Piaui Practicalities
The rodoviária (t 86/3218-1514) is on the southeast outskirts of the city and has a tourist information post (Mon–Fri 8am–noon & 2–6pm, Sat 8am–noon; t 86/3216-5510), where you can pick up free booklets with a city map. Frequent buses run into the centre, and there are cheap taxis, too. You will also find an information post on the corner of Magalhães Filho and Alvaro Mendes in the centre of town five blocks from the Praça da Liberdade. It’s very easy to find your way around as the streets are organized in a grid pattern.
There are a number of good hotels opposite the rodoviária. The Elite (R$41-70) and the São Francisco (R$41-70) are no-frills options. Among those in the city centre overlooking the river is the more upmarket Luxor Piauí, Praça Mal. Deodoro 310 (t 86/3131-3000, w www.luxorhoteis.com.br; R$121-180), with disabled access, a restaurant, quite smart rooms and a pool, while cheaper places can be found nearby around Praça Saraiva. Restaurants in the city are not cheap, but good seafood is served at Camarão de Elías, Av. Pedro Almeida 457, in the bairro of São Cristóvão (t 86/3232-5025). Piauienses excel at meat (try paçoca, prepared with shredded jerky and manioc meal), the best of which can be found at the lively Favorito Grills, Rua Prof. Mario Batista 69, São Cristóvão (t 86/3233-3333).
The city’s nightlife lacks the focus of the coastal capitals, but there is life here after dark. The bank of the Rio Parnaíba is the best place from which to enjoy the sunset. A kilometre or so south of the centre, along the riverfront road, is Prainha, a series of bars and restaurants built along the riverbank, shaded by planted trees: buses run there, but are very infrequent by late afternoon – use the taxis in Teresina, which are cheap.
Outdoor activities in Piaui
There are two main places to stay in the park. At the entrance, the Fazenda Sete Cidades (t 86/3276-2222; R$181-260) has a restaurant, pool and regular pick-up shuttles into the park itself, which you can use whether you stay there or not. More convenient for walking, and just as comfortable, is the cheaper Abrigo do Ibama (t 86/3343-1342; from R$25 per person) hostel and campsite in the centre of the park, again with a restaurant and bathing nearby in a natural spring.
Walking in Sete Cidades is not particularly difficult in physical terms, but it’s important to get good local advice, as well as maps and ideally a guide before setting off. Bear in mind that the park does get extremely hot; stout walking shoes, plenty of liquid and a broad-brimmed hat are essential. Staff at the accommodation options listed above can advise you as to decent routes and the campsites dotted around the park. The rock formations themselves make very good landmarks and their different shapes have lent them their names: the “Map of Brazil”, the “Tortoise”, the “Roman Soldier”, the “Three Kings”, the “Elephant” and so on. Watch out for rattlesnakes.