Foreign tourists represented 36.7% of the 1.4 million visitors who visited the Iguazú National Park in 2022. According to a survey carried out by the park, home of the famous Iguazú Falls, more than 526 thousand people of other nationalities they passed through there throughout the year, against just over 908,000 Brazilians in the same period.
The two bordering countries sent the largest number of visitors to Foz do Iguaçu (PR). Argentina was the nation that sent the most tourists to the attraction, reaching almost 295,000. Paraguay was in second place, with around 50 thousand. Complete the podium of the main issuers in the United States, with nearly 30,000 visitors.
Europe also contributed a significant number of tourists who visited Iguazú Falls in 2022. Last year there were more than 16,500 French people in the park, in addition to more than 13,000 Spaniards and almost 12,000 Germans.
Compared to other years, 2022 performed positively. The growth was 118% compared to 2021, when 655,300 people visited the Conservation Unit. Compared to 2019, the last few years before the Covid-19 pandemic, there was a 71% recovery in movement, since that year the park registered the entry of more than 2 million visitors.
Approved Experience
According to the report of those who visited the Iguazú National Park last year, the number will grow in 2023. Coming from the United States, Wynn Reed was full of praise for what he found in the Brazilian destination. “In fact, it is a wonder of the world, an incredible place to visit. The falls are bigger than I could have imagined. The runway was where I got most excited,” he said.
From Turkey, Kanan Keskin was also full of praise after experiencing Iguazu Falls up close. “The view is very impressive. I'm speechless. The most incredible experience I've ever had, to see nature as great as this, to feel it all. I will definitely do this again. Visiting just once is impossible, ”he promised.
Resumption of the sector
By November 2022, Brazil surpassed the mark of 3.1 million foreign tourists received for the first time since 2019, the year before the pandemic. The data captured by Embratur, together with the Ministry of Tourism (MTur) and the Federal Police already exceed the last two years combined: 2020 (2.1 million) and 2021 (745.8 thousand). The survey considers foreign visitors who spend at least one night in Brazil, according to the methodology recommended by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO).
The spending of foreign tourists in Brazil between January and November 2022 also corroborates the recovery scenario. Revenue generated in the country by international visitors reached the US$4.4 billion mark, compared to US$2.5 billion and US$2.6 billion for 11 months in 2021 and 2020, respectively. Data revealed by the Central Bank show that the sector is very close to recovering the level registered in 2019, when in the same period it totaled US$5.4 billion.
In the month of November alone, revenue generated by foreign travelers in Brazil was US$443 million, up from US$456 million in November 2019, the last year before the Covid-19 pandemic.