day, but in half a day it would be so stressful it wouldn't really be worth it. There's also quite a lot of walking around on the Arg. side as well. A full day there and half day at the brazil side is the norm, but of course it's up to you! It is worth it though, it's amazing.There's not much else to do in the area, other than the Itaipu dam and a bird park. There are various activities you can do at the falls itself (e.g. white wter rafting, boat trips, climbing). They aren't too expensive but def not doable if you only have a day! The tour trips MIGHT include a boat trip though - those usually cost about 130 r$ on their own, and they take you into the falls and you get soaked, looks pretty fun but quite expensive too.
Foz de Iguacu is not large at all, to answer your question, and you have to get a bus into the falls, it's right past the airport (you can actually go straight from/to the airport which is only five mins - but from the town itself it's more like half an hour).
Enjoy!
4
Oh p.s. - when going in the Argentinean side, you need to take enough money with you in Argentinean pesos as they don't accept USD or r$. You need 25 pesos each way for the bus, and then I think it was 130 to get into the park. There's a cash point INSiDE The park but nothing nearby on the way, so you need to get it in advance (another reason it might be easier to book the whole thing out with a tour, if you're in a rush!).6
#4 Nonsense, bus going to the town takes BRL, USD and ARS. I'm not 100% possitive but I think I've seen BRL accepted for the entry too, if not USD is sought after in whole country and there is not a problem to exchange it anywhere, even in the hotel or a restaurant.Also have you heard about debit/credit cards? They are accepted at the entry! It's the worst idea to change your money to ARS outside Argentina!
You are giving very outdated and false advice!
7
I suggest you spend 1 night at the Sheraton Hotel in the national park on the Argentinian side. It is expensive but is only a 15 minute walk to the falls.So, if you can arrive early in the morning of day 1 walk the upper trail to the Devils Throat, then the lower trail then take the free ferry to the Isla San Martin. Take both a zoom (for the wildlife such as toucans and vultures) and wide-angle lens (for the falls panoramas). As #2 warned you will get wet, particularly on the island, so take a couple of dry clear plastic bags to protect your camera.
On Day 2 leave your hotel early and visit the Brazilian side of the falls: 2-4 hours is all you need there.
8
Although if you are serious photog, then your camera will be pretty water sealed anyway. I was more talking about the lens getting droplets (depends on flow and closeness to the falls).I'd also take a 35mm or a nifty fifty (you can get some good shots with it from a few areas (or use it for hi-res panos).
Also #4 pretty sure both sides took reais, USD and pesos. They'd probably take Paraguay currency too. Its a triborder area, theyre is plenty of different currency floating about.
11
Banjani - this isn't outdated advice i was there two weeks ago. i can promise you they do not accept cards for the park entrance at the Argentinean side because i tried :-). As for the buses we were strongly advised to get pesos, so i didn't try using other currencies true, but there are no cash points or anything in a convenient place once you are in Argentina so if the original poster doesn't have long, definitely safer to get some pesos.
