Revamped to celebrate Itatiaia's 80th anniversary in 2017, this visitors center, 5km uphill from the lower entrance, houses exhibits about the biology and natural history of Brazil's oldest national park. A Portuguese-language video with English subtitles introduces Itatiaia's many ecosystems, waterfalls, trails and shelters. Other attractions include a huge scale model of the park, a one-room display on the history of local mountaineering and a natural history museum with dioramas featuring Itatiaia's wealth of mammals, birds, butterflies and insects.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
8.65 MILES
Brazil’s oldest national park, Itatiaia shelters a stunning variety of landscapes, from dense rainforests to spare and rugged upland peaks. Most visitors…
5.15 MILES
In the upper section of Parque Nacional do Itatiaia, this jumble of massive boulders is one of the park's highest peaks (2548m) and a favorite climbing…
5.84 MILES
Parque Nacional do Itatiaia's highest peak, Agulhas Negras (2791m) gets its name – meaning 'Black Needles' – from the serrated form of its imposing…
9.37 MILES
Among the nicest and most accessible of Mauá’s dozen or so waterfalls, this one is a 10-minute drive or a 40-minute walk northwest of Alto Maringá via the…
1.69 MILES
Reached by a 500m trail through the forest, a few kilometers up the road from park headquarters, this 40m-high waterfall tumbles down a cliff face into a…
1.86 MILES
Accessible via a 750m trail a few kilometers up the road from park headquarters, this broad series of falls tumbles over rocky shelves into a deep emerald…
5.08 MILES
This waterfall and its popular adjacent swimming hole are 2km west of downtown Penedo along the main road just before it starts climbing to Alto do Penedo.
4.65 MILES
This waterfall is about a 20-minute walk uphill from the bus turnaround in Alto do Penedo. Ask locally for directions, as signs are intermittent.
Nearby Rio de Janeiro State attractions
0.23 MILES
From park headquarters, a 500m trail descends to this natural pool in the Rio Campo Belo, a popular spot for swimming.
0.65 MILES
Accessible via a short flight of steps off the main road, about 2.5 miles above the lower park entrance, this viewpoint commands sweeping views of…
1.59 MILES
Just below the point where the lower park road dead-ends, Maromba's waters surge through a rocky gorge into a sun-dappled natural swimming hole.
1.69 MILES
Reached by a 500m trail through the forest, a few kilometers up the road from park headquarters, this 40m-high waterfall tumbles down a cliff face into a…
1.86 MILES
Accessible via a 750m trail a few kilometers up the road from park headquarters, this broad series of falls tumbles over rocky shelves into a deep emerald…
4.65 MILES
This waterfall is about a 20-minute walk uphill from the bus turnaround in Alto do Penedo. Ask locally for directions, as signs are intermittent.
5.08 MILES
This waterfall and its popular adjacent swimming hole are 2km west of downtown Penedo along the main road just before it starts climbing to Alto do Penedo.