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Itatiaia

Itatiaia | Districts

Agulhas Negras Peak  (credits: Andre Telles)

Located halfway between Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, the municipality of Itatiaia, on the Mantiqueira Range, is known mainly for its National Park, Brazil’s oldest environmental preservation area. Created in 1937, the park is visited by tourists and flora and fauna researchers, specially birdwatchers attracted to the over 360 different species that can be found in that area of Atlantic forest.

In the park’s lower regions visitors find several waterfalls, including the Bride’s Veil, 40 meters high. Also in this area visitors have a panoramic view of the surroundings from the Last Goodbye Lookout Point; further up there are rock formations over 2.500 meters high. The Agulhas Negras Peak stands out – at an altitude of 2.791 m, it is the highest point in the state.

With a population in excess of 35 thousand, Itatiaia is a typical Brazilian “small town”, with the Mariana Rocha Leão plaza’s old gazebo, the São José church and the Campo Belo palace, where City Hall is headquartered, as its main features.

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Annual temperatures vary between 15 and 27 C, but can be as low as 5 C in winter.

Snow has fallen over the Agulhas Negras Peak.

Colonized by Finnish immigrants that arrived there in 1929, the neighboring Penedo district occupies land once used by coffee farms.

Penedo offers a great variety of hotels, inns and restaurants catering to all tastes, from plain accommodations and menus to the most sophisticated.

Leisure options include hikes and nature contemplation, waterfall bathing and wine tasting by the fireplace.

Tags: itatiaia,  national-park.

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