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Petrópolis is a mountain city in the Serra dos Órgãos of Rio de Janeiro state in Brazil, about 68 km from Rio de Janeiro, famous as the Imperial City, the summer seat of Emperor Pedro II, whose palace is now the Imperial Museum and who is buried in its Gothic cathedral.
Pedro II founded the town by decree in 1843 on his family's Córrego Seco estate, and German immigrants led by Major Julius Friedrich Koeler built the palace and laid out the town. Its cool climate drew the court and the aristocracy, and later the presidents of the republic, while from 1894 to 1902 it served as the capital of Rio de Janeiro state.
Spend a day in the historic center visiting the Imperial Museum, the cathedral, the Crystal Palace and Princess Isabel's house, then see Santos Dumont's quirky house and the vast Quitandinha Palace. Leave time for the Bohemia brewery, the castle at Itaipava and the trails of the Serra dos Órgãos National Park.
Imperial Museum of Petrópolis occupies the neoclassical summer palace of Emperor Pedro II, begun in 1845 and finished in 1862 in the historic center of Petrópolis. Its collection of furniture, documents, art and personal objects of the imperial family makes it one of Brazil's most visited museums.
Petrópolis Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Peter of Alcantara, is a neo-Gothic church inspired by the cathedrals of northern France. Opened in 1925 after 37 years of work, it got its tower in the 1960s. Its Imperial Mausoleum holds the tombs of Pedro II, Teresa Cristina and Princess Isabel.
Crystal Palace of Petrópolis is an iron and glass pavilion opened in 1884, ordered by the Count d'Eu as a gift for Princess Isabel and made in Arras, France. Inspired by the crystal palaces of London and Porto, it first held farm shows. Saved from demolition in 1960, it now hosts events.
Princess Isabel's House is a neoclassical mansion in Petrópolis built in 1853 and bought by the Count d'Eu in 1876. Their first two children were born here, the last photo of the imperial family in Brazil was taken on its veranda in 1888, and Pedro II was here when the republic was declared.
Quitandinha Palace in Petrópolis was built from 1941 by Joaquim Rolla to be the largest casino hotel in South America. Stars such as Orson Welles, Carmen Miranda and Walt Disney passed through its halls, but Brazil banned gambling in 1946. Since 2007 the SESC has run its halls for culture.
Rio Negro Palace in Petrópolis was built as the summer palace of the Baron of Rio Negro, who bought the land in 1889. It housed governors of Rio de Janeiro state while Petrópolis was the capital, and from 1903 it was the summer residence of Brazil's presidents, loved by Getúlio Vargas.
Santos Dumont House, known as A Encantada, is the house that the aviation pioneer Alberto Santos Dumont built on a steep slope in Petrópolis in 1918. A museum, it has no kitchen, no dividing walls, an alcohol-heated shower unique in Brazil then, and outside steps to be started with the right foot.
Grão-Pará Palace is a neoclassical building on Rua Epitácio Pessoa in central Petrópolis, built from 1859 to 1861 to designs by the imperial architect Theodoro Marx. Courtiers who served Pedro II in weekly shifts lodged here. Later it housed the state court and the Portuguese embassy.
Bohemia Brewery was founded in Petrópolis in 1853 by the German immigrants Henrique Leiden and Henrique Kremer, making it the first brewery in Brazil. It began by making German-style beers, about six thousand bottles a month, delivered by horse cart, and its Bohemia beer is still brewed today.
Itaipava Castle is a Norman medieval-style castle in the Itaipava district of Petrópolis, built around 1922 to 1924 for Rodolfo Smith de Vasconcellos. Twenty families from Europe built it with Portuguese stone, French slate and Carrara marble, used in its Zodiac Hall.
Serra dos Órgãos National Park protects 20,030 hectares of the Serra dos Órgãos range across Petrópolis, Teresópolis, Guapimirim and Magé. Created in 1939 as Brazil's third national park, it is named for peaks that recall organ pipes, and its three-day Petrópolis-Teresópolis traverse is famous.
Palácio Amarelo, the Yellow Palace, on Praça Visconde de Mauá in the historic center of Petrópolis, is the seat of the city council. Built as a summer mansion, it was sold to the council in 1894 after five years of dispute with the Baron of Guaraciaba, and reopened with a new facade in 1897.
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