Centro-Oeste

Chapada dos Veadeiros

All of Brazil, within reach.

Nearest airportBSB
RegionCentro-Oeste
StateGoiás
TimezoneUTC-3 (Brasília Time)
Goiás flag
Goiás
Eight alternating horizontal stripes — four green, four yellow — with a blue canton in the upper left bearing five white five-pointed stars in the Southern Cross pattern; green stands for the state's forests, yellow for its mineral wealth. Adopted 30 July 1919.
Gallery

Chapada dos Veadeiros in pictures

silhouette of hill during night time
water falls in the middle of the forest
waterfalls during daytime
waterfalls in the middle of green trees
waterfalls under blue sky during daytime
foto aérea do mar perto de árvores
uma árvore rosa no meio de uma estrada de terra
um campo de grama alta com árvores ao fundo
Dirt road through a grassy landscape under a blue sky
Overview

About Chapada dos Veadeiros

Chapada dos Veadeiros is a high plateau of ancient Cerrado savanna in northeastern Goiás, roughly 235 km north of Brasília, built around one of Brazil's oldest exposed landscapes — quartzite rock estimated at 1.8 billion years old — and a dense concentration of waterfalls, canyons and natural pools fed by the headwaters of the Tocantins basin. The core Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Veadeiros, entered through the rustic village of São Jorge, offers self-guided trails to falls such as the 120-metre Salto do Rio Preto, while the surrounding region — including the gateway town of Alto Paraíso de Goiás — holds equally celebrated attractions like Vale da Lua and the Cachoeira dos Couros on private land, most requiring a licensed local guide. As part of the "Cerrado Protected Areas: Chapada dos Veadeiros and Emas National Parks" UNESCO World Heritage listing, and home to Kalunga quilombola territory, the destination pairs a strong ecotourism/adventure trekking product with a well-established wellness and "energy tourism" market, making it a natural fit for DMCs building multi-day nature and soft-adventure itineraries out of Brasília.

BSB

Aeroporto Internacional de Brasília (Presidente Juscelino Kubitschek)

~235 km / ~3h50 by road to Alto Paraíso de Goiás

Primary gateway; paved road via BR-010 to Alto Paraíso de Goiás, then GO-239 on to São Jorge (park entrance).

History

How Chapada dos Veadeiros came to be

Sourced milestones your team can use for guest briefings and storytelling — not filler copy.

01
Mid-18th century
Cattle ranching and gold-era settlement begins in the region that becomes Alto Paraíso de Goiás; the area is also settled by Kalunga communities descended from escaped enslaved people.
02
1953
Alto Paraíso is established as its own municipality.
03
1961
Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Veadeiros is created by presidential decree under President Juscelino Kubitschek.
04
1963
The municipality is renamed Alto Paraíso de Goiás.
05
2001
UNESCO inscribes the site as part of "Cerrado Protected Areas: Chapada dos Veadeiros and Emas National Parks" World Heritage listing; the Pouso Alto Environmental Protection Area (APA) is also created the same year.
06
2003
Following legal challenges to the park's boundaries, the protected area is reduced to roughly 65,500 hectares.
07
2017
A presidential decree more than triples the park to about 240,600 hectares, folding in a mosaic of private reserves and Kalunga quilombola territory.
08
2019
UNESCO approves a minor boundary modification to the World Heritage site.
Good to know

Curiosities & practical notes

✓The plateau's exposed quartzite rock is estimated at roughly 1.8 billion years old, among the oldest surface geology in Brazil.
✓Altitudes in the park range from about 600 m to 1,650 m, with the highest point, Serra da Santana, reaching 1,691 m.
✓The Salto do Rio Preto drops about 120 metres and is one of the tallest and most photographed waterfalls in the park.
✓Trails inside the official national park are self-guided (no mandatory ranger or guide), while most attractions outside the park boundary — Vale da Lua, Cachoeira dos Couros, Almécegas — are on private land and typically require a licensed local guide.
✓Many of the region's best-known postcard attractions, including Vale da Lua and Cachoeira dos Couros, sit outside the formal UNESCO-listed national park boundary, on private ranches.
✓The area has a long history of milky-quartz crystal deposits, historically mined and exported for industrial use; crystal shops remain a fixture in São Jorge and Alto Paraíso.
✓The region has a well-established reputation as a spiritual/energy-tourism hub, with holistic therapy centers and crystal shops alongside its adventure-trekking economy.
✓The park is home to part of the Kalunga territory, one of Brazil's largest quilombola (Afro-descendant) communities.
✓Some of the more demanding routes, such as the multi-day Travessia das 7 Quedas, are only open during the dry season (roughly June to October).
✓Park hiking access generally runs 8am–12pm for trail starts, with all visitors required to exit attractions by 6pm.
✓The village of São Jorge, the park's access point, still has unpaved streets and keeps a rustic, alternative character despite growing tourism.
✓An annual gathering, the Encontro de Culturas Tradicionais, draws artists, hikers and travelers to São Jorge each June.
Gastronomy

What's on the table

01

Arroz com Pequi

Rice cooked with pequi, the pungent, prized fruit of the Cerrado — the region's signature dish.

02

Empadão Goiano

A deep savory pie filled with chicken (or pork/beef), hearts of palm, olives and Minas cheese.

03

Galinhada

A one-pot rice dish with free-range chicken, pequi, guariroba and saffron-like coloring.

04

Frango com Guariroba

Chicken stewed with guariroba, a slightly bitter native Cerrado palm heart.

05

Pamonha

Fresh corn wrapped and steamed in the husk, served sweet or savory.

06

Peixe na Telha

River fish baked on a ceramic roof tile, a traditional Goiás preparation.

07

Leitão à Pururuca

Roast suckling pig served with crackling, golden-crisp skin.

Landmarks

What there is to see

Marked where a site carries UNESCO World Heritage status directly, versus a locally or nationally protected landmark.

UNESCO

Parque Nacional da Chapada dos Veadeiros

The core protected area, entered via São Jorge, with self-guided trails to the park's main waterfalls and canyons.

UNESCO

Salto do Rio Preto

A roughly 120-metre waterfall inside the national park, reached via the Trilha dos Saltos.

UNESCO

Cânion II

A dramatic river canyon inside the national park, reached via the Trilha dos Cânions.

Landmark

Vale da Lua

Sculpted rock formations and natural pools along the Rio São Miguel, about 6 km from São Jorge — on private land outside the park.

Landmark

Cachoeira dos Couros (Catarata dos Couros)

A powerful multi-drop waterfall complex near Alto Paraíso, outside the formal park boundary.

Landmark

Cachoeiras Almécegas I e II

A pair of waterfalls on the Fazenda São Bento, among the region's most visited private attractions.

Landmark

Complexo Loquinhas

Crystalline blue-green natural pools close to Alto Paraíso, popular for swimming.

Landmark

São Jorge

The rustic gateway village at the national park entrance, with pousadas, crystal shops and a strong alternative-tourism culture.

Landmark

Alto Paraíso de Goiás

The region's main gateway town, with the fuller range of hotel, restaurant and banking infrastructure.

For DMC partners

What else we brief agencies on

This is what we prepare for every RFP, whether or not it's published on this page yet:

On request for every proposal

  • Best season / weather windows and blackout dates for groups & MICE
  • Permit and quota logistics for regulated attractions — lead time and group-size caps
  • Accessibility notes and physical-difficulty ratings per activity
  • Vetted ground partners, guides and transport already used on past programs
  • Sustainability / certification credentials relevant to client RFPs, where they genuinely exist
  • Real, checked room and vehicle availability for your travel dates — not a generic quote

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