The falls are all yours, from dusk until dawn – long after the day-visitors have gone – so sit on the verandah of the 193-room Portuguese Colonial-style hotel, caipirinha in hand, and wait for the knockout sunset. Afterwards, dine on piranha broth, Peruvian-style ceviche and pan-seared Amazonian pirarucu fish at Itaipu Restaurant. In the morning, a hovering helicopter provides the best bird’s eye view of the falls; however, nothing beats the exhilaration of getting really up close and personal aboard a speeding jet boat as it skims the wild, tumbling waters. Sue Wallace