Human actions without proper planning can result in degradation of water bodies by compromising their varied uses, and among them, the recreational use. The district of Presidente Getúlio, located in Alto Vale do Itajaí, Santa Catarina State, Brazil, has several waterfalls that serve as recreation environments. However, there is a lack of studies to assess the environmental quality of these areas. The objective of this study was to evaluate the bathing conditions of four waterfalls of Presidente Getúlio according to the bathing criteria established by Brazilian law. The indicative parameters of water quality evaluated were Escherichia coli, pH, dissolved oxygen, temperature, turbidity and biochemical oxygen demand. The results indicate that the waterfalls have improper conditions of primary contact recreation due to pollution caused by diffuse sources (fecal matter from livestock activities) and point sources (untreated domestic sewage). Fecal pollution of these recreational water bodies can lead to health problems because of the presence of infectious microorganisms.