Unlike Brazil, Paraguay offers free guided tours on its side of the Itaipú Dam. Using public busses, which cost the equivalent of around $1 each way, makes visiting Itaipú from Ciudad del Este a budget-friendly and interesting half-day trip.

Introduction

You can find “guided tours”, “panoramic tours”, etc. to Itaipú Dam from CDE for anywhere from $25-50 US online. This doesn’t seem so bad until you realise that informative guided tours are provided free of charge on the Paraguayan side: tourists who pay end up on the same tour as those who don’t. All you’re paying for is private transportation, and if that’s what you’re looking for then round-trip Ubers would be half the price (even less if you take a moto taxi). Read on for all you need to know to get to and from the free Itaipú Dam tours using reliable and frequent public busses.

What You Need to Know

• There are no busses direct to Itaipú Dam: instead, look for busses with destination Hernandarias. Tell the driver you want to get off at Itaipú.
• Busses depart from the Urban Bus Terminal (Terminal Bus Urbano on Google Maps) in CDE.
• You will be dropped off on the highway about a five-minute walk away from the Itaipú visitor centre.

You'll be dropped off somewhere near this sign: the bus will go left, you go straight.

• Fare is 5,000 PYG, cash only. Drivers can give change for small notes, though anything bigger than 20,000 might cause problems.
• There is no set schedule, however CDE-Hernandarias is a popular route and busses run frequently during the hours that dam tours are offered.
• For the return trip simply flag down a passing bus, the driver will usually indicate to show that he sees you and will pull over to let you on.
• Top tip: If you take the Tekotapa Wildlife Centre tour as well (also free), you can ask the shuttle (again, free!) to drop you off outside the entrance gates instead of taking you back to the visitor centre. This saves you that five-minute walk, and means you don’t have to cross the highway.

Option 1: Modern Electric Busses

In 2024, South Korea donated four modern electric busses to Paraguay. Three of these busses operate between CDE and Hernandarias today. These busses are clean, quiet, and comfortable: they are air conditioned, and seats recline and even have cupholders. Relaxing music is played over the speakers. It is altogether a lovely way to get around, and better than most public transit in North America or Europe. The only downside: with just three busses that also need to be charged and maintained, you could be waiting a while. That’s why option two is the more common way to make this trip.

These distinctively-painted South Korean busses are the most comfortable transit option for getting to and from Itaipú.

Option 2: Colectivos

You'll see plenty of these bright busses all around CDE.

These custom-decorated busses ply the city streets of CDE, including between the urban bus terminal and Hernandarias. Don’t expect modern comforts: instead of air conditioning you get windows, and instead of cupholders you have hands. Unlike the city-run electric busses, on a colectivo it is common to not pay as you board, especially if many people board at once. Just keep your fare ready and someone will pass by to collect it.

No modern touches here.

What About the Tour?

Visiting Itaipú is well worth it: the scale of the construction is impressive, and the tour puts you literally on top of the main dam. You can register in advance either by downloading an app or by email, but this isn’t necessary: you can also turn up on the same day and register for the next tour, just make sure to have ID with you (I don’t carry my passport as a general rule, and using a driver’s license wasn’t a problem). As at Miraflores in Panama, the tour starts with a short film. This film isn’t terribly interesting, and is mostly name-dropping various international groups that are involved with Itaipú in some way. With one exception the guided tour starts precisely half an hour after the film, which is 13 minutes long, begins, so if you’re short on time you won’t miss anything by showing up after the film is over.

Free guided tours take place throughout the morning and early afternoon.