The hill of seven colors (cerro de los siete colores) at Purmamarca, UNESCO world heritage quebrada de humahuaca, Jujuy, ArgentinaGetty
6. Quebrada de Humahuaca, Argentina
Quebrada de Humahuaca is a natural mural of painted mountains in Argentina’s lesser-explored northwest. This 155-kilometer valley in Jujuy Province, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2003, has served as a trade and migration route for some 10,000 years, linking the high Andean plateau with the plains below. Today, that history still lives on in pre-Hispanic settlements, Inca roads, colonial churches, and adobe villages—but the region is also emerging as one of South America’s best wine destinations. Around Maimará, Huacalera, and UquÃa, a growing collection of boutique wineries is producing high-altitude wines shaped by the desert sun and dramatic temperature shifts, with some vineyards sitting above 3,000 meters. Go for the landscapes, but stay for long lunches among the vines and late nights of live folk music in a corner of Argentina that still feels decidedly local.
Kaieteur Falls is one of the most powerful single-drop waterfalls in the world. It is located on the Potaro River in Kaieteur National Park, central Essequibo Territory, Guyana. It is 226 metres (741 ft) high when measured from its plunge over a sandstone and conglomerate cliff to the first break. It then flows over a series of steep cascades that, when included in the measurements, bring the total height to 251 metres (822 ft). While many falls have greater height or greater flow, few have the combination of height and water volume, and Kaieteur is among the most powerful waterfalls in the world with an average flow rate of 663 cubic meters per second (23,400 cubic feet per second).Getty
7. Kaieteur Falls, Guyana
Guyana has long been South America’s best-kept secret, but that could be changing. The English-speaking country saw a record number of visitors in 2025 and will host the Caribbean Tourism Organization’s State of the Tourism Industry Conference for the first time in 2026—two signs that its remote rainforests are inching toward the spotlight. Yet Kaieteur Falls, a 741-foot single-drop waterfall set deep within Kaieteur National Park, is nothing new. Roughly four times as tall as Niagara Falls, the falls release an unimaginable volume of water per second, making them among the most powerful on Earth. The best time to visit is during the rainy season, from May to August, when Kaieteur is at its most dramatic. Unlike Iguazú or Niagara, there are no crowds, boardwalks, or hotels, just the thunder of the Potaro River plunging into the jungle below.
