Hotel das Cataratas - The Only Hotel Inside Iguaçu National Park

Only two hotels sit close enough to hear Iguassu Falls roar: a Sheraton on the Argentine side, and Hotel das Cataratas on the Brazilian side, inside the boundaries of Iguaçu National Park. Day-trippers file out at dusk, but you get to stay - watching 275 waterfalls catch the last light, then waking up ahead of the crowds the next morning.

Construction on the hotel began in 1939, stalled through World War II, and didn't finish until 1958. Since then it has welcomed Princess Diana, Bill Clinton, Gisele Bündchen and Jackie Chan, and has held a five-star Forbes Travel Guide rating every year since 2018 - the only hotel in South America to manage nine years running.

Where Three Borders Meet

Foz do Iguaçu sits where Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina meet, a city of around 260,000 people shaped by Italian, German, Arab and Chinese immigration. Its main draw is Iguaçu National Park, 185,000 hectares (about 457,000 acres) of Atlantic Forest - the last continuous stretch of this biome left in southern Brazil - recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1986. Only 0.3 percent of the park is open to visitors, which keeps most of the ecosystem undisturbed. It crosses into Argentina's Misiones province, with the Iguassu River marking the border between the two countries.

The falls span 275 separate waterfalls, stretching about 2.7 kilometers (1.7 miles) across the river and carving a canyon as they go. Of the 19 major cascades, the tallest is the Devil's Throat, dropping 90 meters (295 feet). Only three falls - Floriano, Deodoro and Benjamin Constant - sit on the Brazilian side, though this side offers the widest panoramic views; the rest are seen from the Argentine side.

Hotel das Cataratas occupies 15,000 square meters (161,000 square feet) within the park, about 15 kilometers (9 miles) - a 30-minute drive - from Foz do Iguaçu International Airport, and roughly 75 minutes from Argentina's Cataratas del Iguazú Airport across the border. Direct flights connect Foz do Iguaçu with São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Curitiba, Belo Horizonte, Campinas, Recife and Santiago, Chile.

A History Delayed By War

Tourism arrived in Foz do Iguaçu in 1915, when a wooden hotel called Hotel Brasil - later known as Hotel dos Saltos - was built near the falls. It was never finished, caught up in political conflict, and burned down in 1937. President Getúlio Vargas ordered a replacement built in 1939, but World War II delayed the project for years; the hotel that would become Hotel das Cataratas finally opened on October 4, 1958, under President Juscelino Kubitschek, with 52 rooms.

Ownership changed hands several times over the following decades - Realtur Hoteleira, then Varig, then the Tropical Group, who ran it as Tropical das Cataratas from 1967 until 2007. Two more wings went up in 1971 and 1982.

In 2007, Orient-Express Hotels took over and brought in French architect Michel Jouannet to lead a full renovation, completed in 2010: all 176 rooms were rebuilt, along with the public areas, plumbing, wiring and climate systems, while the original Portuguese-style façade stayed intact. Orient-Express became Belmond Ltd. in 2014, and the hotel was renamed to match. Belmond has been part of LVMH since 2019.

Recognition followed: in 2018, it became the first hotel in South America to earn Forbes Travel Guide's five-star rating, a distinction it has held every year since. It was named Brazil's best hotel by La Liste in 2023 and again in 2025, when it scored 97.50 in the guide's "Top 1000 Hotels" - the highest of any Brazilian property - and was named to the extended list for the World's 50 Best Hotels.

Over the decades, guests have included Princess Diana and Prince Charles, Prince Albert of Monaco, Queen Margrethe, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Eleanor Roosevelt and David Rockefeller, along with musicians Elis Regina, Roberto Carlos and Paul Simon, and public figures from Gisele Bündchen to Anthony Hopkins and Jackie Chan.

Y Restaurant

Chef Luiz Filipe Souza runs the hotel's signature restaurant, Y - pronounced "ee," the Guarani word for water, and a nod to the meeting point of two rivers and three countries nearby. Souza already holds two Michelin stars for his São Paulo restaurant Evvai, represented Brazil at the Bocuse d'Or in 2019, and has been recognized by both Veja São Paulo and Folha de S.Paulo.

The dining room opens onto a terrace overlooking the falls and forest, and the sound of rushing water carries inside before you even reach your table. The menu draws on ingredients from across Brazil's regions - cupuaçu, açaí, tucupi, manioc - worked into dishes like smoked pirarucu with açaí and tapioca, or barbecued meat with cassava and Atlantic Forest-style chimichurri.

You can go for the full nine-course tasting menu or pick individual dishes, paired if you like with a wine list spanning Brazil's own vineyards alongside international labels.

Y Terrace

For something more relaxed, Y Terrace sits outside, facing the falls, serving a shorter version of Chef Luiz Filipe's menu alongside cocktails, wine and champagne - a good spot for a sunset drink before dinner. Expect small plates like oysters with guava granita, crab croquettes, moqueca and fried cassava.

Bar Taroba

Bar Tarobá looks out from a balcony framed by jungle foliage, a good spot to watch toucans and other birds pass through as the sun sets over the falls. Alongside an extensive cocktail list - a mix of signature drinks and Brazilian classics - it pours organic tea grown in the hotel's own garden and a wide range of cachaça.

Once a week, the bar runs a complimentary cachaça tasting led by specialist Nacir Zandoná, covering three distinct styles and their origins, aging and production methods, with a longer, more in-depth tour also available. A separate weekly tasting focuses on Brazilian wine.

Ipê Restaurant

Ipê sits beside the pool, more casual than Y and air-conditioned, with a menu that rotates through the week: Brazilian dishes and international options at lunch, pizzas and grilled cuts, a Gaucho-style barbecue on Friday and Saturday evenings, feijoada on Saturdays and a chef's brunch on Sundays. Breakfast runs from tapioca and eggs Benedict to farmhouse specialties made with organic, mostly local ingredients.

The Tower

The hotel's tower occupies the highest point in Iguaçu National Park, and does double duty as both a suite and a spot for sunset cocktails. The Tower Suite - open-plan, with a king bed and a large sitting area, covering 70 square meters (753 square feet) - sits within the main building.

For a different way to use the space, the hotel arranges private cocktail hours in the tower: canapés, a bottle of champagne, and views over the falls and forest below, with local artist João Incerti's paintings catching the evening light.

A picnic version of the same idea is also available, either with a lighter, family-friendly spread of fruit, cake and sandwiches, or a more indulgent one with smoked salmon, charcuterie, cheese and sparkling wine.

Rooms And Suites

Across its 176 rooms, Hotel das Cataratas runs through a dozen categories, from entry-level Superior rooms up to four Signature Suites: the Cataratas Suite, Two Bedroom Cataratas Suite, Three Bedroom Cataratas Suite and Tower Suite.

Michel Jouannet's 2010 renovation touched every one of them - new floors, marble bathrooms with custom tiles, solid wood furniture - while keeping fabrics inspired by local plant life, box beds with pillow-top mattresses and Egyptian cotton linens throughout. Paintings by Ludmila Demonte and Romilda Patez, depicting the region's flora and fauna, hang in many rooms, alongside Granado bath products made with Brazilian botanicals.

Superior rooms, the simplest category, sit in the Floresta and Jardim wings with hand-painted tiles and garden views. Deluxe rooms add wooden floors and more space, and the Deluxe Cataratas category looks directly out over the falls.

The Catarats Suite

The Cataratas Suite is the largest of the one-bedroom Signature Suites, at 83 square meters (893 square feet), with a king bed, a separate living room and multiple balconies looking over the falls and forest. Portuguese colonial furniture and a marble bathroom with both a soaking tub and a walk-in shower fill out the space, along with a wine cellar, a wet bar and a dining table for six.

The Noble Suite

In the Garden Wing, the Noble Suite covers 63 square meters (678 square feet) and leans into the surrounding plant life, with fresh flowers and artwork depicting local fauna throughout.

It has a king bed, an open sitting area, a marble bathroom with a soaking tub and a separate shower.

The Pool Suite

Only two Pool Suites exist at the hotel, each with a private plunge pool and garden just outside the door. At 41 square meters (441 square feet), they're compact but come with a queen bed, a comfortable sitting area, Portuguese colonial furnishings and a marble bathroom with a soaking tub.

The Spa

The spa opened in 2010 and has expanded steadily since, built around the idea of connecting you with the surrounding forest and drawing on the worldview of the region's indigenous communities, in which people, animals and plants share the same web of life.

It has six treatment rooms, a couple's suite with a private tub, and separate steam saunas for men and women, with treatments running from 30 minutes up to two hours and available combined into longer packages.

Products draw on ingredients from the forest - yerba mate, copaiba oil, coffee, cupuaçu, organic sugar - and a curated soundtrack plays through each session. One of the more distinctive offerings, the Jasy treatments, are timed to align with the phases of the moon.

The Garden

Outside, the grounds are full of centuries-old trees, rare orchids and bromeliads, and wildlife that treats the hotel grounds as an extension of the park: expect to see coatis wandering the paths, along with colorful birds and the occasional lizard.

There's a giant chessboard set into the lawn, and indoor games - chess, checkers, cards - available in the Dom Pedro Room. A Kids' Club runs alongside all this, with a mascot named Felício leading workshops built around environmental awareness.

The Pool

The main pool measures 310 square meters (3,337 square feet), heated year-round to 28°C (82°F), with an infinity edge overlooking the gardens. A separate, smaller pool is set aside for children.

The Pool Bar nearby serves tropical cocktails and flavored water, and doubles as the base for pool service - chilled towels, sunscreen and fresh fruit brought around as needed.

Two Ways To See The Falls

Two experiences take you beyond the standard daytime visit. On nights of the full moon, a guided walk leads along the walkways above the falls to catch the lunar rainbow - a rare effect created when moonlight refracts through the mist, visible only to guests of Hotel das Cataratas thanks to the hotel's after-hours access to the park.

The Argentinian Side

For a different vantage point, the hotel can arrange a full day exploring the Argentine side of the falls, crossing the border by road - a valid passport is required - to reach Sendero Verde and an eco-friendly train running between several of the park's circuits from Cataratas Station. Transportation and a guide are included, though entry tickets for the Argentine park need to be bought separately; the hotel's concierge can help arrange this.