Why Paraguay is South America's least visited country (and why to go)

There isn't one reason but several that add up:

• No coast and no single icon. Paraguay has no ocean and no headline attraction like Iguazu Falls or Machu Picchu.
• Limited air connections. There are no direct flights from North America: you connect through Panama, São Paulo or another hub. Air Europa offers the only direct flight from Europe, from Madrid.
• Almost nobody talks about it. Search «Paraguay» alone online and you get soccer. The country's tourism image is still being built.
• Little English. Outside big hotels and Asunción agencies, people speak Spanish and Guaraní.
• Pass-through tourism. Many people cross into Ciudad del Este for the day, just to shop, while visiting Iguazu (Iguaçu) Falls, and don't stay.
• Long distances. The Chaco and the Pantanal take days of travel.

It means many places that would be a circus elsewhere are visited at an easy pace. Jesús de Tavarangüé (Tavarangue), a World Heritage site since 1993, takes 2-3 hours and is quieter than Trinidad. At Laguna Capitán and the Chaco's salt lagoons, flamingos winter from May to September, and you can only visit by advance reservation.

The Monday Falls, with three main drops of about 40 meters, have better light and fewer people early in the morning. And in Ciudad del Este, the Itaipú tour is free with a booking.

With few tourists, traditions are still made for Paraguayans. In June, the San Juan festivities set up fairs with pelota tata, toro candil, mbeju and pastel mandi'o. On December 8, Caacupé welcomes hundreds of thousands of pilgrims. In Asunción, Mercado 4 sells herbs for tereré, food stalls and haggling in Guaraní.

And tereré, UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage since 2020, is not a show: it is a circle where you are invited to sit. If they offer, accept.

Visiting a little-visited country has downsides and you should know them:

• Information in English is scarce and schedules change: always verify before going. WhatsApp is the key tool for hotels, guides and buses.
• In the Chaco, beyond Filadelfia, there is no signal and dirt roads get cut off by rain: go with a guide and a 4x4.
• Many visits require booking in advance.
• Bahía Negra, in the Paraguayan Pantanal, is about 12 hours from Asunción in ideal conditions, by weekly bus, SETAM flight or boat.

In exchange, you get a country with no tourist filter.

For a short route: 3 days in Asunción and Lake Ypacaraí. With a week, add Encarnación, the missions and the east with Itaipú. For nature, Ybycuí National Park and the Chaco from May to September. All of it fits into the itineraries in this guide.