Brazil’s oldest national park, Itatiaia shelters a stunning variety of landscapes, from dense rainforests to spare and rugged upland peaks. Most visitors head for the park's more accessible lower section, where numerous short trails lead through lush greenery to waterfalls and natural swimming holes. Serious hikers and climbers find endless excitement in Itatiaia's wild, remote high country, reached by a tortuous unpaved road, while nature lovers relish the park's abundant flora and fauna, from orchids to monkeys to tropical birds.
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Parque Nacional do Itatiaia
Top choice in Rio de Janeiro State
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
4.14 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…
2.9 MILES
Parque Nacional do Itatiaia's highest peak, Agulhas Negras (2791m) gets its name – meaning 'Black Needles' – from the serrated form of its imposing…
8.65 MILES
Revamped to celebrate Itatiaia's 80th anniversary in 2017, this visitors center, 5km uphill from the lower entrance, houses exhibits about the biology and…
5.36 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…
7 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…
6.8 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…
10.64 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.
9.7 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
2.9 MILES
Parque Nacional do Itatiaia's highest peak, Agulhas Negras (2791m) gets its name – meaning 'Black Needles' – from the serrated form of its imposing…
4.14 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…
4.85 MILES
This very beautiful waterfall is 300m south of the main road, just west of Maromba.
5.36 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…
6.8 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…
7 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…
7.07 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.