Itatiaia National Park: Brazil’s earliest National Park. Located between the cities of Itatiaia and Resende in the state of Rio de Janeiro. Its vegetation consists of Atlantic Montane and Cloud Forest of an altitude of between 700 and 2000 meters, on the mountain range of Mantiqueira. This park is 176 kilometers away from Rio de Janeiro city and can be accessed through Presidente Dutra highway (BR 116). The road to Itatiaia crosses Dutra 17 kilometers after leaving Resende. Take this road to the right and follow the signs leading to Itatiaia National Park.If you are in São Paulo you must drive along the same road for 269 kilometers and undo some kilometers after finding the access to Itatiaia.The park’s highest area can be accessed through road BR 354 (that connects Dutra highway with the Hydro-mineral ranches), going past Engenheiro Passos, 15 km after the entrance to Itatiaia. As of that point you will have to drive an additional 27 kilometers until you reach a dust road leading to a site known as the Abrigo Rebouças. Drive along this road for another 17 km to reach the park's highlands where the Alsene Posada is located.

Serra do Órgãos National Park: It preserves an important part of the Mountane Atlantic Forests and geological treasures like the “Órgãos” rocky mountains. Its main location is in the municipality of Teresópolis and its second location is in the municipality of Guapimirm.Leaving Rio de Janeiro, take Washington Luís Highway (BR-040) and turn right upon reaching “Magé, Guapimirim, Teresópolis and Além Paraíba” intersections. Some kilometers after the road begins to climb you will see a sign indicating the gate to the second location of the park on your right. Drive uphill several kilometers and you’ll arrive at the road leading to Teresópolis on the left. A few meters away from the city portico, you will find the entrance gate to the park’s main location on your left where the road starts leading you downhill towards the right until you cross the Paquequer river and start driving uphill again.

Tijuca National Park: It covers an area of 3,466 hectares (34.66 square kilometers) of Mountane Atlantic Forest with altitudes of between 400 to 1,022 meters (1,312ft to 3,353ft). It divides Rio de Janeiro into north and south regions. The best way to access it is through Tijuca quarter. Take Tijuca’s main avenue, Conde de Bonfim until you reach a site called Usina. There the road intersects São Miguel Street. Drive uphill along Avenue Edson Passos Avenue until the “Alto da Boa Vista” quarter. At the end of the uphill drive you’ll arrive at Afonso Viseu Square. Drive round the square and take a right turn again at the next exit. You will be able to see the Gate of the northern area of the Park. If you want to visit the Park’s southern area, the Carioca Mountain Range, take a left turn several meters past Afonso Viseu Square. You may also access this area through the quarter of Santa Teresa, if you follow the signs leading to Corcovado or through the quarter where the Botannic Garden is located if you take “Dona Castorina road”.

Bocaina National Park: It’s located in the South-South Western area of Rio de Janeiro. The park extends through the states of Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. To arrive there, take Presidente Dutra Highway until you reach Barra Mansa city, 108 kilometers away from Rio de Janeiro. At Barra Mansa, take road RJ 157 to Bananal city and drive an additional 29 kilometers. Once you drive past Bananal you will need to head towards São José do Barreiro city, 49 kilometers to the West. The main site of Bocaina National Park is located in that city. If you want to tour the park, that is the only access available at present. However, to visit the park, you will be required a permit from “IBAMA”, the Environmental Control Government Agency. The park gate, where the first forest rangers' stand is located, is 30 kilometers away from São José do Barreiro city. Forest rangers control the access of visitors and neighbors to the park and only Sport Utility Vehicles are allowed in. To visit the park it is necessary to get in contact with the Brazilian Enviromental Institute since only 4-wheel drive vehicles can access the park.

There are many Conservation Units in Rio de Janeiro. Their access is forbidden to tourists. Only authorized researchers are allowed to enter those areas. The most important conservation areas in the state of Rio de Janeiro are the following:

Tinguá Biological Reserve: Located at the highest part of Serra do Mar mountain range, this reserve is partly in the municipality of Duque de Caxias, Petrópolis and partly in the municipality of Miguel Pereira. The access to this area is through the Estrada Velha de Tinguá (lowland areas), or through the Imperial route, the road that joining the municipalities of Petrópolis and Paty do Alferes (highland areas).

Poço das Antas Biological Reserve: Located at the Silva Jardim municipality, this is a protection areas for the "mico-leão-dourado” and many typical birds of the lowland forest. The birdlife found in the Poço das Antas Biological Reserve are typically found in the lowland forests of the state of Rio de Janeiro. In that region there are three differentiated latitudinal strips: coastal, lowlands, between mountains and coast, and Serra do Mar montain range. The Poço das Antas biological reserve is located in the second strip, the one in between the coastal zone dominated by lagoons and restingas and the more internal one, the Serra do Mar Montane Atlantic Forest. In that strip of land that lies in between the other two zones there are unforested floodable lands and small hills covered by more structured forests. However, the natural basic landscape has been transformed by successive human interventions throughout the reserve and its surroundings; something that becomes apparent in the make-up of the birdlife. The typical species of lowland Atlantic Forest found in the area are the following: White-necked Hawk; Scaled Pigeon; Turquoise tanager; Red-headed Manakin and White-crowned Manakin; and the small flycatchers, Olivaceous Flatbill and White-lored Tyrannulet. As the forest remaining in the lowlands between mountain ranges along the coast of the state of Rio de Janeiro is not very extensive, those species are very dependent on those small strips of land. (text by José Fernando Pacheco.)

União Biological Reserve: Another important lowland forest area is the one located in the municipality of Casimiro de Abreu, along the BR 101 highway. This preservation area was created in order to protect and recover remaining species of the Lowland Atlantic Forest and related formations, and the native wildlife of that habitat, especially the “mico-leão-dourado”. Like the Poço das Antas reserve, this area is a precious remaining of the portion of the Lowland Atlantic Forest located between the “restinga” biome (strip between lagoons and the sea) and of the Slope Atlantic Forest. The birdlife of the União Reserve is similar to the one of the Poço das Antas. The reserve is made up by the old União farm that belongs to the Rede Ferroviaria Federal S.A. railway company (privatized and called Supervia) and maintained by the latter as railway sleeper reserve for the replenishment of rails. That is the reason why there are eucalyptus growing areas inside it witch, pursuant to the executive order issued on April 22 1998 creating the reserve, they must be cut down and allocated to be used within the reserve and other reserves and, if the timber is sold, the revenues resulting from that transaction should be allocated to fund the costs incurred into in the planting of trees in the unit in question (source: Executive order w/nº of 22/04/98).

EE de Tamoios – Angra dos Reis;
EE Araribóia – Rio de Janeiro;
EE de Piraí – Rio Claro e Piraí;
EE de Tupinambás;
APA de Petrópolis – Petrópolis;
APA de Cairuçu – Parati;
APA da Serra da Mantiqueira – Resende;
APA de Guapimirim – Guapimirim;
APA. da Bacia do Rios São João/Mico-Leão-Dourado – Casemiro de Abreu;
Área Tombada do Morcego – Angra dos Reis;
ARIE da Floresta da Cicuta – Volta Redonda;
ARIE das Ilhas Cagarras – Rio de Janeiro;
REx de Arraial do Cabo – Arraial do Cabo;
FN Mário Xavier – Itaguaí;
FPMU de Araras – Petrópolis;
FPMU de Caboclos – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU de Camorim – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU de Colônia – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU de Curicica – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU da Covanca – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Egalon – Petrópolis;
FPMU de Guaratiba – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Mantiqueira – Petrópolis e Magé;
FPMU Mendanha – Rio de Janeiro, Nova Iguaçu e Nilópolis;
FPMU Pau da Fome – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Pedra Branca – Nova Friburgo;
FPMU Petrópolis – Petrópolis;
FPMU Piraquara – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Rio da Prata – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Rio D´Ouro – Nova Iguaçu;
FPMU São Pedro – Nova Iguaçu;
FPMU Serra do Barata – Rio de Janeiro;
FPMU Teodoro de Oliveira – Nova Friburgo;
FPMU Tinguá – Vassouras, Miguel Pereira e Petrópolis;
FPMU Xerém – Duque de Caxias;

EE – Ecological Refuge;
APA – Environment Preservation Area;
ARIE – Very Intersting Ecologic Preservation Area;
REx – Extractive Reserve;
FN – Union Forest;
FPMU – Spring of Water Conservation Forest.

Sources: Conservation Units in the State of Rio de Janeiro of Wilson Ferreira de Mendoça Jr.; Delson Luiz Martins Queiroz and Luiz Otávio de lima Pedreira.