AVENIDA COSTANERA - PLAYA SAN JOSÉ

La Costanera is a 27 km long coastal road between Encarnación and Carmen del Paraná. The work carried out over the past few years has accompanied the rise in the river's water level to supply the Yacyretá power station further west, at Ayolas. The landscape has been transformed by urban development, much to the delight of Paraguayan and Argentine tourists who come every summer to enjoy the miles of sandy beach and the bars and restaurants that have sprung up. People come to jog, cycle or rollerblade on the wide sidewalks, or dance Zumba facing the river, watching the sunset and the lights of Posadas on the other side of the river, which also has its own Costanera. The most popular beach is San José: golden sand, warm shallow water, parasols and sun cream, beach volleyball, jet-skis... For lovers of quiet beaches, it's best to avoid them (at least in summer), as Paraguay has no shortage of beautiful wild beaches on the rivers that cross the country! A number of interesting buildings have been preserved, including large silos and a flour mill dating from the 1940s, and the old railway station has been rebuilt using the bricks and doors of the original, which is now under water. This building houses the Memoria Viva museum, with thousands of photographs recounting the history of the city and its recent transformation, as well as an old locomotive.