Iceland seems to overflow with waterfalls, each with its own fascinating features. Seljalandsfoss, in the south, isn’t the tallest (with a drop of 200 feet/61m) but it’s one of the few waterfalls in the world that you can walk all the way around.
In the heart of Jajce, a charming 14th-century city surrounded by medieval walls, Pliva Waterfall splashes down a drop of just 55 feet (17m). But its breadth and picture-perfect surroundings – with red rooftops peeping from hillsides thick with trees – mean it punches (and splashes) well above its height when it comes to beauty.
When one waterfall just isn’t enough, there’s Iguazú Falls – the world’s largest waterfall system and certainly among the most awe-inspiring sights. The chain of cascades, which encompasses more than 270 waterfalls and covers 1.7 miles (2.7km), straddles the border of Brazil and Argentina
Technically, the largest known falls is the Denmark Strait cataract, which lies beneath the Atlantic Ocean. But, on land, Angel Falls takes the literal top spot as the world’s tallest waterfall, crashing 3,212 feet (979m) over the edge of the Auyán-tepui mountain and into the Churun River.
A mighty sight on the mighty Zambezi River, Victoria Falls is more than 5,500 feet (1,700m) wide and has a sheer drop of 355 feet (108m). In other words, it’s an incredible sight – and has a roar to match. The thundering sound as the water crashes down the near-vertical drop is loud and creates such a veil of mist
One of the world’s largest waterfalls is tucked deep in the Bosque de Cataratas Gigantes de Cuispes – which, appropriately, translates as Forest of Gigantic Waterfalls of Cuispes – near the town of Chachapoyas. At nearly 3,000 feet (914m) high, it’s an extraordinary sight with its silvery cascade surrounded by verdant, tangled jungle.
It rushes over red-rock cliffs thickly blanketed with forest, which surround the falls with swathes of emerald green trees draped in mist. Heavy rainfall here in Meghalaya, in eastern India, keeps the landscape verdant, while locals have created bridges from living trees to help them get around in times of monsoon.