Where the Iguazú and Paraná rivers converge sits the Triple Frontier, the tri-border multicultural hub of South America. Counting with diverse fusion cuisine, engineering marvels, the world’s most beautiful waterfalls (sorry, Canada), historical ruins, natural sanctuaries, shopping wonderlands, and even an animatronic dinosaur park, the Triple Frontier is the destination for those who want to experience three countries and countless attractions in one trip.
The triple frontier is considered Latin America’s main border and is considered an international region by nature. It’s a region where thousands of people travel to and fro Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil every day, where Spanish, Portuguese, or a mix of the two can be heard in any one of the cities that make up the border as often as each other, where your dinner can be empanadas, ceviche or feijoada anywhere you choose to stay in.
The main touristic attractions
When visiting the Triple Frontier, there are a few tourist main spots that you simply cannot leave without seeing.
Itaipu Dam
Between Brazil and Paraguay, sits the Itaipú Binational hydroelectric dam: It’s the second-largest hydroelectric plant in the world, and the biggest energy producer - and of renewable, clean energy - in the world, not to mention an unparalleled engineering feat worthy of a spot in the 7 Engineering Wonders of The World.
It was built in the period from 1975 to 1982, in the midst of dictatorship periods in both countries, as a way to end the dispute around the Salto das Sete Quedas (Guairá Falls) - through its inundation and effective destruction. For history lovers - messy and complicated is what you can call the history of its construction and its aftermath.
Today, Itaipu is able to be visited and has a number of different attractions: an eco-museum, a ride on the outside of the plant with looking spots, a guided tour of the inside of the plants, the Maracaju biological refuge, boat rides in the Itaipu lake and an astronomy hub.
Shopping at Ciudad Del Este
A 10-minute drive to the south of Itaipu and across the Friendship Bridge is the other border between Brazil and Paraguay. Just beyond customs are the massive skyscraper malls and billboards of Ciudad Del Este’s shopping wonderland: It’s a duty-free area for tourists, and you can find anything you can imagine, from tech to cosmetics to specialty merch to imported makeup and clothes.
In the zigzagging, different leveled streets there are imported and luxury items in the many malls, subterranean department stores with cosmetics, tech, and liquor on different floors, and street stalls selling toys, kitchen appliances, and clothes. If you enjoy shopping in Hong Kong you’ll feel right at home in Ciudad Del Este - and make sure to bring comfortable shoes, sunscreen, and water bottles.
There are hotel chartered vans and buses available in Foz do Iguaçu that will take you directly to Paraguay.
The Frame of Three Borders
Marco das Três Fronteras makes up the exact spot the Iguazú and Paraná rivers meet, as well as the triple border itself: Able to be accessed from either country, at the monument you can view Paraguay, Brazil, and Argentina simultaneously. The frames are three obelisks in each country's colors, marking the piers looking out into the border.
There are small museums, food stalls in Paraguayan, Brazilian and Argentinian cuisine, and special theatrical and dance performances nearly every night.
The Iguazú Falls
The most amazing gem of the Triple Frontier is all the way across Foz do Iguaçu. On the border between Brazil and Argentina, the Iguazú/Iguaçu Falls rise majestically. It's not one of the New Natural Wonders of The World for nothing: at 2,7 km of expansion, it's the largest waterfall system in the world, sitting at the most biodiverse biome in the planet, in an Atlantic Forest reserve that spans Brazil and Argentina, and can be visited from both sides.
The Falls can be accessed either from Foz do Iguaçu or Puerto Iguazú: on the Brazilian side, they are seen from below and front, and on the Argentinian side, we see the falls from above.
In the Foz do Iguaçu National Park a lookout bus takes visitors through the park and the woods, while in the Puerto Iguazú National Park, a train ride takes the visitors across the park and through the Garganta del Diablo. Visits to the falls themselves can be made on foot or by boat.
If all those landmarks were not enough, there is still so much to see and do it would take a dozen articles to get into them all:
In Argentina, the San Ignácio Miní Missione ruins stand the test of time; at night, in Puerto Iguazú the feiriña street market has delicacies like chimichurri spices, cheese, olives, olive oil, and alfajores. Visitors can have empanadas and carne asada or choripan, if they’re lucky, with free tango performances to look at while they wait.
Foz do Iguaçu has the Dreamland Parks complex, with a wax museum, animatronic dinosaur park, and an ice bar, as well as the Parque das Aves, a bird sanctuary park near the Iguaçu Falls.
Puerto Iguazú also has a Duty Free and a Cassino to those looking for more nightly amusement.
Whatever the type of activity you’re looking for in a trip, you’re sure to find it at the Triple Frontier.