Table of contents
Regions / Cities / Main Cities / Other Cities / Other destinations / Culture and History / Talk / Travel to Pernambuco, visa requirements / By road / By air / By sea / By river / Get around / Pernambuco attractions and sightseeing / Itineraries / City tours / Events / Good restaurants and cheap meals / Pernambuco nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs. / Stay safe / Get outDestinations in Pernambuco
Regions
- Coast (main attractions include the cities of Recife, Olinda and Igarassu, and the beaches of Itamaracá Island, Porto de Galinhas, Cabo de Santo Agostinho)
- Zona da Mata (main attractions include historical sugarcane plantations, São Benedito do Sul waterfalls)
- Agreste (including Caruaru, Gravatá, Bonito and Nova Jerusalém)
- Sertão (including Petrolina and Triunfo)
- Fernando de Noronha archipelago
Cities
Pernambuco's main touristic attractions are in Recife (state capital), Olinda, Porto de Galinhas and Fernando de Noronha. A plethora of other cities and towns are also of touristic interest.
Main Cities
- Recife, the vibrant state capital.
- Olinda, beautiful colonial town, UNESCO World Heritage Site.
- Caruaru, famous for forro and celebrations of the festival for São João (St. John).
- Garanhuns
- Petrolina
Other Cities
- Bonito
- Cabo de Santo Agostinho, beautiful beaches, sugar plantations, and buildings of historic interest
- Goiana, beautiful beaches and colonial churches
- Gravatá
- Igarassu, home to Brazil's oldest church (1535), a beautiful Franciscan Monastery (1588), and an impressive Art Collection (1705)
- Itamaracá Island, famous for its beaches, nautical sports and the Orange Fortress
- Lagoa do Carro, famous for its tapestry art
- Nova Jerusalém, in Brejo da Madre de Deus, home to the world's largest Passion of Christ
- Porto de Galinhas, beautiful beach town near Recife
- São Benedito do Sul, with pleasant waterfalls
- Serrita, were the Missa do Vaqueiro is celebrated in honor of the traditional northeastern cowboys
- Tamandaré
- Tracunhaém, one of Brazil's most important ceramic art production centers
- Triunfo
Other destinations
- Fernando de Noronha. An archipelago.
Culture and History
Besides having some of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil, Pernambuco also has a rich history (including Olinda, one of the oldest cities in Brazil, plus Portuguese, Dutch and Jewish heritage in Recife, etc.) and a strong popular culture found in its folklore, food and handicrafts. The official tourism site of Pernambuco has some detailed information (in Portuguese only) on the state.
Talk
Travel to Pernambuco - Visa Requirements
By road
By air
Recife has a large international airport. Caruaru, Petrolina and Fernando de Noronha have regional airports.
By sea
You can arrive in cruise ships at the Port of Recife [2] or at the Fernando de Noronha Archipelago.
By river
You can arrive in Petrolina via the Sao Francisco River. The navigable part of the river covers the states of Minas Gerais, Bahia and Pernambuco.
Tours and Getting around Pernambuco
Pernambuco tourist attractions and sightseeing
Itineraries
Pernambuco city tours
Events
- Carnival in Recife, Olinda, Bezerros, Triunfo
- São João celebrations in Caruaru, Gravatá, Carpina
- Paixão de Cristo (Christ's Passion) in Nova Jerusalém, during Easter break
- Missa do Vaqueiro (Cowboy Mass), in Serrita
Pernambuco Restaurants: cheap, moderate and expensive
Pernambuco nightlife, bars, clubs and pubs
Stay safe
Get out
Destinations in Pernambuco:
- Brejo da Madre de Deus
- Caruaru
- Fernando de Noronha
- Goiana
- Igarassu
- Lagoa do Carro
- Nova Jerusalém
- Olinda
- Recife
- Tracunhaém
This page was last edited by Marius Mollersen. Based on work by Valtteri Päivinen, Mario, Todd VerBeek, Ricardo, Boris, Paul N. Richter and Ian Kirk, Wikitravel user(s) Episteme and Jonboy and Anonymous user(s) of Wikitravel. - Content on this page is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 1.0 license
