Venezuela - The southeastern section of Venezuela is home to one of the nation's principal tourist attractions: Angel Falls, the world's tallest waterfall. In addition to Angel Falls and hundreds of other tropical jungle waterfalls, this area is marked by distinct geological formations, or tepuis -- massive steep-walled and flat-topped mesas that inspired Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Lost World. A large chunk of this region, more than 3 million hectares (7 million acres), is protected within Canaima National Park, the largest national park in Venezuela and the sixth largest in the world.

The small Pemón Indian village and tourist enclave of Canaima is the gateway to Angel Falls and much of this region. Set on the edge of a black-water lagoon ringed with soft, pink-sand beaches; fed by a series of powerful waterfalls; and surrounded by miles of untouched jungle, the word "idyllic" doesn't do this spot justice.

This region is also known as the Gran Sabana, or "Great Plains," as it features large stretches of flat savanna broken up only by these imposing tepuis. However, the area around Canaima itself is mostly hilly and thickly forested. The true Gran Sabana is located in the southeastern (and much less visited) section of Canaima National Park.

Venezuela Map