In the minds of travel agents designing travel packages the Iguassu Falls are usually considered a brief 2-3 day stop on a multi-destination marathon trip to South America. Its true one can get to know the essentials of this place on a brief stay of a couple of days as to mark it in your personal visited places checklist but a 2-3 day stay is far behind of what is needed to get all the juice out of this extraordinary travel destination full of charms and interesting things to do.

What one is trying to explain here is comparable to what may happen when planning a European tour. One can plan a trip visiting 10 European cities in 20 days or decide to focus the voyage to only two or three cities and gain the experience of knowing them in a more enlightening manner.

So there is another way to plan a trip to Iguassu Falls and this is to think of it as a single destination trip that taps into all its possibilities. Which are these possibilities? Lets see first the Iguassu Falls essentials that no visitor should miss.

The Iguassu Falls are located on the Iguassu River which marks the frontier between Argentina and Brazil. So there are two sides of the Iguassu Falls to visit in two different countries.

The walking tour on the Brazilian side can be done in one morning. During the afternoon there are several additional activities to enjoy there like river rafting the rapids or flying over this magnificent landscape in helicopter. At least one whole day needs to be destined on the Brazilian side and if one wants to enjoy other interesting activities like going to a jungle safari or visiting the beautiful Bird Park I would recommend two days.

If the Brazilian side requires 1-2 days what comes needs more. Most of the 270 waterfalls that make the giant Iguassu Falls system are located on the Argentinean side, consequently there is considerably more to walk and see there. Walking the upper, lower and Devils Gorge circuits that put visitors literally inside the giant falls needs one full day if wanting to enjoy these attractions in a relaxed manner.

The second day in Argentina needs to be destined to yet other pure hiking activities: walking the Macuco trail inside the jungle towards the hidden Arrechea waterfall can be easily done during the morning. The afternoon should be reserved for a very special attraction, exploring the San Martin Island that requires crossing the lower Iguassu River on a ferry boat.

There are three additional activities on the Argentinean side that no visitor should miss. River rafting the rapids on the lower Iguassu River for your baptism under the San Martin waterfall (the second largest), the boat ride on the tranquil waters of the upper Iguassu River that shows a completely different view of the Iguassu Falls ecosystem and the photographic safari into the Iguassu National Parks jungle. These activities will take one third whole day in the Argentinean side.

So compressing the Iguassu Falls essentials requires an absolute minimum of 4-5 days, not the 2-3 days most travel agents suggest.

Additionally I have learned on my own experience that one enjoys the most the mentioned essential activities if intercalates them with one break-day in between destined to other more relaxing physically less stressing ones like sun bathing on the beautiful swimming pool of your hotel, going shopping, playing golf or visiting interesting attractions in the three nearby cities of Ciudad del Este, Foz do Iguassu and Puerto Iguazu which will give the visitor a touch of the three different national cultures (Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay) that converge in the Iguassu Falls area.

A good tour plan example could be the following:

Day 1: Brazilian side of the falls during the morning plus helicopter flight and visit to the Bird Park in the afternoon.

Day 2: Visiting Foz do Iguassu (Brazil) attractions. Visiting the Mosque, the Itaipu Museum and Itaipu hydroelectric dam.

Day 3: Argentinean side of the falls. Walking the upper, lower and Devils Gorge circuits.

Day 4: Boat ride to Moises Bertonis home and musueum in the Paraguayan jungle and visiting the wine and cheese fair of Puerto Iguazu (Argentina).

Day 5: Argentinean side of the falls. Walking the Macuco trail to the Arrechea waterfall and exploring the San Martin Island (you will be exhausted at the end of this day!).

Day 6: Going shopping to Ciudad del Este plus visting the Museum of the Guarani Land and Itaipu Zoo.

Day 7: Argentinean side of the falls. River rafting the Iguassu River rapids, plus experiencing the photographic jungle safari and boat ride on the upper Iguassu River.

Add one arriving and departing day to this plan and its a nine day trip. There are many other possible combinations depending on personal interests. If the visitor is interested in bird watching or is a Nature lover this trip could extend many more days. The same case would be if there is interest in visiting the Jesuit reductions in Argentina and Paraguay.

For more detailed information concerning making a great travel plan to Iguassu Falls please visit http://www.iguassu-misted-falls-vacation.com/iguassu-falls-travel-guide.html

Lucas Antua, a permanent resident in the Iguassu Falls area since 1998, has become an expert and reliable consultant to travelers wanting to get the most out of this great destination. Want to know more about the Iguassu Falls? The place to go is http://www.iguassu-misted-falls-vacation.com/index.html