The port that serves Paraguay towards the Paraná River is the main transport means for the provincial production.

Notable sights of the city include the Nuestra Señora del Carmen Cathedral, the Government House, the Torelli Botanic Forest Garden, the Provincial History Museum (Museo Histórico Provincial), the Estadio Centenario ("Centenary Stadium") football stadium, the Guaicole fauna reserve, the shore of the Paraguay River, the Isla de Oro Island, and the Central Square named after José de San Martín.

On April 8, 1879 Commander Luis Jorge Fontana founded the settlement that would become the capital of the National Territory of Chaco from 1884 to June 15, 1955, when it gained the status of province.

[1] The name of the city (and the province) comes from the archaic Spanish word fermosa (currently hermosa) meaning "beautiful".

The Executive Department is led by the Mayor of the city of Formosa, who determines the members of the municipal cabinet.

One other five-star establishment, the Howard Johnson Neo Formosa, was completed in July 2011 and features a casino and shopping gallery.

Celebrations, which occur in the main Plaza San Martín, include the traditional pericón dance and stalls selling everything from food to balloons.

The city's climate is among the hottest and most humid in Argentina: Winters are generally mild, air frosts are very uncommon.

Light frost is possible in Formosa, especially in the outskirts of the city further away from the river; however, air temperatures seldom fall below 0 °C or 32 °F, every few years at most, with a record low of −2 °C or 28.4 °F.