any comments on the Continental Inn in Foz do Iguassu? proximity to falls? Quality of hotel? Thanks.

Foz de Iguacu is a town/city, and is a ways out from the falls (maybe 10 - 20 minutes, as I recall). People tend to think the name would refer to Iguacu Falls, but in reality refers to the head of the river, which marks the convergence of Paraguay, Argentina, & Brazil.

JP

Foz de Iguacu is at least 20 minutes away from the park gates. It's some 20 km away. There are some hotels between the town and the falls/park but the only hotel on the Brasilean side with a view of the falls is the one within the park.

On the other hand, the public bus will get you to the falls for Real 1.8 or so.

Das Catarenas (sp) on the Brazilian side is the only hotel within the park. You are forced to eat at the churrascaria in the hotel - The park gates do close early if you are planning to go into town http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/frown.gif

The Argentinian side has an Intercontinental Hotel - very nice http://www.flyertalk.com/travel/fttravel_forum/smile.gif

Stay at the Sheraton in the Argentine park at the falls, and ask for a falls view room. It is well worth it, and I would never stay at a hotel outside the park. I was told you cannot get a falls view room at the Cataratas hotel in the Brasilian park. The trip to the Iguazu area is fantastic. Make sure and go to both country's parks and take all the catwalks. The views are tremendous.

For cost reasons, I'm trying to stay in Iguassu Falls (Brazil) downtown. Considering the Rafain, Continental Inn, and others in similar price range. Any experience or comments on these, esp. Continental Inn?

I've read about the hotels near the falls and they sound nice but are slightly too expensive for us.

Thanks!

We ended up staying 2 nights at the Continental. For what they charge I think its a good choice. Room was decent, nice pool area, good service. We spent the entire day at the falls (both sides) and at night, IIRC, everything is pitch black, so I don't see much value in staying at a falls-side hotel for the view. We had a tour guide take us around and he picked us up and dropped us off at the hotel so proximity and convenient access to the falls wasn't an issue for us. If you are going at it on your own, then you may want to consider staying in the park, although my guess is that any hotel in the city will arrange for a cab or van to take you to the falls. They may even have shuttle buses. I cannot speak to the other hotels. Enjoy your trip.

thanks -- this is exactly the info we needed. When did you go, and do you remember how you arranged the tour guide or which tour company? We would likely do the same thing...

Thanks!!

We ended up staying 2 nights at the Continental. For what they charge I think its a good choice. Room was decent, nice pool area, good service. We spent the entire day at the falls (both sides) and at night, IIRC, everything is pitch black, so I don't see much value in staying at a falls-side hotel for the view. We had a tour guide take us around and he picked us up and dropped us off at the hotel so proximity and convenient access to the falls wasn't an issue for us. If you are going at it on your own, then you may want to consider staying in the park, although my guess is that any hotel in the city will arrange for a cab or van to take you to the falls. They may even have shuttle buses. I cannot speak to the other hotels. Enjoy your trip.

mindgame,
We went in April '03. My travel agent in Sao Paulo arranged it for us so I don't know the name of the tour agency in IGU. We were supposed to have an English speaking guide, but at tthe last minute a relative of his died so we had a Portuguese speaking one. I can get by in Portuguese, and my wife is Brazilian so it wasn't a major problem for us. But his service was excellent. Picked us up at the airport and dropped us off and everything in between.
Send me a private message with the dates you are going and your email and I will pass it along to my travel agent and he can hopefully arrange it for you. (plus if you need other hotels/flights in Brazil).

FWIW, we're staying at the "Turrance Green Hotel" in Foz next week - I will report on it when I return.

Hello Snorkmaster... The last time I saw you I believe it was on a plane heading to DFW from LGW! I'm heading to Buenos Aires in a couple months with my daughter, but do not plan to visit the Falls this time.

FYI, When my family and I last visited Iguasu it was with a group of persons that were heavily bodyguarded. I prefer not to elaborate because I don't want to disclose too much about myself/family. The few days we were at both sides of the Falls, there were a few major crimes against tourists reported both in Brazil and Paraguay. My advice would be to enjoy the beautiful sights, but also to be careful.

You may be interested in a report generated by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies that addresses some concerns about the area.

http://www.nti.org/e_research/e3_16b.html

Safe travels...

prspad, my long lost friend :),

thanks for the heads up re IGU -- i was aware of the activity in the region, but didn't really think about the potential risks. i suppose it's one of many relatively secure areas of the world where something could happen.

it's always a balance -- you want to explore, learn, and experience -- but you also have to be on guard.

regardless, we're not planning any travel to ciudad del este (in paraguay), so we'll be steering clear of the riskier territory (speaking in terms of petty crime more than anything else.)





Hello Snorkmaster... The last time I saw you I believe it was on a plane heading to DFW from LGW! I'm heading to Buenos Aires in a couple months with my daughter, but do not plan to visit the Falls this time.

FYI, When my family and I last visited Iguasu it was with a group of persons that were heavily bodyguarded. I prefer not to elaborate because I don't want to disclose too much about myself/family. The few days we were at both sides of the Falls, there were a few major crimes against tourists reported both in Brazil and Paraguay. My advice would be to enjoy the beautiful sights, but also to be careful.

You may be interested in a report generated by the Center for Nonproliferation Studies at the Monterey Institute of International Studies that addresses some concerns about the area.

http://www.nti.org/e_research/e3_16b.html

Safe travels...

...FYI, When my family and I last visited Iguasu it was with a group of persons that were heavily bodyguarded. I prefer not to elaborate because I don't want to disclose too much about myself/family. The few days we were at both sides of the Falls, there were a few major crimes against tourists reported both in Brazil and Paraguay. My advice would be to enjoy the beautiful sights, but also to be careful....


I know about the Arabs in this region. My theory is ... they don't make trouble where they live..

I was there this year, didn't see any crime. Stayed two nights in a (golf club) hotel in Brazil. Yes, the hotel had some security guards roaming around night and day ... Also some bodyguards (all in dark blue) for the Italian Ambassador who stayed at the hotel.
BTW, we did the Brazil and Argentina Falls and Itaipu in one day .. absolutely no problem. We started at 9:00AM and finished in the afternoon.

a follow-up on security -- perhaps it was a false sense of calm, but i really think that the foz do iguacu (in brasil) and puerto iguazu (in argentina) seemed fine (although we didn't mess with paraguay.) i felt comfortable, and most residents that i queried said that walking around in the center of foz do iguacu was fine during the day, and more or less OK at night (although you might as well take a cab to play it safe.) i certainly hope someone wouldn't let safety concerns keep them from going to one of the most beautiful places in the world.

as an aside, it certainly seemed far, far more secure than sao paulo -- where we witnessed two random guys approach a car with guns out (within 10 feet of us - dont know if it was a carjacking or what), some sort of bank robbery and follow up police activity (a few blocks away from where we were eating), and some sort of hot pursuit involving heavy machine gun fire outside the hotel -- all separately, and all within the course of one day.

must have been a bad day ;)

a follow-up on security -- perhaps it was a false sense of calm, but i really think that the foz do iguacu (in brasil) and puerto iguazu (in argentina) seemed fine (although we didn't mess with paraguay.) i felt comfortable, and most residents that i queried said that walking around in the center of foz do iguacu was fine during the day, and more or less OK at night (although you might as well take a cab to play it safe.) i certainly hope someone wouldn't let safety concerns keep them from going to one of the most beautiful places in the world.

Thanks, SNORKMASTER... Great insight!

In my opinion, the best hotel of the Iguacu Falls:

http://www.tropicalhotel.com.br/foz_iguacu/english.htm

a follow-up on security -- perhaps it was a false sense of calm, but i really think that the foz do iguacu (in brasil) and puerto iguazu (in argentina) seemed fine (although we didn't mess with paraguay.) i felt comfortable, and most residents that i queried said that walking around in the center of foz do iguacu was fine during the day, and more or less OK at night (although you might as well take a cab to play it safe.) i certainly hope someone wouldn't let safety concerns keep them from going to one of the most beautiful places in the world.

According to the owner of the hotel I stayed at, the only part of Foz where you don't want to walk at night is the slums between Avenida do Brazil and the river. I walked alone everywhere and felt absolutely safe. (For those who haven't been there yet - it is a very small town, you can cross it on foot in probably 30 minutes). I didn't stay in Puerto Iguazú but it looked even more quiet and safe.