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Newcomer Two-day side trip in August - Mendoza or Bariloche?

My friend returned from Argentina with his family this week and agreed with all of you that Iguazu is a must-see. He's been to Niagara and Victoria and thought Iguazu was a much better experience. So I guess that's where we're headed for the side trip! Thanks everyone for your thoughts and advice.
Excellent. I am happy that you will get to experience it. I always am surprised when people come all the way to Argentina and don't take the time to see Iguazu. Truly one of a kind experience. Agree with others to see both sides of the Falls.
 
@CraigM you will be thrilled with your decision not to skip it. I'd highly recommend the Gran Melia hotel. Make sure to get a Falls view room. Even if you don't spend a lot of time in the room it was great to wake up with that view. You are right inside of the Park and can hit the ground running without wasting time. The hotel can also set up a private driver to take you over to the Brazil side and he will wait for you while you explore and then bring you back to the hotel at the end of the day. By far one of the most memorable experiences I had in Argentina.


On the pricey side so if you're on a budget keep in mind it's not cheap.
 
@CraigM you will be thrilled with your decision not to skip it. I'd highly recommend the Gran Melia hotel. Make sure to get a Falls view room. Even if you don't spend a lot of time in the room it was great to wake up with that view. You are right inside of the Park and can hit the ground running without wasting time. The hotel can also set up a private driver to take you over to the Brazil side and he will wait for you while you explore and then bring you back to the hotel at the end of the day. By far one of the most memorable experiences I had in Argentina.


On the pricey side so if you're on a budget keep in mind it's not cheap.
I've been to the Falls a few times over the years and it never gets old. My first time I stayed at the Gran Melia. It was a big chain back then but I see it's changed hands. The price has really gone up there. Not sure it's worth the price now because you aren't going to be in your room a lot. I do agree the view is great but you can go have breakfast there and then go off to explore the park so it's not necessary to spend that kind of money unless you want to be right there in the park.

I have stayed at the Bogari and also Aguas do Iguana Hotel Centro which are no frills hotels but I just used them to sleep and shower. They were both less than $100 a night. No where as good a location as Melia but a fraction of the price. All depends what you're looking for. As the others mentioned, you won't regret your decision to go.

Pay attention to the flights. Best to arrive in the morning if possible and hit one side and then stay 1 night and try to catch a night flight out. I have also stayed 2 nights before but can be a bit much if it's 3 days depending on flight times.

 
My friend returned from Argentina with his family this week and agreed with all of you that Iguazu is a must-see. He's been to Niagara and Victoria and thought Iguazu was a much better experience. So I guess that's where we're headed for the side trip! Thanks everyone for your thoughts and advice.
Smart man! No comparison with Niagara or Victoria. I have done all 3 also. Never met anyone that wasn't totally impressed. A good reason it's one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World.

Make sure you go on the boat ride up the river. Can be boring at night but there is a Casino in the area.

 
Smart man! No comparison with Niagara or Victoria. I have done all 3 also. Never met anyone that wasn't totally impressed. A good reason it's one of the 7 Natural Wonders of the World.

Make sure you go on the boat ride up the river. Can be boring at night but there is a Casino in the area.

Agree. I loved the boat ride, just don't be an idiot like me and forget to take your shoes off lol. I had everything planned with full rain pancho to take cover only to have my shoes and feet fully soaked. Something you might look into too which I wasn't able to do due to available dates (approx 5 days out of the month), but sounds like it would be fun is the full moon tour.


Has anybody here done it??
 
Agree. I loved the boat ride, just don't be an idiot like me and forget to take your shoes off lol. I had everything planned with full rain pancho to take cover only to have my shoes and feet fully soaked. Something you might look into too which I wasn't able to do due to available dates (approx 5 days out of the month), but sounds like it would be fun is the full moon tour.


Has anybody here done it??
I've never heard of the full moon tour. I can't imagine the night even with the moon can compare to the day but still sounds like a neat experience.
 
More great advice, thank you so much. My friend took a helicopter tour as well for $150pp which is quite cheap for something like that. He said it was fantastic.

Not to beat a dead horse but it really highlights the silly prices of those BA bike tours - $300 for a helicopter tour vs $300 on bicycles. Imagine the expense of running a helicopter with pilots, fuel, maintenance, landing areas etc vs. a bike ride.
 
More great advice, thank you so much. My friend took a helicopter tour as well for $150pp which is quite cheap for something like that. He said it was fantastic.

Not to beat a dead horse but it really highlights the silly prices of those BA bike tours - $300 for a helicopter tour vs $300 on bicycles. Imagine the expense of running a helicopter with pilots, fuel, maintenance, landing areas etc vs. a bike ride.
The helicopter tour is awesome! I also did that with my family and it was the highlight of my trip. I did the same type of thing in Hawaii and paid a bloody fortune! $300 to go on bicycle tour is outrageous!

You will find that in Iguazu there are a lot of tourists from Argentina and Brazil and South America. Many of these are poorer people. They don't have quite the 'gringo tax' like some places in BA. Great decision to hit the Falls instead of somewhere else. Will be more memorable. The only thing is not as many high quality restaurants in that area but most people go for the Falls. I had an amazing dinner at the Belmond Hotel.

@FuturoBA that moonlight tour would be fun although parts of it might be a little scary depending on where you walk. Not only the sounds were incredible but also the sounds of the force of the water.
 
Agree. I loved the boat ride, just don't be an idiot like me and forget to take your shoes off lol. I had everything planned with full rain pancho to take cover only to have my shoes and feet fully soaked. Something you might look into too which I wasn't able to do due to available dates (approx 5 days out of the month), but sounds like it would be fun is the full moon tour.


Has anybody here done it??
:ROFLMAO: didn't they give you a plastic bag to put all your stuff in @FuturoBA? They did when I went. Going up the River was still one of the most exciting and a bit scary things I've done. We went pretty close to the waterfall which was exciting. I didn't know about the moonlight hike but I would do that. Sounds like a unique experience. Thanks for sharing the link.
 
More great advice, thank you so much. My friend took a helicopter tour as well for $150pp which is quite cheap for something like that. He said it was fantastic.

Not to beat a dead horse but it really highlights the silly prices of those BA bike tours - $300 for a helicopter tour vs $300 on bicycles. Imagine the expense of running a helicopter with pilots, fuel, maintenance, landing areas etc vs. a bike ride.
@CraigM wise decision. Much better than the other cities. I went on the helicopter tour and it sounds like the price went up a little but that is not bad. You get so special perspective from up there. But also walk the trail as it is unique being right above the falls on Brazil side. Tour consist of walking, train and boat which you should do if you can.

We always stay in Loi Suites Iguazu which is very nice and not too expensive. But maybe more like $200 a night. Have fun.
 
The Loi Suites is a great hotel. That is where I stayed too. If you stay there, there is a good restaurant Naipi Restaurant in that hotel. Other great meals were La Mamma Pastas and Salsas, and a unique experience is the Argentine Experience Iguazu. I'm sure most people do the same tours which were all fantastic as mentioned.
 
The Loi Suites is a great hotel. That is where I stayed too. If you stay there, there is a good restaurant Naipi Restaurant in that hotel. Other great meals were La Mamma Pastas and Salsas, and a unique experience is the Argentine Experience Iguazu. I'm sure most people do the same tours which were all fantastic as mentioned.
I also stayed at the Loi Suites and it was excellent. Very friendly staff. I didn't know they had an Argentine Experience in Iguazu but we did that in Buenos Aires and it was excellent. @CraigM you made a good decision not missing Iguazu Falls!
 
More great advice, thank you so much. My friend took a helicopter tour as well for $150pp which is quite cheap for something like that. He said it was fantastic.

Not to beat a dead horse but it really highlights the silly prices of those BA bike tours - $300 for a helicopter tour vs $300 on bicycles. Imagine the expense of running a helicopter with pilots, fuel, maintenance, landing areas etc vs. a bike ride.
@CraigM exactly! Most of the tourists at Iguazu Falls are latinos. I think most of the people doing $300 USD bike tours in BA are gringos. Kind of like going to Don Julio and buying a $100 USD steak. Sure it is yummy and you'd spend that back home at a top end place but you can also go to other good places and pay $25 for a good steak too. Here in BA people will charge as much as they can if people are willing to pay for it.

Don Julio has lines out the door and hours wait so it's just supply and demand. I can't see too much demand for people paying that much for a bike tour but many locals are stubborn and will just price things high even if they could get more business pricing lower. Many people don't understand the principle of supply and demand.
 
More great advice, thank you so much. My friend took a helicopter tour as well for $150pp which is quite cheap for something like that. He said it was fantastic.

Not to beat a dead horse but it really highlights the silly prices of those BA bike tours - $300 for a helicopter tour vs $300 on bicycles. Imagine the expense of running a helicopter with pilots, fuel, maintenance, landing areas etc vs. a bike ride.
@CraigM do you know which company your friend used? I'd like to do that on my next trip. Thanks.

@FuturoBA that Moonlight hike looks amazing!
 
My friend returned from Argentina with his family this week and agreed with all of you that Iguazu is a must-see. He's been to Niagara and Victoria and thought Iguazu was a much better experience. So I guess that's where we're headed for the side trip! Thanks everyone for your thoughts and advice.
People were steering you the right way. Never met anyone that was disappointed with the Falls. Take time to see both sides.
 
Thanks for posting the link. I wanted to try a helicopter ride while I was there last month but ran out of time. I would highly recommend the Hotel das Cataratas Belmond. It was exquisite in every way. You will very much enjoy your trip Craig. I had high expectations but my trip there was one of my favorite experiences in Argentina so far.
 
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