Petrópolis: The 13 Best Day Trips out of Rio

1.Petrópolis Day Trip with Optional Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.3 · 203 reviews · 12 hours · from $48Our pick

Travel from Rio to mountain-set Petrópolis with a multilingual guide such as Rafael, Julio, or Mama Chris. Visit the Imperial Museum, Quitandinha Palace gardens, Crystal Palace, and Cathedral of Saint Peter. Add a buffet lunch and Bohemia Brewery visit, then return after a packed 12-hour day.

“It was okay! The only downfall of joining big group with multi language is that it will take time to explain to you what was being shown/ discussed.”

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2.Petrópolis Day Trip from Rio de Janeiro including Imperial Museum and Crystal Palace

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 101 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $93

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis with a guide, visiting the Imperial Museum, St. Peter of Alcantara Cathedral, Crystal Palace, and Quitandinha Palace. You also get free time for lunch and shopping, with optional visits to Santos Dumont’s house or Cervejaria Bohemia. Pickup and museum entry are included.

“The mini bus transport was clean and comfortable, our tour guide TTUHLALA was brilliant, she kept us entertained and informed even though we were the only British couple on the tour. The Petropolis trip started at a chocolate store, which was okay then on to the shopping centre in Petropolis which was not for us. From there we visited the Crystal Palace, quite interesting. We made a short trip to Santo Dumont's house 8 reals entrance fee where a video explained the inventors life. We then had a buffet meal 40 reals good food and value. Next was a visited to the Cathedral followed by the museum Royal Summer Palace,…”

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3.Imperial City Tour

★★★★★★★★★★3.7 · 95 reviews · 9 - 10 hours · from $68

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis by air-conditioned bus for a guided day among imperial palaces, German-style buildings, and mountain views. Visit the Imperial Museum, Quitandinha Palace, Crystal Palace, Santos Dumont’s home, and the imperial mausoleum. Add a brewery tour with tastings. English, Spanish, and Portuguese guides are available.

“This was a really excellent day out. It was so well organised with great communication on meeting times and schedule. Plus it never felt rushed. Chi Chi was such a entertaining fun guide. Her enthusiasm and 'ooh la la' attitude was infectious and she gave some interesting background and history on the places we visited from the Petropolis palace to the former casino. Petropolis palace is an elegant residence set within a lovely old town, with all the old architecture it's a nice contrast to the modern bustling Rio. We had a buffet meal and it offered great choice of items to select and great value. We were given the…”

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4.Petropolis The Imperial City with Beer tour and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 83 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $59

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis for an imperial museum, cathedral, Crystal Palace, Quitandinha Palace, buffet lunch, and a guided visit to Bohemia Brewery with three tastings. Rafael has guided some departures in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, but language support is not guaranteed. Expect a long group day with up to 45 people.

“Excellent experience and the guide, Rafa , explain every single place with great details the lunch is good and Bohemia tour well”

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5.The Imperial City with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 59 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $56

Spend about 10 hours traveling from Rio to Petropolis, Brazil’s former imperial retreat. You’ll visit the Imperial Museum, see Quitandinha Palace and Crystal Palace, enter São Pedro de Alcântara Cathedral, and eat at a Brazilian buffet. Accredited guides such as Julio lead the day, though long pickups, language issues, and extra drink costs are worth noting.

“nice trip to petropolis, good guide. Have Seen a lot. it was a long day. I doesn't like the long pickup of the guest.”

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6.Petropolis Bohemia: Historic tour and visit to the Bohemian Brewery

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 45 reviews · from $58

Spend about nine hours exploring Petrópolis, Brazil’s former imperial summer retreat, with stops at the Cathedral, Imperial Museum, Quitandinha Palace, Crystal Palace, and Santos Dumont’s house. The Bohemia Brewery visit includes three tastings. Pickup, lunch, an air-conditioned vehicle, and an English-speaking guide such as Gabriel are part of the experience.

“cidade muito bonita e aconchegante, recomendo a viator, passeio interessante e a agencia com profissionais bons.”

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7.Guided Tour to the Imperial Cida of Petrópolis with Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 44 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $80

Spend about 10 hours traveling from Rio to Petrópolis, the former summer retreat of Brazil’s imperial family. Visit the Imperial Museum, Santos Dumont’s home, Crystal Palace, and São Pedro de Alcântara Cathedral, with lunch and transport included. Shared groups can reach 30 people, and pickup times may change with traffic.

“This tour is not worth it the 70 dollars for sure. Petropolis is really nice, but we could not spend a lot of time in the city. We arrived extremely late at the destination (around 12) and we spent almost 1 hour for the lunch right after. We visited the imperial museum, the old casino, the crystal palace (from outside cause it was closed, and this should be mentioned when booking the tour) and the cathedral. The visit at the chocolate place is definitely a waste of time and we stayed there 1 hour. We left at 6:30pm circa. The guide was nice and she did her best, but the…”

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8.Imperial Petrópolis – Historic Tour + Teresa Street and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 44 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $57

Travel from Rio to mountain-set Petrópolis for the Imperial Museum, Quitandinha Palace, São Pedro Cathedral, Crystal Palace, and Santos Dumont’s quirky home. You’ll also get free time on Rua Teresa and a buffet lunch. Guides such as Aldo and Adriana have provided multilingual help, though hotel pickups can stretch the day.

“Petropolis was interesting, very different to Rio with historic palace etc. Bohemia beer tour of brewery incredible bargain for seniors at 19 reals (£3)!!”

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9.Petrópolis Trip with Palace, Imperial Museum & Brewery

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 42 reviews · 9 hours · from $55

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis with a bilingual guide and round-trip transport. See Quitandinha, the Imperial Museum, Saint Peter of Alcantara Cathedral, and the Crystal Palace, with time near Santos Dumont’s home. Guides speak English, Portuguese, and Spanish. The Bohemia Brewery may be replaced by the Wax Museum when closed.

“Liked Imperial Palace visit and Santos Dumont House (optional). Crystal Palace was a dull and I didn't like a 30 minute stop at a motorway café or long visit to chocolate shop. Fixing pick up place was really bad. Place and time were changed but the guide wasn't told... Guide remained very calm with people who were late. Not easy when such a big group. I had the worst seat on the bus, next to the guide. Large sticker on the window blocked a lot of the beauty views. As with all trips I've done in Rio, I wish there was a central pickup point rather than 2 hours driving…”

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10.Historic Petrópolis From Rio: The Imperial City –Palaces, Architecture & Culture

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 32 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $296Top rated

Spend about 10 hours exploring Petrópolis with a private guide and Rio hotel or airport pickup. Visit Quitandinha Palace, the Imperial Museum, the cathedral, Santos Dumont’s house, Crystal Palace, Bohemia Brewery, and Rua Teresa. Guides such as Bruno and Newton add local context, while brewery tastings and optional itinerary changes give the day some flexibility.

“My tour guide Bruno was simply amazing. The conversations regarding general knowledge of Petropolis, Rio.and Brazil, and recommendations on everything from hiking to dining were every bit worth the trip. Petropolis is a lovely, quaint city with an interesting history. One note, we skipped the brewery which apparently isn't very interesting, but instead took a drive and quick hike through Tijuca forest! Thank you for an amazing day trip!”

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11.Petrópolis Tour departing from Rio de Janeiro

★★★★★★★★★★3.2 · 13 reviews · 9 hours · from $48

Spend about nine hours traveling from Rio to imperial Petrópolis, with round-trip transport, a bilingual or trilingual guide, Imperial Museum entry, and buffet lunch. The route includes Quitandinha, Crystal Palace, and Santos Dumont’s house. Guide Julio has earned special praise for his storytelling, though mixed-language groups and long pickups can affect the day.

“We arrived at the pickup location 20 minutes early and waited an hour and a half after the pick up time… no one ever came, no text, nothing… we feel we were scammed! Do not use this company! They’ll just take your money and there is no actual tour!”

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12.Private Tour with Museum Ticket

★★★★★★★★★★4.2 · 9 reviews · 8 hours · from $170

Spend eight hours exploring Petrópolis from Rio with a private English, Portuguese, or Spanish-speaking guide. Visit Quitandinha Palace, the cathedral, Imperial Museum, Santos Dumont’s house, and Crystal Palace. Hotel pickup, drop-off, and the Imperial Museum ticket are included. Guide Ederson is especially well regarded for his flexible pacing and clear historical explanations.

“I enjoyed visiting Petropolis and would recommend it. The scenery on the way is spectacular. The driver was punctual though pick-up arrangements and start time were changed at short notice. The guide was knowledgeable, friendly and communicated well. The vehicle was not one that I would choose to travel even a short distance in. It seemed to have some difficulty with the steep roads, but it did have air conditioning. For the fee I was charged I expected a modern comfortable vehicle.”

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13.Full-Day Tour to The Imperial City of Petrópolis

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 6 reviews · 10 hours · from $96

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis for a 10-hour guided visit to Brazil’s imperial summer city. Tour the Imperial Museum, see the tombs of Emperor Don Pedro II and Princess Isabel, visit the Crystal Palace, and have free time for Santos Dumont House, shopping, or the Bohemia Beer Factory. Pickup serves major Rio beach districts.

“Overall we enjoyed the tour. Petropolis was a wonderful destination. Would have preferred spending more time sightseeing and less on shopping, lunch and breaks.”

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