The Best Hotels to Book in Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil

Recanto is a big resort aimed squarely at families, who check in to see the falls but invariably stay longer. There are large family rooms and suites with whirlpool baths or two separate bedrooms, kids’ clubs, a spa, gym, disco and a reproduction London pub – but the star attractions are the swimming pools. One is indoor, the other outdoor – ringed with whirlpool tubs and paddling areas, and fed by artificial waterfalls.

This local chain has a trio of hotels in and around Foz de Iguaçu town, well-located near restaurants or shopping malls. Rooms in all are fresh and contemporary, in light creams and greys, with smart wood-laminate floors and plenty of window space. Viale Tower has a rooftop pool and sky bar, family-oriented Viale Cataratas comes with a big pool and kids’ club, while the more economical Viale Iguassu is simpler with small rooms, no pool and mostly business clientele.

Rooms in this glass-fronted tower overlook the Guarani woodlands in downtown Foz, where birds trill in the trees. The look is simple and functional, all laminate floors, boxy ensuites and unobtrusive art on the cream walls. Best of all, the hotel is excellent value, once you’ve factored in the generous buffet breakfast. Most guests are here on business but leisure travelers should make a beeline, too – the hotel has special discount packages for vacationers and can organize trips to the falls. Or take an idle stroll to the Paraná River and a lookout over the Paraguayan border.

In the heart of downtown Foz de Iguaçu, close to restaurants and shops, the Rafain Centro is rated for its good-value rooms, largely aimed at a budget business clientele. They’re well-looked-after and unfussy: double beds on polished floors, and cozy, tiled ensuites possess a functional workspace and chair. If you’re here to relax, you’ll like the small pool and al fresco bar. Staff can help with tours and the price includes a large breakfast.

The Rafain Centro’s blocky big sister draws a mixed leisure and business convention clientele. Rooms are nice for the price, in dark laminate woods or light floor tiles, offset by linens in contemporary muted tones, colorful scatter cushions and glitzy metal fittings. Floor-to-ceiling windows provide plenty of light. There’s a decent gym, a kid’s play area and a pool, set in extensive woodland gardens. Most guests opt to dine in-house – Rafain Palace is beyond the center – or you can hail a cab to explore restaurants and bars.

Four blocks north of downtown Foz, Bella Italia is a simple business hotel that specializes in value accommodation predominantly for the city’s trade-convention market. Rooms are contemporary – in light tones, with functional workstations next to double beds, box-like ensuites and off-the-peg photos of Italian scenes on the walls. There’s a large business center, small pool, gym and an Italian-themed restaurant serving huge breakfasts and a menu of resolutely Brazilian food.

Within fly-casting distance of the Paraná River and a few blocks north of downtown Foz, Águas do Iguaçu has unadorned rooms in whitewash, white floor tile and with catalogue wood laminate furnishings. Ensuites have granite basins and small walk-in showers, and the hotel has modest business facilities. There’s also a small outdoor pool with a large sundeck and a suite of jacuzzi baths. It’s a 15-minute walk to restaurants in the town center, and staff can organize trips to the falls.

Want to see the full moon over Iguaçu Falls or wake up to sunrise over the cascades? Book the Belmond. It’s the only hotel inside Iguaçu National Park – so you share the falls exclusively with your fellow guests from the moment the park closes late in the afternoon, until tourists arrive the following morning. Rooms, restaurants and facilities are romantic five-star, the hotel has fecund gardens flickering with wildlife and a superstar pool – and a location so epic, even a hostel could justify the room rate.

With wood-panel or brown-tile floors, beds and flatpack furniture, the Del Rey is about returning to crash out in rather than lounging all day in. But prices are low, it’s in a great location – with restaurants on the doorstep – there’s a rooftop pool and sun deck with sweeping views out over Foz and the Paraná River, plus an enormous buffet breakfast. If you’re here en famille, book one of the rooms with more beds. And be sure to sound out the staff about trips to Iguaçu Falls and shopping trips across the border in Paraguay.