Curitiba: Antonina & Morretes Train Ride with Lunch
The Train Up Serra do Mar: A Day That Doesn't Always End at Sunset
You travel from Curitiba to the historic port town of Antonina, then to Morretes for a typical regional lunch of barreado overlooking the river, with free time to explore colonial streets and local shops. In the afternoon, you board a tourist-class train that climbs Serra do Mar through Atlantic Forest for four hours, passing tunnels and bridges built in the 1880s, arriving back in Curitiba by evening. The guide and driver speak Portuguese only, and the train may run late or cancel due to technical issues.
10h–11h
Step-by-step itinerary
Antonina visit and Morretes train ride
- Travel via Estrada da Graciosa
- Tour historic Antonina town
- Stop at Bananina candy factory
- Free time walking in Morretes
- Enjoy typical lunch in Morretes
- Board train at Morretes station
- Train ride through Serra do Mar
- Arrive back in Curitiba
The Experience
The van picks you up early, and you're heading toward Antonina before you've had coffee — the guide speaks only Portuguese, so if you don't, you'll be watching the landscape and nodding a lot. The road to Antonina is the Estrada da Graciosa unless it's raining hard or under repair, in which case the route changes and nobody tells you until you're already in the van. It's one of those small logistical things that makes the day feel less like a package and more like something that actually happens. You stop at the Bananina factory to see how they make the local banana candy, then walk through Antonina's colonial center — it's small, genuinely quiet, and the kind of place where you notice the light on the old buildings more than you notice other tourists.
Then you're in Morretes, where you have free time to walk along the Nhundiaquara River and through the narrow streets lined with craft shops and local product stalls. The main church is there, and the fair, and you'll probably spend longer than you expected just sitting somewhere with a view of the water. Lunch is included at one of the better restaurants in town — they serve barreado, a beef stew that's been slow-cooked and served with cassava flour, rice, banana, plus fish and shrimp on the side. It's not fancy, but it's the thing people come to Morretes to eat, and eating it overlooking the river while locals walk past is the kind of detail that stays with you. Drinks and dessert cost extra, so budget for that if you want coffee after.
At 2:30 pm you board the train at Morretes station. The tourist-category seats are cushioned, and you get a guide in Portuguese, a simple snack of cookies, and one water or soft drink. The journey climbs Serra do Mar for four hours through the largest preserved section of Atlantic Forest in Brazil — you pass through tunnels and over bridges, and the guide talks about how this railway was built between 1880 and 1885 as an engineering feat that still holds up. The landscape is dense and green, and the engineering is genuinely impressive if you think about how they did it without modern equipment. You're supposed to arrive in Curitiba around 7 pm, which is when the tour gets its name — but the company is honest about it: sunset timing varies, and you're not guaranteed to see one during the ride. Some days you will, some days you won't. The train can also run late or cancel due to technical issues, so that's the trade-off of riding something this old and this popular.
It's a full day, and it moves at a pace that doesn't feel rushed because half of it is just sitting on a train watching the forest go by. The guide is Portuguese-only, the van driver is Portuguese-only, so if you speak the language you'll get more context; if you don't, you'll get the views and the experience of being somewhere that isn't built primarily for English speakers. That's not a problem — it's just the shape of the day.
What’s included
Your day includes air-conditioned van pickup from Curitiba, a scenic tour of Antonina with a stop at the Bananina factory and historic center, free time to walk through Morretes and explore the Nhundiaquara River and colonial streets, a typical lunch with barreado (beef stew), fish, shrimp, rice and salad at a restaurant overlooking the river, a 4-hour tourist-class train ride through Atlantic Forest with a Portuguese-speaking guide, cookies and one water or soft drink on the train, and return to Curitiba by evening. The guide and driver speak Portuguese only.
Operated by Special Paraná
Is this one for you?Right for travelers who want a full day outside Curitiba without arranging transport, meals and train tickets separately, and who are comfortable with a Portuguese-only guide and the possibility that the train may run late or be cancelled for technical reasons.
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Top questions
What language is the guide?
Portuguese only. The van guide and train guide both speak Portuguese.
Is the sunset guaranteed?
No. The tour is named for sunset, but arrival time and sunset timing vary. You may or may not see one during the train ride.
What's included in the train ticket?
Tourist-category seat, a guide in Portuguese, cookies, and one water or soft drink per person.
How long is the train ride?
Approximately 4 hours, climbing Serra do Mar from Morretes to Curitiba.
What is barreado?
A traditional beef stew from the region, served with cassava flour, rice, banana, fish, shrimp and salad.
Are drinks included with lunch?
No. Lunch is included, but drinks and desserts are payable separately.
Can the train be cancelled?
Yes. Delays and cancellations may occur due to technical issues with the railway.
What happens if it rains heavily?
The route to Antonina may change from the Estrada da Graciosa to an alternate road if conditions are unsafe.
Curitiba: Antonina & Morretes Train Ride with Lunch
10h–11h · PT · at your hotel
from US$ 103 per person
★★★★★★★★★★4.91274 reviewsVerified traveler reviews via our booking provider
