It was such an amazing hike! Highly recommended! You definitely need to get a guide if you are not used to rock climbing. It’s a very hard hike that gets harder as you go up. You need to be in good health and shape to do it. You also need to not be afraid of heights otherwise this is not for you! This is a challenging hike but the view on the top are priceless. Our guide was wonderful and helped us throughout the hike (the rock climbing part).

Pantanal - Rodrigo and santa clara lodge - insights and operative notes 1. We arrived in Brazil in August and after the Amazon-experince I went to the Pantanal with my two kids. After wandering around the internet and looking for a contact person who would organize the stay there, I contacted Rodrigo (silva?) whose number was mentioned by several travelers on several websites on the net. 2. In her first contact with him, the price he demanded for three nights and four days was 3100 r per person. I had an idea about costs from the vacation in the Amazon . The price seemed expensive and I found out that only five years ago another traveler paid Rodrigo less than a third (1100 riyals (!!)) for the exact same thing. Following this, I contacted Rodrigo from another phone number stating what I saw and the new price was set at 1950 Real (in a shared room) per person. Later i I saw that another tourist published a post according to which he paid only 1350 Rials several months before. 3. I agreed with Rodrigo that I would pay in dollars according to the official exchange rate. When time to pay arrived and I paid in dollars - his representative refused to return the excess and Rodrigo explained that he should get it for the conversion even though it was agreed otherwise, clearly. 4. After being picked up from the place where we slept - the trip from Campo Grande was on a good road and lasted between 10:00-14:30 approximately in a public transportation with a food-toilet break. Rodrigo collected the full price before the trip, through the person who sent to pick us up. 5. We were driven to the Santa Clara Lodge and Rodrigo promised that when we arrive in the afternoon we would get Lunch and go out for activity. In practice, when we arrived, it turned out that no meal was served because lunch is only served until 1:00 PM and we arrived a few hours later. After an hour of waiting for the lunch we were supposed to receive - we lost patience and they made us a sandwich with meat even though we said in advance that we were vegetarians. When we refused to eat it - we got instead a sandwich with lettuce and tomato only... the one who "took care" of it was the local guide named Tony - a lazy man who lost his patience without hiding his impatience, when we explained him what Rodrigo promised about food and activity. When I asked about the activity we were supposed to do that day (after all, it was the first day of activity out of four) I was told that there was going to be no activity. When I approached Rodrigo about it - he ignored it. Then it became clear how the method works: Rodrigo directs those who contact him and "hire his services" to this place, which it is highly doubtful if he has ever visited, and from that second he evaporates: the guide is not on Rodrigo's behalf at all, but the permanent guide of the place, who also lives nearby .The place, alone, is the one that decides what will happen and when with the traveler, without anything to do with Rodrigo. 6. Unfortunately, beyond the fact that the guide was lazy and impatient (but also nice, intermittently) - his English was broken. It was very difficult to understand the guide's words in English and even when we did - some of the 'explanations' indicated a complete lack of knowledge. 7. The food at Santa Clara was the only bright spot. Both cooks did a good job. 9. In the evening the guide said that the next day we will fish piranhas between 07:30-10:30 and the next activity will only be around 15:30. I explained him that according to.my fishing experience in amazonas it would last no more than 45-60 minutes so I asked him to organize another activity, but he ignored. In the morning we walked 15 minutes to the river bank, he handed out fishing rods and cut sausages as bait and went to sit in the shade. Some managed to fish and some didn't and after about 45 minutes the experience was over and we went back to the lodge to do nothing until the afternoon. A complete waste of time. 10. In the afternoon we went on a "jungle walk". The guide simply led us through the fields to see many cows grazing there and walked along a path next to a fence not going into the woods. the guide, as usual, chose the easy way. When I asked why we walk along the fence and not in the vegetation, he said that it is forbidden to cross the fence. When I told him that we came for a walk in the jungle and watching cows doesn't look like that, he changed his mind, we crossed the fence and entered several clumps of vegetation and a muddy area and the feeling was that this was the first time he had done this...we didn't see too much but at least we walked among local vegetation.. . In the evening I sent a message to Rodrigo about the huge gap between what was promised and what was received. He didn't respond, obviously because he had no control over it. 11. The next day was our last full day. In the morning we went on a "safari trip". Together with other travelers we boarded a safari truck and were driven on the main road that connects the farms to a point where we were asked to get off. From there the guide led a walk to nowhere. In the first minute we saw monkeys and from there until the end of the walk we walked in an environment of plants, without seeing any animal and without getting close to the water that was near us where the animals live. At a certain point, when daughter asked the guide what about animals, he replied that he did not promise to see them (which is true) and that because of a fire that happened several years ago - there are not really any animals in the area... but there was no sign of a fire around us and everything was green...after an hour of lazy walking we were driven back. 12. In the afternoon we went on the only tour that was worth anything - it is a boat ride (finally) on the very nearby river. On the cruise, we saw monkeys in the treetops, capybaras and alligators and many birds. We returned in the dark while lighting crocodiles in the water. 13. The next day we went "horse riding" which was supposed to last two and a half hours. In practice, the lazy guide led us on the dirt path where we arrived two days before by car and in the field next to it and an hour later we returned. A complete waste of time. 14. Because we had a flight back from Campo Grande in the afternoon we needed a private return transportation. In the clarification I made in advance with Rodrigo it was agreed that it would cost 225 r per person one way. When I arrived at the lodge I asked the local guide several times to ask Rodrigo to arrange it but he, of course, did not. When I contacted Rodrigo directly he mentioned that it I have to pay for it and I confirmed it. At this point he said it would cost us 1400 r. I reminded him that in the email he wrote me something else. There was an exchange of WhatsApp messages in which I also sent him a photo of the email he sent me with the amount he indicated. He continued to argue. I finally called him. This time he claimed that the 1400 is a special price because the return trip should cost 2400 r per person and that's what he wrote to me in that email!! I showed him, clearly, that 2400 riyals was the price he demanded for the entire vacation including private round trip transportation!! In the end he 'gave up' and demanded that the three of us pay 700 r. We paid directly to the driver who drove us and were happy to end the bad experience in the Pantanal. 15. In practice, there are quite a few farms along the river. I guess some organize similar things. I am attaching photos with details of some of them and of the nearby Santa Catarina Hotel which is accessible online and probably organizes a similar activity. 15. In conclusion, the organization of the trip by Rodrigo reflected a complete disdain for the travelers and a complete exploitation of them from a position of power, since the travelers have nothing to do once they arrive in the area. Anyone who wants to enjoy a visit to the Pantanal should avoid contacting Rodrigo, and look for someone else who will organize it for him.

The summary: Well worth the roughly 45 minute hike up a steep hill. The details: You'll likely get dropped off at the entrance gate of a very steep and long paved driveway however there are some private cars that park along the entrance asking if you want a drive up the steep driveway for $R5 or so. It may actually be worth it as that hike up could be pretty intense as it's quite steep. Once you arrive at the little cafe, you'll see the actual trail entrance. This is for people that can handle a fairly intense incline for a long period of time - at least 40 minutes of pretty steep and often slippery pathways. The first section you'll feel deep inside a rainforest hence the slippery traction. WEAR MOSQUITO SPRAY otherwise you will for sure get bitten a lot. Once you reach the top, you'll be blessed with perhaps the best view in Rio. The views even extend past Barra Tijuca. Absolutely gorgeous, stunning and well worth it. PRO TIP: Either plan to take the public bus that seems to frequently stop outside on the main road or call your Uber once you are at the cafe on your return. Celluar/data reception is available ironically only at the very top and at the cafe. Once you walk down the driveway, you'll be out of signal until you walk on the highway road back down the hill for at least 1.5 miles. It's a windy road and the vehicles come whipping around. In our case, we waiting until we were on the road to call Uber and then had zero luck. The cars canceled one right after the other and cellular reception would come and go. Thankfully a city bus passed by and the friendly driver allowed us on even though we had no cash on us.

This one one of the best hikes I’ve ever been on. Our guide Lucas was very helpful throughout the entire hike and the views were breathtaking.

The views are amazing! Our guide Pietro N. was professional, nice and informative. Highly recommend.

First class standard of equipment, cleanliness, and layout of apartment. Excellent location with a view across the bay to Bamburgh Castle. Good sandy beach with rock-pooling benefit!. Bamburgh itself is very pretty with a good choice of tea shops. If we had any moan at all it's that we don't like foam (plastic) mattresses or manmade duvets and pillows, as human skin overheats making for difficult sleep. We always take our own pillow and duvet so all was well. Happy to recommend without hesitation.

Our guide Sergio was amazing. Very nice and funny and helped everyone get up and down safely. The trail is 3 hours each way with 1 hour at the top for photos and rest. It is very steep the whole way so be prepared but the views at the top are more than worth the hike.

Nattrip arranged for the guide/driver Eduardo La Pasta to pick us up at our hotel and drive us up 1600 ft to the start of the trail. The mile-long hiking trail led us up to 2300 ft in less than an hour; along the path, our guide even spotted a huge sloth way up on its tree! And then we were at the top of the Pedra Bonita: what a view! Stayed for an hour, Eduado naming us all the breathtaking sites. We are way past 60, and it took us some extra breath up and knee control down. On the way back we stopped at the Mirante das Canoas. A plus was that we took the trail early Monday morning, very few tourists.

Great agency for nature-lovers. They offer a wide variety of packages. A bit on the pricier side, however they delivered 100%. Great communication. Flawless organisation. Plus, they provided for equipment that I didn't have myself. I did the "Travessia Petrópolis-Teresópolis" out of season and they still organised a private guide for me who is a native of Petrópolis and therefore knew the area inside and out. It was fantastic. And the weather-gods did the rest, as it hardly rained. As to the trek itself, it was a rather challenging one but I wouldn't miss out on this great experience, breathtaking views. I greatly recommend the agency and the trek. Thank You.

Amazing hike and great experience! Easily the best thing we did in Rio! Can't recommend enough. Tour guide was very helpful and friendly.

Enjoyable circuit of the National Park and yes after sweating the waterfalls was exactly what we all needed. Amazing beauty everywhere you look.

Everything went smoothly. Eduardo was very knowledgeable and skilled with the hike/climb. He was full of information about the flora and fauna.

Sergio our guide was amazing and made the 6 hour trek/climb much more enjoyable, highly recommend him and if back in Rio will get him to take us on some other adventures Thanks Sergio

This hike is absolutely awesome and highly recommended to sporty people who are safe hiking parts where you have to climb a little bit with no rope(!). Note that the key points of the hike are unsecured and you need to be in a physical condition that allows huge steps on partly slippery rocks. If not sure-footed and free from giddiness, this hike is not recommended. Make Sure you ask for guide Luiz Fernando, he excellently guides you throughout the way.

Amazing experience hiking + climbing to the top of Pedra da Gavea. Better to prepare for hiking boots and bring a lot of water and prepare yourself for small climbing & roping. The view on the top is totally worth it.