Iguazu Falls experiences

[kwb101]

Has anyone taken HAL's "Iguazu Falls Overland Adventure" excursion? It's available in Buenos Aires and is four days and three nights. My good wife went on the Galapagos excursion of the same length last year, and would like to know about the mechanics of the trip (trip host, documents needed, schedule, anything you have). She said the Galapagos trip host was very helpful, and doesn't want to not have one around ("Your tour may not include a ship escort").

It looks spectacular, although she is a little uncertain about "...mist from the falls will settle on your clothing and you will definitely get wet." She's tried to take the Mist Trail in Yosemite Valley; the "mist" was akin to being sprayed with a fire hose, and was so heavy she couldn't see (she has to wear glasses).

Thanks in advance!

[Essiesmom]

My recollection of the mist is that it was not that heavy.  It was amazing.  But I was there on a land tour, not from a cruise.  I was wearing glasses, too.  We stayed at Hotel das Cataratas, right at the falls, and while we were there witnessed a total solar eclipse.  EM

[lcand1923]

I took a HAL Excursion to Iguazu Falls several years ago.  I remember it as being three days and two nights, so the one your wife is mentioning is a bit longer. 

 

It was very well managed.  A ship escort was with us for our flights from Buenos Aires to our hotel in Iguazu.  After making certain we were all checked-in correctly, the ship escort met our Iguazu guide and handed us over to her.  Our ship escort then pretty much disappeared until we had the reverse transfer

from Iguazu to Beunos Aires.

 

The amount of mist pretty much depends upon where you are and what you are doing at Iguazu.  If you are walking the trials at the top of the Falls, it is a refreshing mist.  Most of the time, you don't even notice it.  (I wear glasses, too.)

 

The only time i was blinded by the mist was when I took an "add-on" trip to the Brazilian side of the Falls.  They have a path where you walk very close to the Falls.  I was soaked and blinded.  BUT, I would do it again in a heartbeat!

[Storylady]

When you are at the Devil’s Throat, there is lots of mist. So much so that I only used my iPhone. My husbands glasses got droplets, but he didn’t bother to wipe them as he was too busy taking photos. Plus, we were totally wet. Also, the boat ride to the Devil’s Throat, you will get totally wet. But other than that, you should be fine. Be sure to take an umbrella in case it rains. That will prevent her glasses from getting wet also. We did only the day trip and we had a host, plus three guides. The guides were fantastic. We enjoyed the trip so much that we will do the an overland in the future. Definitely a bucket item.

[KirkNC]

This is a trip that’s very easy to do on your own at significant savings but understand some like an escort.

 

The two places where you can get wet is Devil’s Throat (here you choose how close and how wet), second is the boat that goes to the foot of part of the falls (here you will probably get quite wet).

 

Also be aware there is a fair amount of walking to the various vantage points.

Edited February 18, 2021 by KirkNC

[john2003]

Definitely well worth the effort to visit. We did it in 2002 on our own.  Whether this is a good idea is a very personal decision. We stayed at the Sheraton overlooking the falls. I think this is now something else but it was wonderful.

Definitely try to get there.

[KirkNC]

1 minute ago, john2003 said:

Definitely well worth the effort to visit. We did it in 2002 on our own.  Whether this is a good idea is a very personal decision. We stayed at the Sheraton overlooking the falls. I think this is now something else but it was wonderful.

Definitely try to get there.

We stayed there as well.  It has changed ownership and now is no longer a Sheraton.  

[iancal]

We did this on our own.   We booked our flights by calling the Aerolineas call center in BA.

 

  The Aerolineas NA call center recommended this to us and gave us the phone number.  Better selection of flights than on any NA web sites and the fares were 30-35 percent less expensive.   It was very easy to arrange our own hotel, etc.   Two days was enough for us.  It was one of the highlights of our pre/post land tours.

 

The hotel at the falls is now managed by the Melia group.

 

 

Edited February 18, 2021 by iancal

[prescottbob]

We did our own thing several years ago out of BA prior to a Veendam Antarctic cruise.

Prior to embarkation of the actual cruise we flew down to BA days prior to embarkation, stayed at a B&B for 4 nights, flew up to Igauzu  via Aerolinas (different local airport versus the international much further away from the city) and stayed at the Secret Garden B&B for 3 nights (I don’t know if they’re still in business) and then returned to BA for another 2 nights in BA at the original B&B.

I made the arrangements on the net at the time with considerable savings (and still do these days) and we had a blast.

Whether you do it yourself or use HAL or other tour operator the Falls are jaw- dropping and will be well worth the adventure regardless of time frame.

At the Falls, we did the waterfall boat, ATV, hikes and train if I recall. And yes, you’ll get wet.

Having a sunset drink at the “old” Sheraton is great. And if spending a night or three in the area check out the local eateries versus the hotel / tourist traps for good eats.

 

Have fun and be well!

Bob

[TiogaCruiser]

Did this via a tour organizer a few years back. Stayed at the Melia for 3 nights. At the time the hotel had just changed ownership and was being remodeled. I was the last occupant of my room before renovation. I saved over $1k over the HAL package and got 3 nights and a tour of the Brazilian side, plus an extra night in BsAs (single occupancy). It was so worth it, and I’m still trying to get DH to agree to letting me take him someday.

 

Whether you get wet depends on several factors- including the amount of water flowing and local weather/breeze conditions. I got totally soaked at the top of Devils Throat (Argentine side) and below it (Brazilian side). If you can work it to see both sides, I would recommend it.
Also, if you book on your own. I’d highly recommend taking an early flight out. It’s common for flights to be delayed. I left BsAs at 9:00 and was checked in the hotel and on the trail by noon. The flight at 10 and those afterwards were delayed  due to thunderstorms and a lightning strike at the tower at Iguazu. The 10a pax got in to the hotel around 9:00p in a deluge. The guy I booked through would not accept the reservation without a night in BsAs before boarding the ship as a buffer for a delayed flight. 

There were some plastic ponchos available to borrow at the foot of the Brazilian side for those who wanted them. And in the sunshine you dry off really quickly.😁

Edited February 19, 2021 by TiogaCruiser

[Mike B Landlubber]

I was on a land tour about five years ago. Depending on options, you get pretty wet. I’ll post a few pics. Notice how soaked I am in the shot after we went near the base of the falls, the amount of water droplets on my camera lens in another, and how wet people are in a later boat trip to the base of a cascade which your excursion may not include. On the other hand the views are spectacular! You have to walk over a fair amount of boardwalks with stairs, though it isn’t an athletic day. I’m sure a lot of this depends on exactly what options your tour operators choose. EDIT: I thought I knew how to include photos, but I am getting black squares which I’ve deleted. Suffice it to say I got thoroughly soaked at the base of the falls, bit on foot and on a boat trip.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited February 19, 2021 by Mike B Landlubber

[Mike B Landlubber]

Tried again unsuccessfully to load pics here. I was able to add them under “favorite cruise memories” in the gallery. Five pictures by me. To be clear, this wasn’t an HAL Tour, so your tour may be different. There is a wet season and dry season that will greatly affect the water flow.

 

 

Edited February 19, 2021 by Mike B Landlubber

[KirkNC]

If you are getting black squares when you upload, your pics are too big.  I couldn’t figure out how to make them smaller so I emailed them to myself.  During that process you can pick picture size.  I am sure there is a better way.

[aliaschief]

Like others we saved a considerable amount of money by planning our post cruise visit to the falls on our own.

 

As far as getting wet from the falls no worries as we were already soaked from sweating. It was sweltering in January!

[kwb101]

Thank you all for the good, positive comments and information!

Some of notes:

- I think the trip may be four days because there are two sea days between BA and Santos, the next port.

- HAL also offers a 12-hour version on one of the two days we'll be in BA, for low, low price of $1100.

- The three night one is $3600, and we'd rather save the money. However, my wife found the ship escort extremely helpful when going through Customs on the Galapagos trip, and wants that security on this one, too. - Although the excursion catalogue shows there may be an escort, we expect there will be one, since this is a Grand Voyage, which last time meant all sorts of little extras.

- We saw yesterday that there were only two spaces left, so grabbed it, a bit earlier than we thought we'd have to sign up. Still, strike while the iron is hot, etc.

Thanks again!

[Lexusmom]

I will be on a Princess Cruise that stops in Argentina for 2 days in the beginning of Jan 2025. I am looking at a doing a trip Iguazu Falls on my own from the cruise port and speak fluently Spanish. Can those fellow cruisers who have arranged this trip on their own share hotels, guides and airlines as well as steps they took to plan transport between cruise port to airport and return to cruise port.

[The-Inside-Cabin]

43 minutes ago, Lexusmom said:

I will be on a Princess Cruise that stops in Argentina for 2 days in the beginning of Jan 2025. I am looking at a doing a trip Iguazu Falls on my own from the cruise port and speak fluently Spanish. Can those fellow cruisers who have arranged this trip on their own share hotels, guides and airlines as well as steps they took to plan transport between cruise port to airport and return to cruise port.

Here are my reports from the overland we arranged independently

 

 

https://www.theinsidecabin.com/day-18-iguazu-falls/

 

https://www.theinsidecabin.com/day-19-iguazu-falls-argentina/

 

https://www.theinsidecabin.com/day-20-walking-to-buenos-aires/

[DesertRat46]

We did a 3 day trip on our own after a Celebrity cruise before the pandemic. It's a trip not to be missed if you are already in country. We made our own air and hotel reservation and hired a guide for a lot less than Celebrity wanted.

The only time it was really misty wet was in the Devil's Throat area. Hard to keep camera lens dry.

[Bizziecruzer]

Can highly recommend Edir. He was amazing. Cannot recommend him highly enough.

https://www.private-guides.com/guide-in-brazil/edir-luiz-1599/index.php