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Étaperia

Brazil in 12 days: Chapada Diamantina, Brasília and Chapada dos Veadeiros, day by day

Twelve days from Salvador to Cavalcante: three days of trekking in the Vale do Pati with homestays, the Cachoeira da Fumaça, the monumental axis of Brasília, the Vale da Lua, the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park and the Cachoeira Santa Bárbara in the Kalunga quilombo.

Compiled by Kylian Surget, updated on 02/10/2026

The National Congress in Brasília, its twin towers and two white domes
  • 12 days
  • 29 places
  • 12 nights
  • sustained pace
Start
Salvador
End
Cavalcante, Goiás
Main transport
Hire car from Salvador to Lençóis and back, three days on foot in the Vale do Pati, a flight from Salvador to Brasília on day 65, then a second hire car out and back from Brasília
Recommended season
Set for a June departure, in the dry season on both chapadas: passable trails, low clear rivers and little risk of flash floods; from November to April those same rivers turn dangerous

What you get

  • The complete itinerary: 12 days sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening / Hotel
  • The card of every hotel, with the address and a direct booking link
  • Quota tickets, fixed-date tickets and surcharges flagged in advance
  • The country quick guide: weather, transport, formalities, budget
  • A PDF file of 20 pages

What the price does not include

  • Flights
  • Hotel nights
  • Tickets and admission fees
  • Travel insurance
  • On-the-ground assistance during your trip

The travel book preview

The free day in full, with its hotel card. This is the sample.

Day 7

Brasília, the monumental axis

Morning

Praça dos Três Poderes and National Congress

The symbolic heart of Brasília, inaugurated in 1960 after forty-one months of construction: Lúcio Costa drew the plan, Niemeyer the buildings, Burle Marx the gardens. On the square, the National Congress and its two domes, one open for the deputies, the other closed for the senators, flank the twin towers.

Palácio do Planalto and Palácio da Alvorada

The seat of the presidency and the official residence, both by Niemeyer: the columns of the Alvorada, concrete arcs that seem to brush the ground, have become the graphic emblem of the city. Visits at fixed times, by registration.

Panteão da Pátria

The Tancredo Neves pantheon, shaped like a dove, houses the book of the nation's heroes and a stained-glass window by Marianne Peretti. Free entry.

Afternoon

Catedral Metropolitana Nossa Senhora Aparecida

Sixteen hyperboloid concrete columns meet in a crown above a sunken nave: you go down a dark ramp before emerging into the blue and green light of Marianne Peretti's stained glass. The suspended angels are by Alfredo Ceschiatti. It is Niemeyer's religious masterpiece.

Palácio Itamaraty and Complexo Cultural da República

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with its arches over a pool of victoria regia and its collection of modern art, can be visited by appointment. At the other end of the Esplanada, the Complexo Cultural da República brings together the Museu Nacional Honestino Guimarães, a white dome set on the esplanade, and the National Library.

Good to know

visits and bookings : The Palácio do Planalto can be visited only on Sundays, by online booking on the federal government website. The Palácio Itamaraty can be visited free of charge from Tuesday to Sunday, by electronic booking only ; departures from Tuesday to Friday at 8:45 AM, 9:15 AM, 10:15 AM, 10:45 AM, 2:15 PM, 2:45 PM, 3:45 PM and 4:15 PM, and at the weekend at 8:30 AM, 10:15 AM, 2:15 PM and 4:00 PM. The National Congress offers free guided tours from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM, leaving every 30 minutes from the Salão Negro, with ID. Scheduling the day on a Sunday lets you combine all three.

Hotel · Night 7

Windsor Brasília Hotel

A hotel in the Setor Hoteleiro Norte, a stone's throw from the monumental axis, with a heated indoor pool. A central location for the two days spent visiting the capital.

Address
· SHN Quadra 1, Conjunto A, Bloco A, Entrada B, Asa Norte, Brasília - DF, 70701-010
Website
· windsorhoteis.com (new tab)
Book this hotel (new tab)

Buy this itinerary

€39 incl. tax

that is €3.25 per day of travel

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  • Available immediately in your customer account: online reading with clickable booking links, downloadable PDF for offline use
  • Method: what is checked, and when

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Within 12 months of purchase, email contact@etaperia.com

Itinerary corrected within 7 days, or refunded in full. Terms in article 12 of the T&Cs, on top of the legal warranty (new tab)

€39 incl. tax · 12 days

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A question before buying? Email Kylian, reply within 48 working hours.

The day-by-day rundown

12 stops, 1,220 km as the crow flies

  1. Day 1 To Lençóis, gateway to the Chapada Historic centre and Mercado Cultural Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  2. Day 2 Into the Vale do Pati From Guiné to the Rio Pati Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  3. Day 3 The Cachoeirão and the Morro do Castelo Climb to the Cachoeirão Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  4. Day 4 Out via the Ruinha, Poço Encantado From the Ruinha to Andaraí Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  5. Day 5 The Fumaça and the Iraquara caves Cachoeira da Fumaça Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  6. Day 6 From Lençóis to Brasília From Lençóis to Brasília Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  7. Day 7 Brasília, the monumental axis Praça dos Três Poderes and National Congress Free
  8. Day 8 Memorial JK, Dom Bosco and the lake Memorial JK Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  9. Day 9 Alto Paraíso and the Vale da Lua Vale da Lua Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  10. Day 10 Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park Saltos do Rio Preto trail Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  11. Day 11 The Couros, then Cavalcante Cataratas dos Couros Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF
  12. Day 12 The Kalunga quilombo and Santa Bárbara Cachoeira Santa Bárbara Day reserved for buyers, unlocked in the PDF

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Country quick guide and logistics

The essentials of the country, scannable in ten seconds.

Weather and when to go

  • Dry season on both chapadas: passable trails, low clear rivers, open skies. The waterfalls carry less water than in the wet season, but the swimming is better for it.
  • Hot days, 28 to 32 °C, and cool nights at altitude, sometimes 10 °C in the Vale do Pati: pack a fleece for the trek. The cerrado offers no shade, and the altitude, around 1,200 m, sharpens the sun.
  • From November to April flash floods turn the pools of the Vale da Lua into whirlpools, and the GO-118 to Cavalcante is prone to erosion; in the dry season the risk is low.

Transport and permits

  • The drive from Salvador to Lençóis, 420 km and six hours, has to be done in daylight. The Vale do Pati trek leaves Lençóis at 6.30am with a guide and is walked with a pack on your back, about 40 km over three days.
  • Flight from Salvador to Brasília on day 65, two hours ten; the two days in the capital are done by ride-hailing, without a car. A second car is collected on day 68 for a round trip of about 900 km via Alto Paraíso and Cavalcante.
  • Thirty kilometres of track lead to Engenho II, and a high-clearance vehicle is recommended. Fill up in Alto Paraíso: petrol stations are few beyond it, and the GO-239 via Colinas do Sul is the fallback route.

Formalities and safety

  • The Vale do Pati trek is booked ahead through an agency in Lençóis, compulsory guide and homestays included: houses with no road and no mains electricity, and a cold shower.
  • In Brasília the Palácio do Planalto opens to visitors on Sundays only, by online booking, and the Palácio Itamaraty by online booking only; Congress runs free guided tours, with ID. Putting day 66 on a Sunday brings all three together.
  • At the Kalunga quilombo on day 71 the ticket is bought online and an accredited Kalunga guide is compulsory. The Iraquara caves, too, can only be visited with a guide.

Budget and meals

  • The Brazilian real (R$). There is no phone signal in the Vale do Pati and no card terminal at Engenho II: bring cash for guides, families and extras, withdrawn in Lençóis or Alto Paraíso.
  • At the Kalunga quilombo entry to the Cachoeira Santa Bárbara is R$ 55 and the guide R$ 200, shared between up to six people. The Vale da Lua, on private land, costs R$ 50 in cash.
  • In Brasília the Memorial JK is R$ 10, and it is the only city on the stage where everything can be paid by card without trouble. The timed ticket for the Chapada dos Veadeiros National Park is booked online a few days ahead.

Frequently asked questions

What exactly do I receive?

Your Étaperia itinerary, available immediately in your customer account after payment: readable online with clickable booking links, and downloadable as a PDF for the trip. Every day is sequenced Morning / Afternoon / Evening, with the hotel for each night, its address and its booking link, and timed-entry tickets flagged in advance.

How is this better than what an AI gives me?

A generative AI composes a plausible list in seconds, without saying what was checked or when. At Étaperia, every itinerary is compiled day by day, with the booking constraints spotted before it is too late to get them. The Method page says what is checked, against which source and on what date.

Can I adapt it to my dates and my pace?

Yes. The days are self-contained blocks: you can shift the departure, stretch a stage or skip a day without breaking what follows. Only timed-entry tickets require adjusting the dates accordingly, and they are all flagged.

What if a hotel or a place in the itinerary has closed?

Email contact@etaperia.com within 12 months of your purchase. If a hotel in the itinerary is closed or can no longer be found, or a place to visit has closed permanently, the itinerary is corrected in your customer account within 7 days, or you are refunded in full. A hotel fully booked on your dates, a seasonal closure or a change in opening hours or prices is not covered. This guarantee comes on top of the legal warranty of conformity; details in article 12 of the terms and conditions of sale.

Who is selling you this itinerary

  • Kylian Surget, sole trader, SIRET 927 587 709 00035
  • Consumer mediator: ANM Consommation
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  • Publisher, not a travel agency: you book flights, hotels and tickets yourself

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