Paraguay is a landlocked country between Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia, home to large swaths of swampland, subtropical forest and chaco, wildernesses comprising savanna and scrubland. The capital, Asunción, on the banks of the Paraguay River, is home to the grand Government Palace and the Museo del Barro, displaying pre-Columbian ceramics and ñandutí lacework, the latter available in many shops.

South of Asunción, Ybycuí National Park features waterfalls and a rainforest. In the far south, near Encarnación, are ruins of a couple 17th-century Jesuit missions. On the banks of the Paraná River in the east is Ciudad del Este, offering duty-free shopping and proximity to the huge Itaipu Dam and, across the border in Brazil, renowned Iguazú Falls. To the north is Cerro Corá National Park, with flat-topped hills and pre-Columbian petroglyphs. The sparsely populated west is home to Defensores del Chaco National Park and its jaguars, armadillos and Jabiru storks.