Paraná - Lonely Planet

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Paraná
Pop 10.4 million
Includes 
Curitiba.......................264
Morretes..................... 270
Paranaguá....................271
Ilha do Mel.................. 273
Iguaçu Falls &
Around........................ 277
Foz do Iguaçu..............280
Parque Nacional do
Iguaçu (Brazil)............ 285
Parque Nacional
Iguazú (Argentina)..... 285
Itaipu Dam.................. 287
Best Places
to Eat
¨¨Manu (p268)
¨¨Barolo (p267)
¨¨Mar e Sol (p275)
¨¨Fim da Trilha (p277)
¨¨Casa do Barreado (p272)
Why Go?
Since its 1853 succession from São Paulo state, Paraná has
been endlessly compared with its larger neighbor to the
north. Indeed, the two share a slew of superlatives, rating
among Brazil’s highest standards of living and best educated
populations.
With its efficient public transportation, innovative archi‑
tecture and outstanding urban parks, the capital, Curitiba,
exemplifies the state’s successes. Though no tourism mag‑
net, the city’s air of European culture and excellent restau‑
rants make for a nice dose of Brazil at its most developed.
Sunbathers and surfers sigh for Ilha do Mel and Parque
Nacional do Superagüi, where large swaths of unspoiled
rainforest and pristine coastline make for some of the least
developed and most idyllic beaches in southern Brazil.
But it’s Iguaçu Falls that has always earned the wonder
and admiration of travelers, from indigenous tribes to Jesuit
missionaries to modern‑day tourists. The awe it inspires
cannot be overstated.
When to Go
Foz do Iguaçu
Rainfall inches/mm
°C/°F Temp
40/104
20/500
16/400
30/86
12/300
20/68
Best Places
to Sleep
¨¨Hotel das Cataratas (p281)
¨¨Tetris Container Hostel
(p280)
¨¨Motter Home (p265)
¨¨Hostel Natura (p280)
¨¨Astral da Ilha (p275)
8/200
10/50
0/32
4/100
0
J
F
M
May & Sep
Off‑peak prices
and crowds
coupled with
tolerable weather
at Iguaçu Falls.
A
M
J
J
A
Dec–Feb Peak
season brings
the sunshine at
Iguaçu Falls and
Ilha do Mel.
S
O
N
D
Aug Retreating
cold and muggi‑
ness in Curitiba
makes for com‑
fortable days.
26 4
History
Like much of southern Brazil, Paraná was
neglected by the Portuguese colonists; even a
brief gold rush in the 17th century withered
when bigger finds were discovered in Minas
Gerais. When Paraná seceded from São Paulo
in 1853, the economy was based on cattle
and erva maté (tea), and the government
encouraged Italian immigration to develop
the economy. Waves of Germans, Ukrainians
and Poles followed. With immigration and
railroad construction, Curitiba developed
into one of the country’s richest cities.
88 Getting There & Around
Curitiba is the state’s transportation hub, with
bus and air services to every major city in Brazil.
A passenger train links Curitiba with the coastal
town of Paranaguá. Foz do Iguaçu also has a
small international airport and direct bus ser­
vices to São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro and every big
city in the South.
Mato
Grosso
do Sul
Porto
São José
Rio
Ourinhos
Avaré
BR
270
i
Maringá
Apucarana
Cianorte
BR
é
376
BR
151
Ponta
Grossa
Cascavel
Parque
BR
Laranjeiras
277
do Sul
Foz do Itaipu Nacional
do
Iguaçu
R
Iguaçu Dam
io Ig
ua ç u
Garganta do
BR
70
Diabo
Francisco
Beltrão
26ºS RN Iguaçu
RN
12 Falls
Pato
101
Branco
ARGENTINA Bernardo
RP
17
54ºW de Irigoyen
52ºW
BR
277
Vila Velha
Guarapuava
Represa
de Foz
do Areia
Rio Negro
Apiaí
24ºS
e
ra d ba
Ser apiaca
n
ara
ar
369
BR
151
tar
BR
Capão
Bonito
Itapeva
oI
Campo
Mourão
Itapetininga
São Paul
BR
092
Ri
Lagoa
de Itaipu
Pi Rio
qu
iri
BR
369
Iva
100 km
50 miles
0
0
agi
Guaíra
50ºW
Tib
Cruzeiro
d'Oeste
24ºS
PARAGUAY
52ºW
Represa
Capivara
Paranavaí
Londrina
Tropic of Capricorn
Umuarama
While not necessarily sexy, Curitiba has long
garnered praise for being one of the world’s
best models of urban planning. If it wer‑
en’t for the bold initiatives of its three‑term
­mayor, Jaime Lerner, whose daring moves in
early 1970s – transforming a six‑block length
of the downtown into a pedestrian zone
(done in secret under the cover of darkness),
creating five express‑bus avenues with futur­
istic tubular boarding platforms, encourag‑
ing recycling and sustainable design long
before it was fashionable, and planting trees
and creating parks on an enormous scale –
Curitiba would probably resemble any other
Brazilian city.
Instead, it’s the envy of urban planners
the world over and Brazil’s most efficient
city. Today, it’s easier to get around Curiti‑
ba than any other large city in Brazil. The
city has also taken innovative approaches
Rio
Pa r a n á C u ri t iba
Pa Rio
ra
ná
54ºW
Curitiba
% 0xx41
P
BR
116
Cananéia
Parque Nacional do
Superagüi
Parque Estadual
Marumbi Antonina
Ilha
Curitiba
do
Mel
BR
476
Morretes Paranaguá
BR
26ºS
376 Guaratuba
Mafra
Santa Catarina
Joinville
50ºW
Ilha de São
Francisco
48ºW
Paraná Highlights
1 Experiencing Mother
Nature’s heart‑stopping
and thunderous roar from
above and below Garganta
do Diabo (p285) at Iguaçu
Falls.
2 Drenching yourself
under one of world’s most
magnificent waterfalls on an
Iguaçu Falls riverboat trip
(p285).
3 Riding the rails on
the Serra Verde Express
(p270) to Morretes, one of
Brazil’s last great train rides.
4 Lazing about the wild
beaches and sandy trails
of car‑free Ilha do Mel
(p273).
5 Marveling at the ancient
‘stone city’ of Vila Velha
(p109).
6 Appreciating art and
eye‑popping architecture
at Curitiba’s Museu Oscar
Niemeyer (p265).
7 Admiring the
jaw‑dropping engineering
feat of Itaipu Dam (p287).