The power and beauty of waterfalls have long attracted onlookers fascinated by their forceful energy. Varun Bhat experiences the thunderous roar of Iguaçu Falls from Brazil's Hotel das Cataratas and explores other impressive water features.

What is it that draws us to great waterfalls? Sometimes it seems that every adventurous holiday includes a stop at some towering rockface overwhelmed with a gargantuan gushing. Is it the humbling sight of nature’s raw and violent power? Or the mesmerising thunder of a mighty river relentlessly cascading down, day after day, aeon after aeon? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that our bodies are around two-thirds water, or that the sound of rushing water might trigger psychological memories of our days snuggled in the womb.

Sometimes it seems that every adventurous holiday includes a stop at some towering rockface overwhelmed with a gargantuan gushing. Is it the humbling sight of nature’s raw and violent power? Or the mesmerising thunder of a mighty river relentlessly cascading down, day after day, aeon after aeon? Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that our bodies are around two-thirds water, or that the sound of rushing water might trigger psychological memories of our days snuggled in the womb.

Perhaps the most impressive waterfalls of all, though, are those that tumble over the rim of the Parana Plateau at Iguaçu, close to where the borders of Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay meet. You may have already seen them–they made a spectacular appearance in the 1986 film The Mission, and more recently featured in Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

What you see when you get closer will depend on when you visit. At the height of the rainy season from November to March nearly three million gallons of water hurtle down its star attraction, a gorge known as the Garganta del Diablo (Devil’s Throat), every second. In the dry season this may drop to half a million galIons–but whenever you go, you will be truly impressed, and feel that what might seem to be a long and expensive detour was well worth the journey. Plus you will get wet–and laugh about it.

Like a favourite record, Iguaçu has two sides: Brazil on one and Argentina across the cataract. When you stand at the edge of these 269ft-high falls, the cascading water looks like an undulating thick sheepskin rug. The deluge is so loud and insistent, with rainbows arching over the rocks and an anointing dew covering your head, that it is hard to tear yourself away from so bewitching a sight.

Staying on the Brazilian side of Iguaçu offers the best panoramic views of the horseshoeshaped falls, which spread out for 2.5 miles and are enclosed in the delightful Parque Nacional do Iguaçu. Visitors can also walk up to Devil’s Throat itself, and gaze up through the misty spray as the waters pound down.

When in Brazil...

No visit to Brazil is complete without a stop in Rio de Janeiro, a destination that stuns travellers with its heady mix of dazzling white sands, sugar-loaf mountains and exuberant lifestyles. While best known for Carnival this is a city where energy levels remain high year-round. In Rio the music never stops, the sky has never seemed more blue and everyone’s a football star. The bodies on the beach really are beautiful, yet somehow “let’s go for lunch” means tackling 10 different types of meat at a packed-out churrasceria (barbecue restaurant).

For many years Rio was the capital (switched to Brasilia in 1960) and it still has the grand buildings and parks to prove it. Take a peaceful stroll through the palm-filled Jardim Botanico (botanical gardens), which was founded in 1808 and offers a memorable view of the city’s iconic statue, Christ the Redeemer. The most luxurious place to stay is the Copacabana Palace Hotel (above), which opened in 1923 and stands beside the celebrated praia de Copacabana (Copacabana Beach). Now part of Orient- Express Hotels, most of its suites have sea-facing terraces and even the bathtubs have a beach view. With a superb pool, ideal for sipping caipirinhas by, and a spa offering treatments to the sounds of bossa nova, “The Copa” is a sophisticated hotel that still offers a fast track to the fun side of Brazil. The Lounge Bar has a golden dance floor and coloured lights outlining the constellations of the southern hemisphere–just the place to get into the Rio mood.

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