The Angel Falls was one of the last of the world's wonders to be opened up the to world. They largely remained an unknown quantity until the mid-1950s. And they didn't open up to tourists until 1990 when tourists were first permitted to visit the falls.

While the indigenous Pemon people knew of the falls for centuries, Angel Falls (Salto Ángel) only became a viable tourist destination in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The falls were "discovered" by the outside world in 1933 when American aviator Jimmie Angel flew over them, but the extreme remoteness of the Canaima National Park in Venezuela made access nearly impossible for decades. It wasn't until the development of the Canaima Camp and more reliable small-aircraft charters that organized tourism began to flourish. Even today, "opening to tourists" is a relative term; the falls are still only accessible via a flight to Canaima followed by a several-hour journey in a motorized dugout canoe (curiara) up the Carrao and Churun rivers. Due to its location in a "tepui" (table-top mountain) region, visitors can only reach the base during the rainy season (June to December) when the rivers are high enough for the boats to navigate the rapids.