La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is the most popular historical and religious site in the country.
Location
La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay is located within a small village called Trinidad approximately thirty kilometers off the downtown area of Encarnacion.
Getting There
From the downtown area of Encarnacion, you can take north-bound buses to reach La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay. These buses all pass through the village of Trinidad.
The trips from Encarnacion to Trinidad takes only thirty minutes.
You can also take a bus from Ciudad del Este to get to the historical site. The trip from Ciudad del Este to Trinidad takes about four hours.
What to See and Do
The remains of La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay are actually in such good condition that it is very easy to imagine how it must have been like during the height of the Jesuit mission in the country.
Going around this small village, you can still see remains of original the plaza, the crypt, belfry, workshops and traditional houses.
You can also camp on the grounds surrounding the historical site if you wish to see the ruins in the nighttime.
Brief History
La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay was built some time in the year 1706 as part of the Jesuit Reducciones. Jesuit Reducciones or Reductions are small colonies founded by the Jesuit missionaries within South America between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
This particular Jesuit Reduction is the masterpiece of Juan Bautista Pimoli, a famous Jesuit architect.
La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay is locally known as the ruins of Trinidad.
Since it is one of the last few Reductions built by the Jesuits, having been built several decades after the first ones were established; it didn’t suffer as much corrosion as the others.
Owing to this fact, this is the most well-preserved of all Jesuit Reductions ever built.
Cost
The cost to visit La Santisima Trinidad de Parana in Encarnacion – Paraguay is about 25,000 guarani. The ticket already includes entry fees to other Jesuit ruins close to Trinidad.
There are no individual tickets for each of the Jesuit ruins.
Bus rides from Encarnacion to Trinidad cost about USD1.25 while buses from Ciudad del Este to Trinidad cost about USD10.
Other Information
If you wish to get souvenirs, there are a few vendors that you can find right outside the perimeters of the ruins. For dining, the streets linking the site of the ruins to Ruta 6, which is the main road that leads to Trinidad; are lined with a few local diners.