Nacunday National Park Voyage Tips and guide

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The park is fairly small for a national park, covering an area of 2,000 hectares.

The park is home to members of the Mbya Guaraní indigenous culture. They can sometimes be seen in the park gathering firewood, plants for food or medicine, and harvesting honey from woodland bee species. They are also permitted to hunt and fish in the park and they plant other food crops in nearby fields adjacent to the park.

The park was originally established in 1975 as a pair of national forests. In 1993, the area was expanded and the two foests merged to form Parque Nacional Ñacunday.

The park's biggest draw is its large waterfall. The waterfall is 35-40 meters high and 110 meters wide. At the bottom of the falls is a small island that was created by trees tumbling over the falls and getting jammed up with other trees and debris.

The forests surrounding the falls are tropical moist forests with most species remaining green year round while about 40% of the trees drop their leaves during the drier winter season. Trees include the Argentine cedar, various palms and palmettos, and some tropical trees with large, broad leaves.

Many types of typical Central and South American wildlife are found in the park including mostly smaller mammal species such as coatimundis, anteaters, and porcupines, though jaguars and smaller predator cats can be seen. About 200 bird species have been found in the park with a number of colorful tropical species such as macaws.

The park's climate is sub-tropical with comfortable temperatures and reliable rainfall of 1,500 to 1,700 mm per year. The average temperature is 21.5 °C.

The nearest city with a large airport handling scheduled commercial flights is Asuncion, though buses or cars can travel from Ciudad del Este.

From Asuncion, you can take a bus from the Terminal de Ómnibus de Asunción to Ciudad del Este. The trip takes about 5 hours and costs about US$20. From Ciudad del Este you can use a taxi or other local transportation for the 1-hour trip south to the national park.

From Ciudad del Este, drive south on highway 7 for 50 km, then turn left onto the park access road and continue for 12 km.

There is no entry fee. Restrooms and picnic areas are located near the park entrance.

Walk. The park has a network of trails between observation points and the trails are generally cleared and well marked.

• Waterfalls

• Ciudad del Este
• Iguaçu Falls