Federal conservation units (UCs) received 23.7 million visitors last year, an amount slightly greater than the population of Minas Gerais or slightly less than that of Australia. National parks accounted for half of the total in the period, or 11.8 million tourists.
The numbers have been formally monitored since 2000, when the law on the national system of conservation units, the SNUC, was published.
For ICMBio, an agency linked to the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change, the records recorded in the period reflect “not only a notable recovery from pre-pandemic numbers, but also a growing demand for outdoor experiences and in contact with nature ”.
In the capital Rio de Janeiro, the Tijuca National Park continues to drive national tourism amounts in ecological reserves. There were almost 4.5 million visits last year, representing 19% of total tourists in federal UCs and a growth of 26% over the 3.5 million in 2022. The area is home to trails, waterfalls and the international attraction of Christ the Redeemer .
Tourism in the Tijuca National Park has only been surpassed by that in the Baleia Franca Environmental Protection Area (APA), in Santa Catarina, which totaled 8.1 million visitors in 2023, shows the Planning Coordination, Visitation Structuring system and ICMBio Ecotourism.
After Parna da Tijuca, the ranking of most visited national parks in the country is completed, in that order, by Iguaçu, Jericoacoara, Serra da Bocaina, Marinho de Fernando de Noronha, Lençóis Maranhenses, Histórico do Monte Pascoal, Brasília , Ubajara and Serra dos Órgãos.
The greatest demand for conserved areas also occurs at the state level. Last year, more than half a million people entered the 28 conservation units in Paraná open to the public. It was a jump of more than 50% from the 331.2 thousand visitors from the previous year, says the State News Agency.
