Iguaçu Canyon: a 55-metre abseil, zipline and canopy inside the park

Direct answer: Iguaçu Canyon is the adventure centre inside Iguaçu National Park, run by Campo de Desafios. The headline activity is a 55-metre overhanging abseil with no footholds, reached by a 360-metre suspended walkway through the forest. It runs Monday to Sunday, 9:00 to 17:00, on Rodovia das Cataratas, km 27.5. Park entry is charged separately.

The activities

The 55-metre abseil. This is the descent the operation is known for. Getting to the platform is already part of it: a 360-metre suspended walkway cutting through the forest to the edge of the Iguaçu river canyon. On the way down the wall falls away and you hang free, in controlled descent.

A four-stage canopy course. Split into low elements, zipline, cat leap and an artificial climbing wall. It works well for anyone who wants adventure without committing to the abseil.

Zipline and climbing. On an artificial wall and on rock, with the operator's equipment and guides.

Rafting is not here: the Iguaçu river rapids are run nearby by Macuco Ecoaventura. Detail in rafting at Iguazu Falls.

The essentials

Prices for individual activities are not published consistently online and change by season and package. Confirm directly with the operator before going, and book ahead in high season, when time slots sell out.

What to wear and what to expect

Clothes and shoes that can get wet and dirty, closed shoes that stay on your feet, hair tied back. Everything happens outdoors inside dense forest, so repellent and water matter. Activities have age and weight limits set by the operator and checked on arrival.

In heavy rain some activities may be suspended for safety, which does not affect the walkways at the falls.

Fitting it into your itinerary

The centre is inside the National Park, on the same axis as the Falls trail. If you already have a park ticket, the adventure sits minutes from the walkways, and both fit in one day if you start early.

• Ticket prices and exemptions: Iguazu Falls tickets.
• The walkways are quietest right at opening: what time to go to avoid queues.
• Getting there by public transport on line 120: bus to the Falls.
• The day's river level, which changes the scenery of the descent: how the Falls are today.

Who it suits, and who should skip it

The abseil is the part people either love or opt out of at the edge, and there is no shame in the second: the platform staff will not push you, and the canopy course is a genuinely good day out on its own. Anyone with vertigo, recent surgery, back problems or pregnancy should choose the ground-level elements instead.

Bring as little as possible: everything you carry has to be secured or left behind, and phones have been lost over the edge. Most people book the abseil for the morning, when the forest is cooler and the platform queue is shortest, then walk the Falls trail afterwards.

Source: Campo de Desafios (Iguaçu Canyon), for address, opening hours and activity descriptions. Prices and restrictions change by season: confirm with the operator.