State · PA · Region North

Pará

The Amazon's eastern gateway: Belém's food and heritage, Marajó island at the river mouth and the white-sand beaches of Alter do Chão on the Tapajós.

BelémCapital

3Destinations

3Airports

Key figures

Area1,245,832 km²IBGE, 2025

Population8.12 millionIBGE Census, 2022

BiomeAmazon (entire territory)IBGE, 2019

AçaíBrazil's largest producerIBGE, 2023

The state

Pará spans the eastern Amazon, from the river's vast mouth and Marajó island to the clear waters of the Tapajós and the mineral-rich Carajás region. Belém, founded by the Portuguese in 1616, was long the commercial and administrative heart of the Amazon, and its rubber-era buildings, the Theatro da Paz and the Ver-o-Peso market reflect that past. The state has one of Brazil's most distinctive food cultures, built on tucupi, jambu, cassava and açaí, which led UNESCO to name Belém a Creative City of Gastronomy in 2015, while the Círio de Nazaré each October is among the largest religious gatherings in the world.

For agencies, Pará offers depth in culture and gastronomy in Belém, river islands and buffalo ranches on Marajó, and freshwater beaches, forest communities and the Tapajós National Forest around Santarém and Alter do Chão. Belém has hosted major international events, including the COP30 climate conference in 2025, and suits MICE groups alongside FIT and special-interest programs. Distances are considerable: Belém and Santarém are best connected by air, Marajó is reached by ferry or fast boat from Belém, and beach programs on the Tapajós depend on seasonal water levels.

When to go

In Belém the drier season runs roughly from June to November, while December to May is wetter, though short tropical showers occur year round. On the Tapajós, the river beaches of Alter do Chão emerge mainly between August and December, when the water is low.

Where we operate

Destinations 3

Destinations in this state covered by YourBrasil ground services.

STM

Alter do Chão

Alter do Chão is a riverside village on the Tapajós River, part of the municipality of Santarém in the heart of Pará state, the…

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BEL

Belém

Belém, capital of Pará, stands on Guajará Bay near the mouth of the Amazon system and is the historic gateway to the region. It…

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BEL

Ilha de Marajó

Ilha de Marajó, at the mouth of the Amazon across the bay from Belém, covers about 40,100 square kilometres and is described as the…

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Timeline

400 BC-1600 AD
The Marajoara culture flourishes on Marajó island, known today for its elaborate ceramics.
1616
The Portuguese build the Forte do Presépio, founding the city of Belém.
1625
A tax inspection post, the Casa de Haver o Peso, is set up on the Belém waterfront, origin of the Ver-o-Peso market.
1793
The first Círio de Nazaré procession is held in Belém.
1823
On 15 August, Pará adheres to Brazilian independence, a date still celebrated as a state holiday.
1835-1840
The Cabanagem, a popular uprising against poverty and political exclusion, devastates the province.
1878
The Theatro da Paz opens in Belém during the rubber era.
2025
Belém hosts the United Nations COP30 climate conference in November.

Landmarks

Ver-o-Peso

Belém's historic waterfront market complex, listed by IPHAN in 1977, with fish, herbs and Amazon produce.

Theatro da Paz

Neoclassical theater opened in 1878, a symbol of Belém's rubber-era prosperity.

Estação das Docas

Restored riverside warehouses in Belém housing restaurants, shops and event spaces.

Forte do Presépio

The 1616 fort where Belém was founded, overlooking Guajará Bay.

Ilha de Marajó

Vast island at the Amazon mouth with buffalo ranches, beaches and Marajoara heritage, reached by ferry to Soure and Salvaterra.

Alter do Chão

Village on the Tapajós with white-sand river beaches such as Ilha do Amor, about 37 km from Santarém.

Tapajós National Forest

Federal protected forest created in 1974 along the Tapajós, with traditional communities and dense rainforest.

Festivals and events

Círio de Nazaré

Belém's great procession in honor of Our Lady of Nazareth on the second Sunday of October, within a fortnight of religious and cultural events.

Festa do Çairé

Alter do Chão's traditional festival, usually in September, combining religious rites with the contest between the Tucuxi and Cor-de-Rosa dolphin groups.

The flag

A red field crossed diagonally by a white band bearing a blue star. The band evokes the zodiac, the equator and the Amazon River, the star corresponds to Spica, which represents Pará on the national flag, and the red recalls the blood and dedication of Pará's people.

Curiosities

Marajó, at about 40,100 km², is the second-largest island in South America, and its herds of water buffalo are said to outnumber its human population.
The Círio de Nazaré, held on the second Sunday of October, draws around two million people and was inscribed by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2013.
During the Círio, devotees pull a rope roughly 400 m long attached to the carriage bearing the image of Our Lady of Nazareth.
In Pará, açaí is traditionally eaten unsweetened as a thick purée alongside fried fish and cassava flour, not as a sweet dessert.
Pará is Brazil's largest producer of açaí.
The iron structure of the Ver-o-Peso fish market, inaugurated in 1901, was prefabricated abroad and shipped to Belém.
The Carajás mine in southeastern Pará is described as the largest iron ore mine in the world.
Alter do Chão, on the Tapajós River near Santarém, is often called the 'Caribbean of the Amazon' for its white-sand freshwater beaches.

At the table

Pato no tucupi

Roast duck simmered in tucupi and jambu, served with rice and cassava flour, the traditional Círio lunch.

Maniçoba

Ground cassava leaves cooked for days to remove their toxins and finished with pork, a Círio classic.

Tacacá

A hot soup of tucupi, cassava gum, dried shrimp and jambu, served in gourds by street vendors.

Açaí with fried fish

Unsweetened açaí served with fried fish and farinha, the everyday Pará way of eating the fruit.

Filhote

A large Amazon catfish and a staple of Pará cooking, served grilled, fried or in stews.

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The state

Destinations 3

Alter do Chão

Belém

Ilha de Marajó

Timeline

Landmarks

Ver-o-Peso

Theatro da Paz

Estação das Docas

Forte do Presépio

Ilha de Marajó

Alter do Chão

Tapajós National Forest

Festivals and events

Círio de Nazaré

Festa do Çairé

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