Tocantins

Tocantins is one of the newest states of Brazil, in the center-north of the country, created in 1988. Its capital is Palmas, a planned city and one of the youngest state capitals in the nation. A land of rivers, waterfalls and the cerrado, it includes the stunning dunes and springs of the Jalapao region.

Tocantins lies in a transition zone between the cerrado savanna and the Amazon, crossed by the Tocantins and Araguaia rivers, with the vast river island of Bananal. The Jalapao region features golden dunes and crystal-clear springs. The climate is tropical with wet and dry seasons.

The state blends cerrado and riverine traditions, Indigenous heritage and the culture of migrants who settled the new state. Ecotourism in Jalapao, with its dune landscapes and natural pools, is increasingly central.

Carved from the northern part of Goias by the 1988 constitution, Tocantins was created to develop Brazil's central north. Its purpose-built capital, Palmas, was founded in 1989, making it one of the newest planned cities in the country.