3 Top Brazil Beaches You Really Shouldn’t Miss
3 Brazilian Beaches You Can’t Miss
As someone who enjoys traveling more than anything else, it becomes rather difficult to discover completely new things that you haven’t seen before. When it comes to beaches, if you’ve traveled around the world enough, you might start to think there are quite a few similarities not only in the landscape but also in the culture itself. These repetitions can help to give a frame on what defines the best places to return to, or to never see again.
Brazil, for example, is a place that on the other hand, will always surprise me. With all its famous beautiful beaches you’d think that’s as good as it gets. But on my fourth visit to the country, I realized that there is simply no end to all the wonders you can find and experience there. 3 Gems that I’d like to share with you, are partly what has set the bar for any further travels I will ever do: Jericoacoara, Ilha Grande, and Praia do Forte should not be missed on any visit to Brazil.
Jericoacoara
Around 300 kilometers to the north-west of Fortaleza, in the state of Ceara, lies the first of what up to this day remains one of the most amazing beaches I’ve ever been to. With a rather difficult name to spell, and pronounce, the Jericoacoara beach has everything for not only the average tourist but also the avid traveler and explorer.
Finding an outstanding Jericoacoara hotel was the easiest part of the trip. Being blessed with an excellent base and location for my stay; I got the chance to explore and see everything this place had to offer. Regardless the weather, breathtaking sunsets always accompanied me while enjoying the smooth but sometimes challenging waves of the beach. As a kite surfer, it passes off as our Mecca, but if you’re not into that, it makes up for it with all the thousands of extra activities you can find there. Ranging from extreme sports such as Kayaking, Surfing, and Windsurfing to Horseback riding, Stand up and paddle and Dune Buggy tours, which can also take you to other hidden treasures the area has to offer such as Blue and Paradise Lagoons, Barrinha, Mangue Seco and Tatajiuba Lagoon.
Besides the endless amount of opportunities to keep yourself entertained, Jericoacoara also has a radiant, vibrant nightlife that will allow you to explore the most authentic Brazilian parties while meeting the locals in a night of total joy, drinking, and folklore.
For when hunger strikes, there’s a wide beautiful and delicious range of restaurants that stand out for its Brazilian cuisine, and also for its variety offering not only the local dishes but also a good selection of other South-American tastes, along with Italian and Chinese for those that like to enjoy well known meals while experiencing the exotic paradise of Brazil.
Ilha Grande
Known by most as an “Island Paradise”, Ilha Grande is only a 2-hour drive from Rio. As a quick escape from the stress of the city, and surrounded by the Atlantic rainforest, its pure white sand beaches and clear lagoons make this a Must-Go for everyone traveling through Brazil.
Reaching this not-so-hidden gem is rather easy. Whether you go by car, bus or private transfer, you need to make your way to Conceição de Jacareí, where you take a motorboat towards Abraão, which is the main village of Ilha Grande. If you’re doing your research on the internet on how to get there, you might find that another way is getting first to Angra dos Reis and catching a boat from there. This way tends to be more expensive as I was told by some friendly locals once I arrived there.
Once there, the first Must-do in Ilha Grande is Lopes Mendes beach. You can either do the hike and look back with pride after 4 hours when you finally arrive, and you will have visited Palmas, Mangues and Pouso beaches on the way. Or, you can also take a boat from Abraão to Mangues beach and walk for a bit. Other amazing day trips you could do while staying at Ilha Grande are Snorkeling at the Blue and Green Lagoons, Saco do Céu Beach and Dos Rios Beach. It is all so overwhelmingly beautiful, friendly and exotic that even if you get tired, you will want to continue.
Back at your base, restaurants, and Cafes have the best choices for any type of evening you might want. From BBQ nights to cocktails and shrimp snacks. Everything you might want to enjoy a beautiful sunset at the beach, they have it.
Praia do Forte
As the perfect holiday destination, north of Salvador in Bahia Costa dos Coqueiros, the beautiful endless white sand beach of Praia do Forte is framed by the traditional palm trees of the Tropic and bordered by the clear warm waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
Far from the crowded streets of the nearby town, but still at a walking distance, this beach has everything one could ever want to have a relaxed holiday while being able to enjoy amazing sunsets, cocktails and take some impressive pictures to make everyone back home jealous. Swimming, snorkeling, and diving are the main activities around this area, and truth be told, I wouldn’t want anything else. Its combination of calm and sun makes the perfect environment for sunbathing socializing or just watch the waves as they wash away all of your worries.
If you’re more into sightseeing, and can’t stand just relaxing at the beach for too long, the Castelo do Garcia d’Avila is right there for you to visit. Being one of the very first large buildings during the colonization era, it’s one of the best views this place has to offer. Hiking along the tracks of the castle, you can end up in the Reserva Sapiranga, a breathtaking rainforest with over 600 hectares which if you’d like, could take you to the Rio Pojuca where you can rest for a while and have a swim.
If you love nature just as much as I do, you should definitely make some time to get to The Protejo Tamar, a project which lets visitors watch turtles and other sea creatures quite close in a safe manner for both the animals and the viewers, since it’s a non-profit organization which has as a goal to take care of the five endangered species of sea turtles that are found in the surrounding areas.
Brazil is one of those countries where I will always want to go back to. And so far I have. The delicious food, the amazing people, the rich history which is vibrant in around every single corner and all the colors that depict how despite their struggles they still manage to find joy and love, is something that I can always learn from. If you’ve never been there, that’s one of the things you have to put on your bucket list, if you have, you surely know what I’m talking about.
If you’ve been to Brazil, and already know any of these beaches, let me know in the comments below if there’s something you’d like to add that I might have forgotten. If you’re wanting to go during your next holiday, ask me all the questions you have and I’d be happy to tell you why it is up to this day my favorite country on earth!
