Best Rainbow and Spray-Bow Waterfalls
Where there is sun and falling water, there are rainbows. Some waterfalls produce them so reliably they have become photographic icons. The best time is the few hours after sunrise and before sunset, when the sun angle is low. All ten on the map.
1. Niagara Horseshoe Falls
Reliable afternoon rainbow in the Horseshoe Falls spray, visible from Table Rock and the Maid of the Mist boat. Best in summer.
2. Iguazú Garganta del Diablo
Rainbow visible from the upper walkway most sunny afternoons. The walkway above the Garganta gets you within 50 m of the bow.
3. Skógafoss, Iceland
Iceland's south coast frequently has rainbows in the Skógafoss spray — the falls face south and the sun crosses the valley.
4. Victoria Falls
Daytime rainbows are constant in the mid-flow season; full-moon nights produce 'moonbows' — a Victoria specialty.
5. Cumberland Falls, Kentucky
Western hemisphere's only regular moonbow besides Victoria Falls. Visible nightly within two days of full moon, weather permitting.
6. Yosemite Lower Falls
Spring snowmelt produces reliable afternoon rainbow in the Lower Yosemite Fall spray. April-May peak.
7. Multnomah Falls
Spring through autumn rainbows visible from Benson Bridge most sunny mid-mornings — the sun catches the upper-fall mist.
8. Goðafoss
Late-summer afternoons in Iceland (mid-July-mid-September) produce clear rainbows on the west bank of Goðafoss as the sun moves west.
9. Tugela Falls
Drakensberg afternoons produce rainbows in the Tugela spray as the sun crosses the amphitheatre. Best summer (Dec-Feb).
10. Kuang Si, Laos
Dry-season mornings (December-April) catch the rising sun at the base of Kuang Si's main fall — a vivid double rainbow on lucky days.
See them all in one view
All of these are pinned on our interactive map.