4-day Trip in Jalapão from Palmas
Planeta Exo
TripsBrazilCerradoJalapão

4-day Trip in Jalapão from Palmas

Brazil
3 Nights·4 Days
CerradoCultural & Community ExperiencesActive Adventures

Overview

Your Jalapão trip begins in Palmas, the capital of Tocantins and the gateway to one of the most stunning landscapes in Jalapão in Brazil. Over four days you enjoy scenic hikes, refreshing swims in crystal-clear waterfalls, floating in the famous fervedouros (natural springs impossible to sink in), serene river beaches, and an adrenaline-pumping rafting session on the Soninho River, depending on the season.

This Jalapão trip also offers a cultural immersion into quilombola communities, with comfortable stays in cozy guesthouses in São Félix do Tocantins and Mateiros. We call this adventure Volta ao Parque (VAP): exploring the beauty of Jalapão State Park on carefully planned trails that go against the traditional tourism flow, one step at a time.

  • A full itinerary: hiking, fervedouros, waterfalls, rafting, and river beaches.
  • A deep dive into the less-visited areas of Jalapão State Park in Brazil, reachable only by 4x4.
  • Iconic landmarks: Velha and Formiga waterfalls, Buritizinho and Encontro das Águas fervedouros, Serra do Espírito Santo, the Jalapão dunes, and the Novo River.
  • Engagement with local quilombola communities (Taboca, Boa Esperança, Mumbuca, Prata, and Rio Novo).
  • Comfortable stays in different inns across São Félix do Tocantins and Mateiros.
  • All-inclusive experience: round-trip transfer, accommodation, meals, and local guides.

  • Please note: This is the Volta ao Parque (VAP), an active, off-the-beaten-path circuit of Jalapão State Park reached only by 4×4, with full days of hiking, fervedouros, waterfalls, and rafting. Day 2 changes with the season, and Day 4 starts at 4 AM to catch the sunrise. Breakfast on Day 1 and dinner on the last day are not included.

Itinerary

Day 1

Arrival in São Félix / Morro da Catedral hike

  • DepartureFrom Palmas at 7:15 AM (airport or hotel)
  • 4x4 transferPalmas → São Félix · 280 km · ~4h35 (170 km paved, 110 km dirt)
  • HikingMorro da Catedral · 1.6 km · ~2 hrs (sunset views)

PlanetaEXO's local partner picks you up in Palmas at 7:15 AM toward São Félix do Tocantins, with stops along the way: a refreshing swim at the Peixinho River and lunch at Dona Irani's restaurant in the Taboca community. In the afternoon, a 2-hour trek up Morro da Catedral, a 200-meter peak and one of Jalapão's most iconic landmarks, rewards you with a breathtaking sunset, before settling into your inn in São Félix.

Meals included: Lunch / Dinner

Vast Cerrado savanna stretching to the horizon on a Jalapão trip, with a lone flat-topped butte silhouetted against a pink and amber twilight sky
A massive sandstone monolith rises above lush cerrado vegetation at Catedral do Jalapão, with a circular trail marker sign visible among the rocks on a partly cloudy afternoon — a dramatic highlight of any Jalapão trip

Day 2

Seasonal route (Boa Esperança & rafting)

  • Hiking9.5 km · ~3.5 hrs · Boa Esperança (Mateiros) & fervedouros
  • ChoiceAraras Waterfall or 10 km rafting down the Soninho River
  • HikingTravessia da Velha · 12 km (15.5 km total · ~4.5 hrs)
  • RaftingCachoeira da Velha · ~4 hrs · Class IV

This day changes with the season:

Rainy season (November–April)

A morning 9 km hike to the Boa Esperança community passes Cerrado vegetation and fervedouros. After lunch around Fervedouro Jatobá, choose between visiting the Araras Waterfall or rafting over 10 km down the Soninho River, then dinner in the Prata community before returning to São Félix. (47 km on dirt road, ~1.5 hrs.)

Dry season (May–October)

A 12 km hike along the Travessia da Velha leads to the beloved Cachoeira da Velha, with a picnic on a Novo River beach. Then a thrilling 4-hour Class IV rafting trip, and at sunset a 3.5 km trail to the ecolodge for the night. (80 km on dirt road, ~2 hrs.)

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Aerial view of a wide multi-tiered waterfall on a jalapão trip, with white rapids churning through rock-lined channels, surrounded by cerrado savanna and a calm upstream pool
An orange inflatable raft moored on rocky riverbank in front of a wide curtain waterfall on a jalapão trip, surrounded by green cerrado trees under a blue sky
An orange raft full of cheering passengers shelters beneath a thundering waterfall curtain on a jalapão trip, with a wide cascade spanning rocky cliffs in the background
A tannin-stained jungle stream meets a darker channel beside a narrow dirt trail lined with lush tropical palms and undergrowth on a Jalapão trip

Day 3

Fervedouros / Formiga Waterfall / Mateiros

  • FervedourosBuritizinho float
  • Hiking4 km · ~1.5 hrs · to Encontro das Águas
  • Formiga WaterfallOne of Tocantins' most iconic sites

Enjoy one of the most incredible attractions of any Jalapão trip: the fervedouros. Float in the blue-green waters of Buritizinho, then hike 4 km to Encontro das Águas, where the Formiga and Soninho rivers meet. After lunch in the Mumbuca community, visit the Formiga Waterfall, arriving in Mateiros to rest in the late afternoon. (95 km on dirt road, ~3 hrs.)

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner

Aerial drone view of four swimmers floating in a small turquoise natural spring pool surrounded by lush tropical vegetation on a Jalapão trip
A woman in a red swimsuit wading through the pale turquoise waters of a fervedouro on a Jalapão trip, surrounded by lush tropical vegetation
A woman in a red swimsuit glides beneath the crystal-clear turquoise surface of a fervedouro on a Jalapão trip, with a white sandy bottom and lush tropical foliage visible above the waterline
Vast Cerrado savanna stretching to a flat-topped mesa at sunset on a jalapão trip, with dramatic golden clouds filling the wide sky

Day 4

Serra do Espírito Santo / Jalapão Dunes / Back to Palmas

  • Sunrise trekSerra do Espírito Santo · 4:00 AM · 200 m plateau
  • Jalapão dunesGolden dunes & Novo River beach
  • Transfer→ Palmas · arrive ~7:30 PM

At 4 AM, trek up the Serra do Espírito Santo, a 200-meter sandstone plateau, to watch the sunrise over the park. Down the hill, visit the golden Jalapão dunes and relax at a Novo River beach. In the Rio Novo community, savor the last meal of your Jalapão trip before returning to Palmas.

Meals included: Breakfast / Lunch

A vast green escarpment stretches across the horizon on a jalapão trip, with flat-topped sandstone cliffs catching warm afternoon light beneath a wide sky filled with cumulus clouds
A traveller sits on the edge of a sandstone cliff watching the sun rise over a vast green plateau on a jalapão trip
Wind-rippled golden sand dunes of Jalapão State Park stretching toward a flat-topped sandstone plateau and green cerrado vegetation under a dramatic blue sky
Aerial view of a couple holding hands on the vast golden sand dunes of Jalapão trip, with scattered shrubs, a river channel, and a dramatic mesa escarpment under stormy skies
Dramatic fiery sunset over a silhouetted savanna treeline during a Jalapão trip, with layers of deep red, amber, and gold clouds filling the sky

What is Included

  • Accommodation: 2 nights in São Félix do Tocantins and 1 night in Mateiros, in comfortable guesthouses
  • Meals: full board, plus mineral water during all activities
  • Transfers: round-trip 4x4 transfer (Palmas ⇌ Jalapão)
  • Activities & tours: guided hiking, fervedouros, waterfalls, rafting, and river beaches, with entrance fees for all activities
  • Guide: expert local guides and interaction with local communities

Not included

  • Flights: flight tickets
  • Accommodation: accommodation in Palmas (before/after the tour)
  • Meals: breakfast on the first day and dinner on the last day
  • Drinks: drinks other than the included mineral water during activities
  • Travel insurance: travel insurance
  • Bilingual-guide upgrade: English-speaking guides, on request and at additional cost (subject to availability)
  • Personal expenses & tips: optional tours, laundry, phone calls, and other personal expenses
  • Any services not previously mentioned

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From

$ 600/ per person