The Top 10 Best Waterfalls of the World

It’s not easy to put together a Top 10 Best Waterfalls of the World List because it’s completely subjective and limited to each person’s experience with the falls being named.

Heck, even my wife and I couldn’t agree on our own favorites.

Our travels have covered all major regions of the world. This includes North America, Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe, Africa and the Middle-East, Asia, and Oceania and the South Pacific.

Indeed, Julie and I believe that we have a pretty extensive survey of such waterfalls, but we recognize that this list can change as we continue to collect more waterfall sightings from around the world.

So without further ado, we present our list of the World’s 10 Best Waterfalls in reverse order…

#10 SUTHERLAND FALLS

Fiordland National Park, New Zealand

In a country that holds a special place in our hearts, this gorgeous 580m waterfall was easily New Zealand’s most spectacular waterfall.

Julie and I found it to be heads-and-shoulders better than the other waterfalls that we’ve visited in the Land of the Long White Cloud.

And given its remote location deep in the wild and beautiful Fiordland National Park (a UNESCO World Heritage Area), we definitely had to earn our visit. As one of many highlights of the Milford Track – proclaimed as one of the finest walks in the world – it sat in one of New Zealand’s most scenic spots.

Indeed, this waterfall had a lot going for it, and we just had to make room for it on this list.

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#9 PLITVICE WATERFALLS

Northern Dalmatia, Croatia

When it came to the overall waterfalling experience, it was hard to beat this world famous attraction.

While the rest of the waterfalls on our Top 10 List are primarily singular waterfall attractions, this one consisted of a network of countless waterfalls.

Some of the individual waterfalls impressed us enough to stand out on their own!

The waterfalls themselves segregated the many clear and colorful lakes that brought life to this lush and protected ecosystem.

As Julie and I walked along its many walkways, we went under, over, and around almost all of the notable waterfalls in this network.

This resulted in one of the most intimate waterfalling experiences we’ve ever had.

Add it all up, putting these waterfalls on this list was an absolute no-brainer as far as we were concerned.

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#8 DETTIFOSS

Vatnajökull (Jökulsárgljúfur) National Park, Iceland

This was one of Europe’s most powerful waterfalls.

Sending glacial melt-waters over its 44m precipice unchecked at a flow of around 500 cubic meters per second, we literally felt the ground tremble beneath our feet as we stood and watched such awesome power from up close!

Positioned at the head of the impressive Jökulsárgljúfur (the Icelandic version of the Grand Canyon) while surrounded by three other major waterfalls on the same river, it epitomized the wild and raw landscape that characterized Iceland.

Indeed, nature lovers from both near and far loved this waterfall.

So we easily included this juggernaut on our Top 10 Best Waterfalls List.

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#7 GULLFOSS

Haukadalur, Iceland

One of the more unique waterfalls we had ever seen in the world, this wild and wide waterfall tumbled on the Hvítá River in two tiers at 90 degree angles to each other.

Part of the Golden Circle of Iceland’s main attractions in the Southwest, it pretty much sat on everyone’s travel itineraries.

In addition to the falls’ unique shape, we also saw rainbows arcing over the falls when we weather cooperated.

Thus, we had no issues with including this golden waterfall on our list of favorites.

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#6 YOSEMITE FALLS

Yosemite National Park (California), USA

Even though this waterfall doesn’t flow year round, it does flow for a good part of the year. Plus, it dropped a whopping 2,425ft making it one of the tallest in the world.

As the crown jewel of attractions in the incomparable Yosemite Valley, we managed to see this waterfall from a multitude of viewpoints and trails.

Julie and I have seen this falls so many times and in so many ways that we tend to think of it like an old friend.

So given its ease of access, scenery, location, and sheer size, we had no doubt about including this waterfall in our Top 10 Best Waterfalls List.

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#5 KAIETEUR FALLS

Potaro River, Guyana

Said to be one of the tallest single-drop waterfalls in the world, this rectangular-shaped monster (said to be 741ft tall and 370ft wide) sat atop the ancient Guyana Shield amidst some of the most pristine rainforest left on earth!

Indeed a visit to this world wonder could yield rare wildlife settings. It also reassured us that places like this where nature can thrive still exist.

And after experiencing this place for ourselves, we had to make room for this waterfall on our Top 10 List!

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#4 ANGEL FALLS (SALTO ÁNGEL)

Canaima, Venezuela

This waterfall has been widely acknowledged as the tallest permanent waterfall in the world.

Plunging uninterrupted for 807m (with total drop of 979m) from a mystical tabletop mountain (tepuy) deep in a Venezuelan equatorial rainforest, its existence defies logic as its source is nothing but the soggy cloud forest wrenching moisture onto the plateau itself.

No doubt about it, there’s nothing like this waterfall and there’s just something to be said about seeing the World’s Tallest Waterfall.

Besides, the adventure to even get to this so-called Lost World (Mundo Perdido) for a chance to see this world wonder certainly left Julie and I a lasting impression.

We’re sure it will do to same to anyone else fortunate enough to make the adventure and be blessed with a sighting of this special place.

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#3 NIAGARA FALLS

Ontario, Canada / New York, USA

Easily the most famous waterfall in North America, this powerful waterfall also ranks as the biggest one by volume with a whopping average of about 7000 cubic meters per second!

In addition to its raw power, we had no problems visiting the falls given its easy access. We also had no trouble viewing it from all sorts of angles.

Julie and I managed to visit this waterfall twice. And with each visit, we still couldn’t help but be awestruck at its sheer size and power.

While its surroundings were a bit less naturesque for our liking, we couldn’t deny that it clearly belonged among the upper tier of our list of Top 10 Waterfalls.

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#2 VICTORIA FALLS (MOSI-OA-TUNYA)

Livingstone, Zambia / Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

Easily deserving of the top spot on this list (though it finished a very close second), it’s the largest singular waterfall in the world spanning a width of 1.7km, a height of 108m, and an average flow of 1 million liters per second!

It’s no wonder this “smoke that thunders” is considered one of the seven natural wonders of the world and is a UNESCO World Heritage site.

While Julie and I had trouble staying dry and seeing through the intense mist from the ground, we also managed to experience it from the air to truly appreciate its awesome size and scale!

Indeed, it made us feel humble and awestruck, and we suspect it will do the same to you, too!

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#1 IGUAZÚ FALLS (IGUASSU FALLS)

Puerto Iguazú, Argentina / Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil

With its brink spanning a distance of an incredible 2km in its average flow of 1000 cubic meters per second, this falls tops our list of the 10 best waterfalls in the world.

The falls actually consists of some 275 individual waterfalls and cascades.

Catwalks made it easy for Julie and I to get closeup and intimate with many of these waterfalls, and the rainforest surroundings made the scenery feel right for a natural attraction such as this.

Put it all together and we believe this falls is heads and shoulders above the rest (except Victoria Falls) that we’ve seen!

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Below are a few more Top 10 lists of the waterfalls we’ve visited.