eznmomma

I will be in Buenos Aires with a small group of people (perhaps 10) and we all want to travel to Iguazu Falls. Is it possible to hire a private van instead of flying. I hear that the flights are unreliable and expensive. How long is the trip by land and is it worth it? Any best way or airlines to maximize the possibility of flying on time?

crellston

I am sure it would be possible to hire a private van - a local agent will be able to help I am sure. If avrooster sees this post he may well be able to suggest one. It takes around 18 - 20 hours by bus and is usually done as an overnight trip. Here is a link to another post that I, and other have commented on.

http://www.fodors.com/community/sout...uazu-falls.cfm

Is it worth it? Iguazu is undoubtedly one of the wonders of the world and a highlight of most peoples visits to South America, But there and back in the course of a couple of days by land? I am not sure I would attempted it unless I was travelling on elsewhere (say Salta). Buses are v comfortable, reliable and a lot cheaper and the overnight travel takes a bit of the sting out of the time taken as it is possible to sleep on board but 40 hours travelling in the spaces of a few days is a lot! Maybe getting the bus there and flying back would be a good compromise.

Sadly, the flights are very expensive largely because foreigners are charged around 3x the fare of locals. Unreliablity in terms of delays and cancellations has long been an issue particularly with Aerolineas Argentina.

qwovadis

saexplorers.org/clubhouses/buenosaires

good info with discounts it is a pretty long slog

Private Drivers do ply that route might take some bids

Personally prefer to fly group rates with

argentinaforless.com wowargentina.com might be worth

looking into quicker easier pretty reliable.

SPG.com Sheraton best Hotel bidding Priceline.com

for me club floors fall view suite upgrades for free as

an SPG member... So good luck!

MarnieWDC

We have had excellent flights with LAN Airlines, including Iguazu. Numerous friends of ours have had NO PROBLEMS flying to Iguazu on LAN Airlines.

Any airline can have delays; Aerolineas Arg. is noted to have many, and often, and with poor alerts about it. LAN is not.

I agree with Crellston as to the spectacular site that the Falls is. I have been to Niagara and Victoria, and it is Iguazu that stands out as #1.

Whether you spend for the air or find a private van driver - I think the experience will have been worth the cost and effort.

And, if you can afford the Sheraton, Qwovadis gives good advice, above.

Orlando_Vic

Iguazú Falls is approximately 650 miles (by air) from Buenos Aires, and we're not talking about super highways to drive there. I would vote for flying and LAN has a far better reputation than Aerolíneas.

I agree that the Sheraton is the best bet for absolute convenience. But, having stayed in a falls view room before, I would opt for a jungle view room instead the next time. Why? You are not in your room enough hours of the day to justify the higher room rate. When you have breakfast downstairs, the restaurant has large picture windows and the (free) view of the Devil's Throat is right in front of you for your enjoyment while you eat your meal. Most of the day, you'll probably be outside in the park, not in your room.

_____________________________________________
Vic's travels: http://my.flightmemory.com/vogilvie

flintstones

My higly recommended collegue in Iguazu is Ariel. You can contact his at [email protected]
I hope you cna review his services soon.
Flintstones / Angie

colibri

I would bite the bullet and fly, too long for private driver or bus. I was there three weeks ago, flew LAN and wasn't concerned at all about the reliability of LAN, was more worried about my five Aerolineas Argentinas flights. Wrong!

LAN canceled our AEP - IGR early afternoon flight, sat in AEP all afternoon for a late afternoon flight that kept getting delayed (perfect weather).

Upon return LAN had delayed our afternoon flight, but booked us on another flight that had never taken off from morning, so we actually arrived 20 minutes early back at AEP.

And Aerolineas Argentinas flights were almost all on time, a one hour delay on one, no cancellations. Go figure.....

We stayed at Orquideas Palace Hotel outside of town, enjoyed it and spent the next morning at Guira Oga, a wildlife/bird rescue rehab center next to the hotel.

eznmomma

Thanks for the advice. I think we will fly. It sounds as though Lan and AEP both are good and have problems. A matter of luck.

Thanks on the advice on the hotel as well. I heard about the Sheraton, but also wondered if it was worth the cost if we don't spend much time in our rooms, and we generally don't. The meals by the windows sounds perfect. If anyone has more to add, please advise away.