Penedo: Brazil's Little Finland
The town of Penedo, known as “Little Finland” — and it really was colonized by Finnish immigrants in 1920 — still keeps some Nordic traditions alive, even in a much warmer climate.
The cooler months tend to be the busiest, since the town is beautiful and romantic, drawing plenty of couples.
Framed by the vegetation of the Serra da Mantiqueira, Penedo has something for everyone — especially those looking for peace and quiet in nature, as well as ecotourism fans, who’ll find great terrain for hiking, waterfall swims, and horseback riding.
It’s also an easy home base for side trips in the region — we’d recommend Serrinha do Alambari and the lower section of Itatiaia National Park (in Portuguese, on the original blog), both about thirty minutes by car from town.
Those spots are well worth it for their natural beauty, but Penedo itself offers much better lodging and restaurant options.
Getting to Penedo
From São Paulo: take the Presidente Dutra highway (BR-116) to the city of Resende (about 261 km), then the winding Dr. Rubens Tramujas Mader highway (RJ-163). It’s 294 km total, around 4 hours plus stops. Google Maps route
What to do in downtown Penedo
Casa do Papai Noel (Santa’s House) in Penedo
We’ve stopped here for lunch in November, and another time for dinner — eventually we decided to spend a Corpus Christi holiday getting to know the town properly. Penedo is also known as “Little Finland” or “Santa’s Hometown.”
Downtown is beautiful, and it leans hard into its Christmas theme, complete with Santa Claus and, of course, his house — a small shopping center where you’re greeted by charming umbrellas hanging from the ceiling as soon as you walk in.
Shopping in downtown Penedo
There are several mini malls scattered along the main avenue, selling everything from dish towels and fridge magnets to cheeses from Minas Gerais, jams, cachaça, and other regional souvenirs. A few worth checking out:
Shopping Azul
One of the first you’ll come across, with souvenir and food shops, all on one level. Address: Avenida das Mangueiras, 1636 - Penedo, Itatiaia.
Shopping Rio das Pedras
Right next to Shopping Azul, with a restaurant and gift options for friends and family, spread across two floors. Address: Avenida das Mangueiras, 1660 - Penedo, Itatiaia.
Shopping Roda D’Água
One of the best and biggest shopping arcades in town, with restaurants and shops selling toys and clothes, also spread across two floors. Address: Avenida das Mangueiras, 1755 - Penedo, Itatiaia.
Shopping Vale dos Duendes
Clothing and food shops, all on the ground floor. Address: Avenida das Mangueiras - Penedo, Itatiaia.
Beyond these shopping centers, there are plenty of other shops along the same avenue and side streets, along with restaurants we’ll cover in a future post.
Waterfalls in Penedo
The waterfalls are all close to downtown and easy to find, though the roads leading to them aren’t great — we’d recommend a 4x4, or one of the buggy tours offered from the shopping district. The trails themselves are short and easy to access.
Like any waterfall, the water is icy cold, even on a sunny day.
Três Cachoeiras
Right along the roadside, making it very easy to reach — it’s the closest waterfall to downtown, though that also means the water tends to be less clean.
Made up of three drops that form natural pools.
Cachoeira de Deus
Has the longest trail, at 400 meters round trip, and the tallest drop, at 15 meters, with a pool at the bottom for swimming.
Be careful if you plan to get in — being so close to downtown means the water here isn’t the cleanest, so it’s not ideal for swimming or diving.
Poço das Esmeraldas
A trail of under 50 meters gets you there in under 3 minutes, with crystal-clear water — the cleanest and best option for swimming.
Cachoeira das Três Bacias
Very close to Poço das Esmeraldas — you can easily walk between the two — though this one isn’t set up for swimming.
It has three small drops; the first two sections are small to climb, while the last one is bigger. At the middle drop, you can actually sit down and let the water massage your back.
Be careful climbing along the side of the rock — it’s quite slippery.
Pico do Penedinho
Definitely one of the most popular spots, thanks to its hilltop view over the town of Penedo. You’ll need permission from Casa do Chocolate beforehand, since it’s private property — unfortunately, it was closed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to information on site as of December 2021.
Where to stay in Penedo, RJ
We really enjoy staying at hotels close to downtown, so we can walk everywhere without worrying about driving at night — that kind of convenience matters to us.
Pousada Rainha da Mata
We booked through a Booking.com deal, and it was excellent — close to downtown, with a great breakfast, spotless rooms, and a spacious room overall.
Despite all the positives, one downside: even with the curtains closed, the room had enough light coming in at night to make sleeping difficult. On top of that, front desk staff didn’t always have accurate information about what was open or closed due to the pandemic. As one example, we were told Pico do Penedinho was open, but when we arrived at Casa do Chocolate to get our permit, we were told the attraction was actually closed.
Read more about our trip to Rio de Janeiro state in Visconde de Mauá and Maringá.
Read the original version in Portuguese on A Bela e o Bigode.