Tocantins

Tocantins is a state in Brazil's North region.

Location of state Tocantins in Brazil

Cities

• 1 Palmas — the state's capital markets itself as an eco-metropolis and has several nature reserves and other green spaces in the urban area
• 2 Taquarussu — an ecotourist village surrounded by hills and waterfalls
• 3 Natividade — a mining town from the 18th century
• 4 Araguaína — an ecotourism destination because of its natural beauty, with fauna, flora, and abundant water that forms beautiful landscapes
• 5 Gurupi — the third largest city in Tocantins is the regional hub for the southern region of the state
• 6 Lajeado — a base for visiting Lajeado State Park
• 7 Monte do Carmo — draws visitors to Morro das Figuras, where wind and rain formed rock columns that resemble human figures; the Fueiro waterfall, with two 10-meter-high waterfalls; and the Morro do Salão cave, with prehistoric writings and which housed residents who fled from the rebels of Coluna Prestes
• 8 Miracema do Tocantins — the state's first capital attracts visitors during the beach season on the Tocantins River, during Carnival, during the off-season Carnival (Micarê) in July, which is the most famous out-of-season Baiano-style carnival in Tocantins
• 9 Paraíso do Tocantins
• 10 Porto Nacional — visitors are drawn by its sport fishing and its historic center

Other destinations

• 1 Jalapão — a departure from the Amazon region, this uninhabited cerrado area has bright orange sand dunes, rivers and waterfalls. Increasingly popular with off-road adventure lovers. It is protected by Jalapão State Park
• 2 Araguaia National Park — protects all of the Ilha do Bananal, which is believed to be the largest inland river island in the world
• 3 Cantão State Park — protects the Cantão wetlands, an area of igapó flooded forest in the ecotone where the Amazon rainforest merges into the cerrado. It is about 250 km (160 mi) from Palmas
• 4 Lajeado State Park — a fragile, dry, hilly environment that is home to larger mammals such as paca, fox, maned wolf, tapir and jaguar; primates such as robust capuchin monkeys, howler monkeys and black-tufted marmosets; birds such as guan, hummingbird, seriema and black-chested buzzard-eagle
• 5 Nascentes do Rio Parnaíba National Park — protected species in the park include the jaguar, cougar, and giant armadillo

Understand

Tocantins is Brazil's newest state. It was formed in 1988 from the northern two-fifths of the state of Goiás.

The Rio Tocantins has been dammed for hydropower, creating a large reservoir that has become a center of recreation. Because it is in the central zone of the country, Tocantins has characteristics of the Amazon Basin, and also semi-open pastures, known as cerrado. The Bananal Island (Ilha do Bananal), in the southwest of the state, is the second largest fluvial island in the world. Tocantins is also home to the Araguaia National Park, the Carajás Indian reservations, and Jalapão State Park. There, the rivers create oases in the dry landscape, attracting many ecotourists to the region.

The geography of Tocantins is varied. It straddles the Amazon rainforest and the coastal savanna. Many rivers (including the Tocantins River) traverse the state.

Climate

Most of Tocantins (except the extreme western and northern regions) is situated within a vast Brazilian area known as the cerrado. The cerrado region's typical climate is hot and semi-humid, with pronounced seasonal variation marked by a dry winter from May through October.

Get in

Palmas–Brigadeiro Lysias Rodrigues Airport (PMW  ^IATA receives flights from Belo Horizonte–Confins, Campinas, Goiânia, Recife, São Paulo–Guarulhos, Rio de Janeiro–Galeão, and Salvador da Bahia. The airport is 20 km (12 mi) from downtown Palmas.

The Belém–Brasília Highway is the major route through the state connecting it to Belém in the north and Brasília is the south.

See

• Waterfalls (cachoeiras) of Taquarussu
• Graciosa Beach
• Lake of Palmas
• Bico do Papagaio