It borders three cities of Rio de Janeiro state (Barra Mansa to the north, Rio Claro to the east and Angra dos Reis to the south), as well as São José do Barreiro and Arapeí (both in São Paulo) to the west. It is the easternmost municipality in Sâo Paulo state.
It features a historical railway station imported from Belgium in 1888 and the Pharmácia Popular museum.
The municipality contains part of the 292,000 hectares (720,000 acres) Mananciais do Rio Paraíba do Sul Environmental Protection Area, created in 1982 to protect the sources of the Paraíba do Sul river.[5]
It also contains the 884 hectares (2,180 acres) Bananal Ecological Station, created in 1987.[6]
In telecommunications, the city was served by Companhia de Telecomunicações do Estado de São Paulo until 1975, when it began to be served by Telecomunicações de São Paulo.[7] In July 1998, this company was acquired by Telefónica, which adopted the Vivo brand in 2012.[8]
The company is currently an operator of cell phones, fixed lines, internet (fiber optics/4G) and television (satellite and cable).[8]
