PARAGUAY
Once one of the least visited countries in South America, Paraguay is a place that has seen a rise in tourism within the past decade. Most tourists are still from neighbouring South American countries but a significant international interest has helped shine a new light on this remarkable landlocked nation. With access to the famous Iguazu Falls, a uniquely well-preserved colonial history and a diverse natural landscape, Paraguay is a destination that you should consider for your next South American adventure.
All the basics that you need to know for planning a trip to Paraguay. Here you will find information on weather, currency, language, safety, transport and, most importantly, when the best time to visit is.
The place for learning about all the key destinations to visit when in Paraguay. We have travelled to all of these places and so offer our first-hand experiences as a guide to help maximise the enjoyment of your stay.
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Detailed guides for all the must-sees (in our opinion) when in Paraguay. They contain everything you need to know when visiting - including costs, travel arrangements, what to expect and much more!
Paraguay, often called the "Corazón de Sudamérica" (Heart of South America) due to its landlocked geographical location, is one of the continent's most authentic, least-visited gems. Paraguay has comparatively low visitor numbers on balance with some of its South American neighbours but this is not because there is nothing to do here. The lack of tourism more so stems from poor promotion within the travel scene, a shortage of direct international flights and often being seen as less desirable than its famous neighbours, Brazil and Argentina. That being said, tourism has been on a steady increase here and the country is home to a wealth of opportunities. The highlights include the Jesuit Missions of Trinidad and Jesús - a UNESCO World Heritage site that is famously peaceful, with very few tourists compared to similar sites in neighboring countries. The low-crowds throughout the country offer an authentic experience that blends indigenous Guaraní culture (a language still widely spoken), an intriguing colonial history and a diverse natural landscape, all the while remaining extremely budget-friendly.
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Best Time to Visit
The main thing to remember when planning a trip to Paraguay is that there really is not a ‘bad’ time of year to visit. It is another of the reasons, alongside the low crowds, that make me recommend Paraguay as a perfect accompaniment to a South American itinerary. In terms of weather, there are definitely more favourable seasons depending on whether you prefer blistering heat or prefer milder times.
The summer months (Dec-Feb) are often extremely hot, with temperatures easily exceeding 40°C. It is also the time where Paraguay receives its most rain (although this high is still a comparatively low amount in the grand context). Most of this precipitation falls as very heavy, short showers or thunderstorms and should not dampen many of your travel plans. Autumn (Mar-May) sees temperatures drop to more manageable levels and the rain lower becomes less intense. Summer (Jun-Aug) is the country’s driest season but also the coolest. Temperatures can be particularly unpredictable, with cold air masses from the Antarctic dropping temperatures into single figures. Most of the time though you will be averaging daytimes between 16-22°C, with little in the way of rain. Spring (Sep-Nov) sees things warm up again to more pleasant levels but also brings the return of some rains. Cost is not a major factor you consider when planning a trip to Paraguay.
As mentioned before, the country is extremely budget friendly, with good transport options and accommodations that remain relatively affordable all year around. That being said the holiday months (Christmas and Easter - the latter known as Semana Santa) can see locals travel more than usual and this could see you incur slightly higher costs but again, this is rather insignificant given the overall low prices - the capital Ascunsion itself is known as one of the most affordable capital cities in the world for travellers.
We found ourselves in Paraguay at the start of October and the weather was excellent. We did experience some of the heavy thunderstorms (including one that bright lightening and hailstones) but these occurred exclusively at night. During the day we found glorious sunshine and very comfortable temperatures. As mentioned before Paraguay is extremely cost efficient. We stayed in some very reasonably priced AirBnBs (one of which has a stunning rooftop swimming pool) and found internal bus transfers to be very affordable.
Currency
The official currency of Paraguay is the Paraguayan Guaraní (PYG), although we found that US Dollars were accepted almost everywhere, especially in large stores and for tourist-related services. That being said it was definitely worth having some local currency, especially since it is what you will receive as change regardless of what currency you use to pay.
Obtaining Guaraní is fairly straightforward, with the best option being to use exchange houses (casas de cambio) which can be found in all the major cities. It is best to bring USD with you to these exchanges as they almost always give you the best rates, just ensure you have new, crisp bills (old ones will likely be rejected).
We also found ATMs relatively straightforward to use (and most were free or had a very minimal charge to use). From these we could easily withdraw local currency. Whilst having a card for these transactions was helpful not many establishments outside of some restaurants and big hotels took card payments. Cash is king here so make sure you plan for this before arriving.
Language
Paraguay actually has two official languages; Spanish and Guaraní. The latter is spoken by around 90% of the Paraguayan population but almost everyone also speaks Spanish, making Paraguay a truly bilingual nation. English is rarely spoken outside of Asunción, making basic Spanish or key Guaraní phrases essential for tourists.
Locals will really appreciate it if you attempt to converse in Spanish and they will be super impressed if you attempt some Guaraní. Whilst we found there was a language barrier at times, everyone we met in Paraguay was so friendly. With not many tourists, especially non-South American ones, the locals were genuinely intrigued by our presence but in a purely curious manner. In fact many of them saw it as an attempt to practice their English which led to many memorable exchanges where our basic Spanish would be matched by some basic English.
Safety
Considering this is a nation that is not particularly well visited by tourists it is maybe somewhat surprising that this is technically one of the safest countries in South America. With an overall low crime rate it is often ranked as low-risk for tourists by global governmental advisories. That being said there are some precautions to be aware of.
The capital, Asunción, has slightly higher rates of crime in comparison to the rest of the country and we were advised to take taxis when there as opposed to public transport due to issues with bag-snatching and pickpocketing. Asunción is also the focal point for any civil unrest should it occur, with groups often setting up blockades as a form of protest along the main roads and in downtown Asunción near government buildings. We did not experience anything negative whilst in the capital but it is worth noting to be street smart whilst here and keep an eye on the news for any brewing social unrest.
Some of the areas along the Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay border are ones that illicit advice on extra vigilance, especially at night due to transnational crime organisations operating between countries - not that their actions directly involve tourists but Ciudad del Este is the main access point for Iguazu Falls and also a place where illicit activities have been recorded.
With all that being said, we found Paraguay incredibly welcoming. We took long bus transfers, walked freely in some of the major cities and had absolutely no problems. As mentioned before, people we met here were extremely friendly and very keen to offer help if we required it. We walked through central Asunción without any issues - you just need to do research on where to avoid and use taxis to cover bigger inner-city distances.
Public Transport
As mentioned previously, Paraguay is not one of the well visited South American countries and therefore the transportation options are, unsurprisingly, a little more rustic than most.
The easiest way to move around the country is via bus and there are plenty of services connecting the larger towns and cities, with a main hub found in Asunción. Unlike other bus journeys in South America, we struggled to book tickets or find schedules for Paraguayan buses online and found that we had to attend bus terminals to purchase a seat or find timings. That being said, once we had this information, the buses themselves were actually significantly cheaper than similar ones we took in Argentina - just be prepared that these savings to come at the expense of some comfort as Paraguayan buses seemed particularly old.
If the large city-connecting buses were difficult to find information about then the smaller, town to town buses were almost impossible. For example, we managed to get a bus from Encarnación to the UNESCO Jesuit Ruins but the return journey had no schedule - we ended up getting in a shared minibus, that stopped at our bus stop, with some locals that took us back to Encarnación. This seemed to be a fairly common occurrence (and was something that we had read about before travelling) so just be aware that whilst public transport does exist throughout the country it is not necessarily the most reliable.
The local taxis are a good way to get around the major cities but they are not particularly cheap. Uber is also available and we used this in Asunción a few times as it was not any more expensive than the local taxi option.
Destination Guides
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Encarnación
Asunción
'Must See' Attractions
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Jesuit Missions of La Santísima Trinidad de Paraná