Corumba

Corumba stands on a limestone rise above the Paraguay River, and in the late nineteenth century, when the river was the main route into the interior of the continent, it was one of the busiest inland ports in South America - which is why a remote frontier city has a waterfront of nineteenth-century commercial buildings and merchant houses, many now faded. It is the western gateway to the Pantanal, with boat trips into the wetland from the port, and a fishing economy built on dourado and pacu. The Bolivian border at Puerto Quijarro is a few kilometres west, and the crossing traffic shapes the city. The Forte Junqueira of 1875 stands above the water, and Carnival here is a large street event with samba schools.

History

The settlement was founded on 21 September 1778, amid border disputes between Portugal and Spain, when Sergeant-Major Marcelino Rois Camponês, sent by the governor of Mato Grosso, Luís de Albuquerque de Mello Pereira e Cáceres, took possession of the site for the Portuguese Crown as Vila de Nossa Senhora da Conceição de Albuquerque; the name Corumbá is usually explained as Tupi-Guarani for "gravel bank". After the Paraguayan War of 1865-1870 opened the Paraguay River to international trade, its place on the last stretch easily navigable by larger ships made it grow fast: by the end of the 19th century it was the third-largest river port in Latin America, shipping hides and jerked beef to Europe, and as the river entrepôt for Cuiabá and Cáceres it was for a time the seat of the state parliament. It is still the main river port of Mato Grosso do Sul (Wikipedia, Corumbá).

What you'll find

• A nineteenth-century river port - commercial buildings from the boom years.
• The Paraguay River waterfront - boats into the Pantanal from the quay.
• Forte Junqueira - the 1875 fort above the water.
• A border city - Bolivian crossing traffic a few kilometres west.

When to go

May to October, the dry season. Two days.

Good to know

The city is hot, humid and worn, and the historic waterfront is only partly restored. It is a base for the Pantanal rather than a destination in itself. Border areas need normal caution. Flights are limited and road access from Campo Grande is long.

Nearby

The southern Pantanal is east; Ladario is adjoining on the river.

Key facts