# Paraty: map, what to do and when to go

A colonial center of stone streets closed to cars, on a bay with dozens of islands on the south coast of Rio de Janeiro. It was the port for Minas Gerais gold in the 18th century and today forms, with Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site.

Canonical: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/
Language: en. Extended author commentary and itinerary notes may remain in Portuguese. Dates below belong to individual sources; this is not live availability.

## Direct answer
- **Paraty: How do you get there from Rio or São Paulo?** Viação Costa Verde connects Rio to Paraty in about 4 hours 40 minutes, with nine departures a day, and Reunidas connects São Paulo to Paraty in six to seven hours; by car, it is 249 km from Rio along the Rio-Santos, about 3 hours 45 minutes without traffic.
- **Paraty: How many days should you stay?** Three days: one for the historic center on foot, one for the bay, by schooner or trawler, and one for Trindade.
- **Paraty: Schooner or trawler for the boat trip?** The schooner is the cheapest way, at about five hours and leaving at 10:30 a.m.

## The historic center, the churches and the fort
Do this day between Wednesday and Saturday, when the three churches open to visitors are working. Start at 8 a.m. at Largo de Santa Rita, beside the pier, and walk the side streets off Rua do Comércio before the crowds build.
- Igreja de Santa Rita
- Igreja Matriz de Nossa Senhora dos Remédios
- Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Rosário e São Benedito
- Forte Defensor Perpétuo
- Casa da Cultura de Paraty
- Teatro Espaço

## Penha: Caminho do Ouro, waterfall and distillery
Book the walk with an authorized guide on the Caminho do Ouro in advance.
- Centro Histórico de Paraty
- Baía de Paraty
- Praia do Jabaquara
- Caminho do Ouro
- Cachoeira do Tobogã

## Centro Histórico de Paraty
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-centro-historico-de-paraty
One to two hours
Houses from the 18th and 19th centuries between the Perequê-Açu and Patitiba rivers, with pé de moleque streets and geometric symbols in relief on the façades, attributed to Freemasonry. The center is closed to cars by chains and floods at high tides under a full moon near the pier. It is worth going into the side streets off Rua do Comércio, which are emptier, and looking for the Chafariz do Pedreira, from 1851, and the six Passos da Paixão, oratories that open only during Holy Week.
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## Igreja de Santa Rita
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-igreja-de-santa-rita
Up to half an hour
Built in 1722 by the freed pardos, it is the oldest church in the historic center and the best-known image of Paraty, beside the pier. The Museu de Arte Sacra de Paraty, run by Ibram, is housed here, with clay, wood and metal pieces from the 17th to the 20th century from the municipality's churches, among them the Corpus Christi monstrance, the crowns of the Imperador do Divino and those of the Rei and Rainha do Rosário. It is open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 to 5 p.m., with free admission; photography is not allowed and swimwear is not permitted. Next door is the Antiga Cadeia, home of the Instituto Histórico e Artístico de Paraty.
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## Igreja Matriz de Nossa Senhora dos Remédios
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-igreja-matriz-de-nossa-senhora
Paraty · Up to half an hour
The town's largest church takes up an entire block on Praça da Matriz. Construction began in 1787 and was finished only with the money of Geralda Maria da Silva, who paid for the end of the work; the church opened for worship on September 7, 1873. It is neoclassical, with unfinished towers, and holds life-size Holy Week images and a 17th-century baptismal font. It is open Wednesday to Sunday, 9 to 11 a.m. and 1:30 to 4 p.m.
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## Igreja de Nossa Senhora do Rosário e São Benedito
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-igreja-de-nossa-senhora-do
Paraty · Up to half an hour
The church of the enslaved people, begun in 1725 and rebuilt around 1757 by the Irmandade do Rosário dos Pretos. It is the only church in Paraty with gilded altars, but the gilding dates from the early 20th century. The carving on the altars of São Benedito and São João Batista is the most important of the town's churches. It is the center of the November festival, with a King and Queen. It is open Tuesday to Saturday, 9 to 11 a.m. and 2 to 5 p.m.
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## Forte Defensor Perpétuo
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-forte-defensor-perpetuo
Paraty · One to two hours
A battery built in 1793 on the hill where the settlement began, to protect the port of gold and sugar, and rebuilt in 1822 with a name that honors Pedro I. Today it is an Ibram museum, with English cannons, sugar kettles, a stock used to punish enslaved people and jongo drums. It is about 1.3 km from Largo de Santa Rita, by way of Pontal, with the final climb along a path through the forest. The museum is open Wednesday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; the outdoor area, with a view of the bay and the center, is open every day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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## Baía de Paraty
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-baia-de-paraty
Half a day or more
The sheltered bay has dozens of islands and beaches that can only be reached by sea. Schooners leave from the pier in the historic center at around 10:30 a.m. and 11 a.m. for trips of about five hours, with stops for swimming and snorkeling at places such as Ilha Comprida, Lagoa Azul and Praia da Lula; the meal on board is paid separately. For small groups, wooden trawlers and motorboats can be hired at the pier, with the route and stops agreed in advance.
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## Praia do Jabaquara
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-praia-do-jabaquara
Paraty · One to two hours
A long beach without waves, with kiosks, about 1.3 km from the center, also reachable by the path to the fort. It is good for children, kayaking and stand-up paddleboarding, and the mud on the bottom gives its name to the Bloco da Lama, on the Saturday before Carnival. The water is not as clear as at the beaches of the bay and Trindade.
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## Casa da Cultura de Paraty
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-casa-da-cultura-de-paraty
Paraty · Up to half an hour
A mansion from 1754 on the corner of Rua Dona Geralda and Rua Samuel Costa, next to Praça da Matriz, with an exhibition on local history and culture, temporary shows and music performances. According to Viaje na Viagem (page updated in September 2026), it is open Tuesday to Saturday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m., with free admission.
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## Teatro Espaço
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-teatro-espaco
Paraty · Up to half an hour
A hall in the historic center that stages puppet theater for adults, with shows at 9 p.m. on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and extra showtimes during vacations and holidays. The program changes, and seats are limited: check the show and buy tickets in advance.
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## Caminho do Ouro
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-caminho-do-ouro
One to two hours
A preserved stretch of the old Estrada Real, paved with stones by enslaved labor, which climbs the mountains inside the forest of the Serra da Bocaina National Park. The entrance is in the Penha neighborhood, opposite the church on the rock, about 9 km from the center. Because the path crosses private property, visits are allowed only with an authorized guide and must be scheduled.
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## Cachoeira do Tobogã
https://nilopelomundo.com/en/place/paraty/#g-lugar-cachoeira-do-toboga
Paraty · Up to half an hour
Also called Cachoeira da Penha, it is a large smooth rock down which water runs to a natural pool, and it is a stop on most jeep tours to the waterfalls and distilleries. You slide down seated; sliding down standing has caused accidents. It is behind the Centro de Informações Turísticas do Caminho do Ouro, in Penha, and a little above it is the Poço do Tarzan, with a suspension bridge.
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**Paraty: How do you get there from Rio or São Paulo?**
Viação Costa Verde connects Rio to Paraty in about 4 hours 40 minutes, with nine departures a day, and Reunidas connects São Paulo to Paraty in six to seven hours; by car, it is 249 km from Rio along the Rio-Santos, about 3 hours 45 minutes without traffic.

**Paraty: How many days should you stay?**
Three days: one for the historic center on foot, one for the bay, by schooner or trawler, and one for Trindade. With only one day, I'd do the historic center in the morning and board the 11 a.m. schooner.

**Paraty: Schooner or trawler for the boat trip?**
The schooner is the cheapest way, at about five hours and leaving at 10:30 a.m. or 11 a.m.; the wooden trawler, agreed at the pier, can leave at 9 a.m. and reach the stops before the schooners.

**Paraty: How do you get to Trindade?**
Trindade is 25 km to the south, about 30 minutes by car or about 1 hour on the Colitur local bus, which leaves the bus station every one or two hours; go on a weekday, because on holidays the pool gets crowded and there is no place to park.

**Paraty: When is the best time to go?**
June to September: June, July and August are the driest months, good for boat trips and hikes; from December to March it rains more, and long holiday weekends and school vacations fill the town in any month.


## In the Nilo app
- Plan these 3 days on the map: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/app/guide/paraty/?utm_source=llm&utm_medium=markdown&utm_content=door-itinerary
- Mark your hotel on the map: https://nilopelomundo.com/en/app/map/paraty/?utm_source=llm&utm_medium=markdown&utm_content=door-stay

## Full editorial guide (Portuguese)
https://nilopelomundo.com/llm/paraty.md