Quick travel guide: Paraguay
Asunción, Ciudad Del Este, Jesuit ruins, Encarnación, Chaco and more
Facts for visitors about Guarani, Jose Chilavert, independence, national parks, World Heritage-listed sites, waterfalls and more in this South American country.
Location: Paraguay is entirely landlocked, and sandwiched between its bigger, more visited neighbours. It borders Brazil, Argentina and Bolivia.
Capital city: The capital of Paraguay is Asunción, which despite its 1.2m residents, doesn’t seem all that city-like at all. It’s like making a sleepy country town the base of power.
Other major cities: Other cities that can be visited in Paraguay include Ciudad Del Este, which is a major trading centre on the border with Brazil and Argentina, and Encarnación, which acts as a gateway to spectacular Jesuit ruins.
Population: Around six million people call Paraguay home.
Languages spoken: Whilst Spanish is the official language, as it is in most of South America, the first language of many citizens is the indigenous Guarani tongue. If you want to try learning a bit, then many accommodations can either provide tuition or at least point you in the right direction. You will get by just fine with Spanish though.
What we know it for: Paraguay is perhaps the least explored of South America’s countries, and as such very few people know much about it. For a quick history lesson, Asunción was founded in 1537 after a group fled from Buenos Aires, Argentina. The Guarani people accepted the newcomers, and therefore there wasn’t nearly as much conflict here as there was in the rest of South America. The country’s independence from Spain in 1811 was also painless, but since then Paraguay has been in the hands of a succession of ‘interesting’ leaders. Aside from a murky black market, on an international scale, it is Paraguay’s footballers that immediately spring to mind. Their recent World Cup record is excellent for such a small playing base, and maverick goalkeeper Jose Chilavert became a global favourite for his rather eccentric antics.
Why you should go: Because it isn’t really on the traditional South American route, Paraguay has a genuine, untouched feel to it. This is particularly true of the Chaco, the wild region in the west of the country. With magical waterfalls, gorgeous National Parks and idyllic river cruising, the rest of the country is a nature-lover’s paradise.
Great places to visit: In Trinidad, near Encarnación, you’ll find the most intact of Paraguay’s old Jesuit ruins. This old mission is highly atmospheric, and UNESCO have bestowed World Heritage status upon it.
MORE QUICK GUIDES: Andorra, Australia, Bolivia, East Timor, Indonesia, Luxembourg, Morocco, Spain, Paraguay, Portugal.
