Chapada dos Guimarães

Chapada dos Guimarães needs 2 days: the Cachoeira Véu de Noiva, an 86-meter waterfall visible from a lookout without a long hike, on one, and the canyons and rock formations of Portão do Inferno or Cidade de Pedra, on the other. May-September brings the driest weather for hiking. It's inexpensive by Brazilian standards. It sits atop a plateau considered one of the oldest exposed points of the Earth's crust, near the geodetic center of South America, and serves as a weekend escape from Cuiabá, Mato Grosso's capital, just an hour's drive away.