Amazon Adventures

Brazil

Paraty

A beautiful colonial city, considered a National Historical Monument, it preserves until today its countless natural and architectural charms. Explore on foot the historical center of Paraty, free of cars , and you will travel back in time, where walking has to be done in a leisurely pace due to the irregular rounded cobblestone pavement of its streets. The construction of its old housing and churches reflect a certain style of that time and the mysterious masonry symbols which decorate its walls, lead our imagination back to the old times of Brazil. The prohibition of motorized vehicles in the Center certainly adds to this feeling of a "time travel".

The village was founded in 1667 around the Church of "Nossa Senhora dos Remedios", its patron saint. Paraty had a significant economic importance due to its sugar cane mills (it used to have over 250 distilleries), and the name "paraty" was at a certain time synonym of a very good sugar cane rum. In the 18th century, the port of Paraty was an important outlet for the gold and precious stones brought on horseback from Minas Gerais State to be shipped to Portugal. However, constant pirate assaults who took refuge in beaches such as Trindade , led to abandoning the gold route, resulting in a great economic isolation. After the opening of the Paraty-Cunha road, and especially after the opening of the Rio-Santos Highway in the seventies, Paraty became an attraction for Brazilian and international tourism, due to its good state of preservation and thanks to its natural beauties.

Its area comprises the National Park of Bocaina, the Environmental Protection Area of Cairuçu, where the village of Trindade is located , a place of rare beauty, the Park Reserve of Joatinga; it also has limits with the State Park of Serra do Mar. So, Paraty is surrounded everywhere by the Mata Atlantica, the luscious Atlantic Forest. It is about 4 hours from Rio.

I got swept up in Thanksgiving and Christmas preparations and forgot to tell you about Paraty. It was just right for us. The Pousada de Marquesa is right on the old town square. The guides were knowledgeable. After our guided tours we took really nice walks around the old town. We even found an internet cafe with great soup! It was a most enjoyable side trip. -
LaVonne Richardson

Suggested package:

Day 1 - transfer from Rio to Paraty, check into hotel. Afternoon city tour. Different from other Brazilian colonial cities, the Paraty architecture has character, originality and definition forming a harmonious architectural set of the XVIII century. Paraty today is a Historic National Monument and Historic Patrimony worldwide declared by UNESCO, and much more, natural patrimony for 65% of the area of the town is inside the National Park of Serra da Bocaina. This guided tour through the old part of town tells you all about its history and legends. Perfect tour for filming and photography.

Day 2 - breakfast, then schooner cruise. Paraty has 65 islands and many beaches of uncommon beauty. It is surrounded by exuberant vegetation that makes it a quiet and unbelievable place to stay. The waters are perfect for swimming and snorkeling.
Traditional tour with different routes for each day of week, it has four stops with about 40 minutes in each place, being one of them for lunch (la carte) aboard (optional). At these stops it is possible to dive with mask and snorkel for this we can do in clear and warm water. Among these 4 stops we have one that has become essential, due to tourist wishes, the Ilha Comprida which is known as a natural aquarium of fishes, which surround the boat and the people dive in, it is perfect to take pictures. All the boats offer security and comfort; beyond that, they have a good restaurant with option of fish or chicken, to make your tour more enjoyable. The tour includes tropical fruits, mask and snorkel. As with all of our other tours they come highly recommended by the "Lonely Planet" Guide to Brazil.

Day 3 - breakfast, free time till transfer back to Rio

Waterfalls and Distilleries Tour - This six hour tour leaves at 11:00am and goes into the beautiful surroundings of the National Florest of Serra da Bocaina. The first stop is at the old distillery at Cachaca where you can see the producion of, and sample, the tradicional Brazilian spirit, Cachaca. Afterwards you are driven the 5km to another clear waterfall - Tobogan - and for those of you who are more daring, you may take the opportunity to slide down the exciting natural "waterslide" which is formed by a smooth 30m rock face. (At your own risk!) After this you travel to an old farm at Murycana and take a twenty minute trek to another beautiful waterfall - Poço Ingles - set in the best preserved part of this charming rainforest, literally a haven for flora and fauna, and then onto another waterfull, Pedra branca. Depending on the time we either eat lunch here or slightly later at the Pereque river at a picturesque restaurant. The Tour returns to Jabaquara beach before stopping at the four hundred year old fort, and then returning to Paraty. You'll find each of these locations mentioned in the "Lonely Planet" Guide To Brazil.

Praia do Sono Tour (6 hours) - we go by van until Laranjeiras village( 40 minutes driving ) where we will start walking until Sono’s beach (one hour approximately). We will pass by a preserved area of the Rain Forest, inside of the AIPA do cairuçu ( Ambient Protection Area of Cairuçu ) where we will see different kinds of vegetation, birds and animals and at the end of the trail we arrive to the Sono’s Beach with its great sea and crystalline waters. The return to laranjeiras village will be made by the same trail. Included: mineral water and insect repellent.

The "Trindade" minibus 6 hour tour which takes you to the charming little fishing village. On the trip it visits four beaches and a natural swimming pool - "Caixa d'Aço". Firstly we travel to the beach near the village "Ranchos" and take a guided trek before arriving at the swimming pool. This trip takes forty minutes and on it we pass through beautiful natural mountain florests and glades. At Caixa d'Aço you can snorkel and swim in the crystal clear water if you wish. After this we travel to the main village of Trindade where we eat lunch (not included in the price). Included in the price are diving masks.

Day 4 - breakfast, free time till transfer back to Rio

2008 Price per person in US$ including roundtrip transfers from Rio and 2 or 3 nights hotel with breakfast and tours mentioned: (prices valid for most of year). Extra nights for more tours can be added.

	3 day package			4 day package
Hotel	single	double	triple	single	double	triple
Pousada do Sandi -	$598	$354	$335	$780	$463	$434
Pousada da Marquesa -	$783	$447	$447	$1058	$602	$602
Porto Imperial - - standard	$516	$331	$331	$658	$428	$428
Pousada do Principe - Superior	$445	$299	$288	$550	$381	$364

We particularly liked the schooner cruise in Paraty - it was relaxing, fun and absolutely beautiful. We loved everything about Paraty and would recommend it to anyone visiting Brazil.- Virginia Collum

Porto Imperial Inn Located in the Historical Center, it maintains intact its colonial style, with decorated rooms in extremely good taste. All 51 appartments (4 suites) have telephone, conditioned air, cable TV, minibar, safe, private bathroom. At your disposal, room service up to 23:00.To make you even more comfortable, we offer tea room, bar, games room, internal garden, swimming pool and sauna.

Pousada do Sandi, located in the historical center, is an antique house, built in the xviii century that preserves its old architecture. Has rooms with air conditioning, minibar, color tv, telephone, safe deposit box, and private bathroom. The hotel offers:game room /tv room/ fitness room/room convention/ bar / Swimming- pool / sauna.

The "Pousada da Marquesa" is the encounter of two eras: "Canyons, chains, works of art of several centuries associate the architectural beauty of Brazil's Colonial past with its preservation and modern confort. Where everything is authentic: the furniture of wide beds and the most diverse and rare pieces preserved in their beauty and extraordinary historical value, belong to the Brasilian Colonial style of the XVIIIth century. It has rooms equipped with air conditioning, minibar, color tv set, selected background music and ceiling–fans. The hotel offers: swimming- pool / bar / tearoom / parking lot / big garden.

Property of Prince Dom João de Orleans e Bragança great grandson of Princess Isabel, the Pousada do Príncipe combines nature and history blended with the charm and colonial harmony of Paraty. The Pousada was projected by Princess Dona Stella de Orleans e Bragança renowned architect and built to preserve the style and colors of the Brazilian colonial period, mixing tradition with the comfort required in the modern era. The Pousada has 34 comfortable apartments, all with internal view of its gardens and swimming pool. The project was conceived so that all apartments have the same pattern of comfort. The rooms have air conditioning, ceiling fan, TV, minibar, WC, central hot water system and mosquito netting. The Pousada offers a spacious leisure area with its 20-meter swimming pool, surrounded by gardens with trees, plants and flowers of the region. There is also a living room with cable TV, reading lounge, coffee shop and English bar.