Sights in Cuiabá - The excellent Secretaria de Turismo gives out a very detailed map showing all the various sights in Cuiabá, complete with pictures. It's a nice try, but pleasant though the city is, there's really little to see here.

• Basilica do Senhor Bom Jesus de Cuiabá, Praça da República. Tu-F 8AM-11AM and 2PM-6PM. A stylish modern cathedral with some nifty Art Deco features and great stained glass. Mass is at 6am and 6pm daily.
• Almost next door there's the yellow baroque Palácio de Instrução tel: 065/321-3391. M-F 8AM-5PM, now home to Cuiabá's history and natural history museums. Admission is R$1 (US35¢) for both. The history museum is mostly devoted to the 1860s war between Brazil and Paraguay, largely fought in this remote region. The natural history wing features a wide assortment of stuffed dead animals -- all rather tatty looking -- and some great Indian clubs and arrows and headdresses.
• Down by the renovated riverside port area there's the Museu do Rio Cuiabá and the Municipal Aquarium, Av. Beira Rio s/n (where the Av. 15 de Novembro crosses the river; tel; 065/623-1440. Tu-Su 9AM-6PM. Features displays and exhibits on the changing face of the river, and a small collection of local Pantanal fish.

The centerpiece of Cuiabá is a small green square called Praça de República. The modern but very stylish basilica fronts this square, as does the tourist information office and the small natural history museum. The most important street in Centro (central Cuiabá), Avenida Getulio Vargas, runs northwest from Praça da República. Most of the city's better hotels and several restaurants cluster around Avenida Getulio Vargas about 8 blocks from the square. Directly northeast of Praça República, there's a small shopping district, centered on Rua Eng. Ricardo Franco. Two blocks southeast of Praça República, Avenida Getulio Vargas hits the broad traffic arterial Avenida Ten. Cel. Duarte. On the far side of this street there's a large city park, Parque Antonio Pires de Campos, and on the ridge behind that, the neighborhood of Bandeirantes, where there are a few cheaper hotels. It takes about 10 to 15 minutes to walk from either Banderiantes to Praça República, or from Praça República to the Avenida Vargas hotel enclave.

The capital of Mato Grosso state, Cuiabá is a modern, pleasant town of 500,000 that sits in the middle of Brazilian cattle country. It was not unusual to see folks on the street in cowboy duds, but through recent years, Cuiaba has been greately modernized. And, it's a great place to stock up on boots, saddles, and other western gear. The city serves as the main gateway to the northern part of the Pantanal -- the Transpantaneira Highway starts just 98km (61 miles) away -- and as the jumping-off point to the Chapada dos Guimarães. However While in The City There is So much to do and see. three spacious shopping malls, Amazing restaurants, and A late night clubs. Not to mention The Beautiful open downtown center where you can find live music, open air shopping, street vendors,and fresh coconut water.

History

Cuiabá was founded in April 08, 1719 as the capital of Mato Grosso State.

Most people arrive in Cuiabá and immediately leave on a Pantanal tour. The hotels, sights, and restaurants all within walking distance of the town center. The main hotel neighborhood and center of town is quite safe. The only part of town to avoid is along the riverside. Taxis are inexpensive -- R$7 to R$21 (US$2.30-US$6.95) to get around town -- and quick for getting out to the airport or bus station. Lodges will usually arrange transportation and pickup from hotels.

Driving the Transpantaneira -- There are a couple of ironies about the Transpantaneira. Though the name implies that the road traverses the entire flood plain, the highway stops in Porto Jofre, 144km (89 miles) from where it began, and at least that far from the opposite edge of the Pantanal. The other irony is that the project, which if completed would likely have destroyed the Pantanal (by skewing the ecosystem's drainage pattern), has instead, in its unfinished state, become one of the great wildlife-viewing areas of the world. Ditches on either side of the roadbed have become favorite feeding grounds for kingfishers, capybara, egrets, jabiru storks, giant river otters, and caiman by the dozen. Spend but a day on the Transpantaneira, and you'll see more wildlife than you'd see in a week in the Amazon.

Tour Operators -- All tour operators work with one or more Pantanal lodges. These operators provide a package itinerary - usually quite flexible - that includes transportation to a lodge, plus nature tours and guiding services.

• Pantanal Explorer, Av. Governador Ponce de Arruda 670, Varzea Grande, tel: 065/682-2800, fax: 065/682-1260, [1]. One of the best tour operators. Stays in the Pantanal are at the excellent Araras Eco Lodge. In addition, the company offers trips to the Chapada dos Guimarães, boat trips in the Pantanal, as well as eco-tours to the Mato Grosso part of the Amazon rainforest, excellent if you do not have an opportunity to head up to the Amazon. All of these trips can be combined with a Pantanal stay.

• Anaconda Turismo, Rua Marechal Deodoro 2142, Goiabeiras, tel: 065/624-4142, fax: 065/624-6242, [2]. Another good tour operator. This operator works with a large number of fazendas and pousadas and can customize a package according to your interests. It also operates in the Chapada dos Guimarães. If you don't want to go through a tour operator, some lodges offer in-house guides and tour services. Consult with a few lodges before booking.

Most packages, including transportation, English-speaking guides, accommodation, and meals, cost around R$450 (US$149) per day per person, depending on the time of year and number of people in your party.

• Confiança Turismo, Av. São Sebastião 2852, Bosque, tel: 065/3314-2727, fax: 065/3314-2750, [3] . For 35 years Confiança Turismo has been the leading agency in Mato Grosso. It is the most traditional, and the largest in the state. It is the official representive of American Airlines and Aerolineas Argentinas; also being consolidator for all the other Brazilian airlines. Confiança owns West Central Operadora de Turismno, which especializes in international and nacional land or sea packages. Confiança leads in events in and out of the state of Mato Grosso.

The main commercial district in Centro is concentrated around the Praça da República. You'll find many stores selling clothing and shoes, as well as stationery, toiletries, film, batteries, and food. There are 3 great malls:

• Pantanal Shopping Mall, [4] (one of the biggest in west of Brazil).
• 3 Americas Shopping, [5] (finest stores).
• Goiabeiras Shopping (close to downtown).

Native & Regional Arts and Crafts - A number of excellent crafts stores with native and regional works can be found around Centro.

• Feira de Artesanato, Praça Santos Dumont, at the corner of Avenida Getulio Vargas. A weekend crafts market Saturday from 8AM-8PM and Sunday from 3PM-9PM.
• Artindia, Rua Pedro Celestino 301, Centro, tel: 065/623-1675. M-F 8AM - 11:30AM and 1:30PM - 5PM. Run by Funai, the Brazilian federal Indian department, to promote indigenous arts and crafts.
• Casa do Artesão, Rua 13 de Junho 315, tel: 065/321-0603. daily 8AM to 6PM. A bit further out of downtown, towards the river. Located in a lovely tile-covered colonial building, the Casa's collection is very large.
• Porto, Rua 13 de Junho 315 at the corner of Avenida Metelo, tel: 065/321-0603. Daily 8AM-6PM. Expensive but the quality is high.

Cowboy Equipment & Clothes -- Cuiabá is the place to pick up everything you need for that real Pantaneiro cowboy look. If you need a hat, boots, or jeans, stop by:

• Texas Country, Av. Getulio Vargas 1021, Centro, tel: 065/322-1301).
• Selaria e Sapataria Centro Oeste, Av. Ten. Cel. Duarte 318, tel: 065/622-1584. Another great store to get properly outfitted. The store sells inexpensive quality clothing and gear for real cowboys, no trendy Shania Twain-look-alike stuff. We're talking boots, hats, good jeans, gloves, spurs, and chaps; if you're going riding, your various body parts will thank you for it.

For long years Cuiabá was a city moved away from the great cities and mainly became a city of passengers that developed a proper culture, in the cuisine. Much contributed for the cuisine the caldelosos rivers, the immense territory with native cattle lives and still the diversity of animal species of the Pantanal. The base of the dishes is the fish, followed of the bovine meat, and exotic fruits as banana and the cashew.

• Arab cuisine

• Al Manzul - (Parque) Cachoeira das Garças (acesso pela Av. Arquimedes Pereira Lima - old highway of the mill). Classified by the magazine 4 rodas as the best Arab restaurant in Brazil.

Cedro's - Pça. April 8, 1046 (Goiabeiras) tel.: 624-9134

• French cuisine

• Le Chez Babet - Av. President Marquês, (Quilombo) restaurant neoclassical style. The atmosphere is elegant and the service excels for the description. The menu is changed to each station.

• Italian cuisine

• Adriano - Av. Getúlio Vargas, 985 (I Center) tel: 623-1664.

• Pantaneira cuisine (From panatanal)

• Peixaria Popular - Av. S. Sebastião, 2324 (Goiabeiras); tel: 322-5471. Typical plates done with fish of the area.

• Fish

• Meridian 56 - Av. Issac Póvoas, 1039 (Goiabeiras); tel.: 322-4321.

• Portuguese cuisine

• Taberna Portuguesa - Av. 15 de Novembro, 40 (Porto); tel.: 321-3661.

• Regional Cuisine

• Regionalissimo - R. 13 de Junho, 314 (Porto) tel: 624-1773.

• Switzerland Cuisine

• Casa Suiça - Av. Subtle Miguél, 4200 (I Prick of the Love); tel.: 624-2077. The Chefe Hans presents a restaurant in Alpine construction with great area outdoors. Besides plates of the Swiss cookery, it serves some adaptations as well as petiscos and draft beer.

Varied

• Others

• Café Cancun [6] - It's called "funny restaurant", an entertainment house to have a fun eating, drinking and dancing with Mexican food and wide variates of drinks. The sound is salsa, mambo e merengue.

• Getúlio Grill - Av. Getúlio Vargas, 1147 (Goiabeiras); tel 624-9992 - Meats, sushi bar and chop, still counts in the weekends with very busy nightclub.

• Morro of Santo Antonio - Av. Isaac Póvoas, 1167 (Goiabeiras) tel: 622-0502 - restaurant, Bar and Nightclub

• Morro dos Ventos - (Park) Access for the highway for Campo Verde, Km 1 (Farm Hills of Winds), 3 km; tel.: 301-1280. Regional food.

• O Mestrinho - R. Quinco Caldas, 119; tel.: 301-1690. Regional food. Weekends it has meats.

• Nívio's Tour - Pça. D WUNILBALDO, 631; tel.: 301-1206.