BRAZIL OFF-ROAD BEACH HOPPING TOUR

 

The Brazilian Northeast has a coastline that stretches over 2500 km, featuring secluded beaches with calm waters and palm trees. Another great thing about the Northeast is that the sun shines most days in this region and can be visited year-round. If you are looking to avoid the Rio crowds, and your heart is set on pristine Brazilian beaches, then this Off-road Beach hopping tour of the North East of Brazil may just be your perfect holiday destination!

 

Maranhão​

 

São Luís

 

The World Heritage historical center of São Luís is a charming neighborhood of steamy cobbled streets and pastel-colored colonial houses, some restored, many crumbling. This unique corner of Brazil with a mesmerizing atmosphere and one of the Northeast's best selection of museums, galleries, and craft stores. The city as a whole has a markedly Afro-Brazilian tinge to its culture, from a lively reggae scene to the highly colorful Bumba Meu Boi festivities. The new city around the waterfront is a different story, the modern skyscrapers, fancy restaurants, and beach bars are in line with other cities in the west. Capoeira is very famous in this region so you're most likely to see some people practicing it in the parks and showing off their skills!

 

Sao Luis City Library

Lençois Maranhenses National Park

 

Lençois Maranhenses National Park is a vast area of undulating, windswept sand dunes between which rainwater lakes form at certain times of the year, leaving behind azure blue lakes offset by brilliant white dunes, and the option to explore them on foot, or wheels. On this more remote trip to the northeast of Brazil, you can spend a few days exploring here, and you won’t regret it. Close to the Atlantic in a wild and remote part of the coast in Maranhão state near Barreirinhas, Lençois Maranhenses National Park which literally translated means “bedsheets” in Portuguese because of the spectacular landscape that is created by kilometers of rolling, smooth clean sand dunes.

 

Lençois Maranhenses 

 

Atins

Atins is found on the far side of The Lençois Maranhenses National Park and is far less developed, more simple, and serenely peaceful. Atins only recently got a reliable electricity supply which has caused a few pousadas and restaurants to spring up but it remains resolutely rustic, at least for now, with deep sand paths for streets and virtually no light at night. Kiteboarders make the most of the empty sea by day and a few cold beers in a sunken ship-turned-bar, by night. Once a small fishing village, Atin’s tourism—which looks set to become supercharged in the not-too-distant future—has become its people’s main livelihood. Now is the time to visit Atins, before it becomes the next touristic hotspot!

 

Atins

Parnaiba

 

offers a combination of amazing landscapes, sand dunes, lagoons, salt, and sweet water.  This rare phenomenon is only found in the Nile and the Mekong areas. In addition, a very diversified wildlife can be found. The Parnaíba Delta is in a corner between the coast of Maranhão, and Piaui, where the Parnaíba river meets the ocean and forms the only open sea delta in all of America. When approaching the Atlantic, Parnaíba opens up into five branches and originates a set of ecosystems that add up to around 2700 square kilometers, comprising beaches, dunes, streams, and mangroves that surround more than eighty islands. The Parnaíba River rises in Chapada das Mangabeiras, on the border of the States of Piauí, Bahia, and Tocantins, and has an extension of 1.344 km and configures the division of Piauí with Maranhão along its entire length.

 

The Parnaíba Delta

Barra Grande

 

This old fishing village has managed to preserve its unique charm and environment, partly due to difficult access. The village offers the typical atmosphere of an old fishermen's village, a very relaxed lifestyle, and splendid beaches. If you are looking for peace and tranquillity, with lots of sun, beach, and sea, you will love Barra Grande! Barra Grande is where everything happens on the Maraú Peninsula. If you want to frequent the buzziest places or travel solo, the center is also full of shops, restaurants, and some bars with live music. You can do everything on foot in Barra Grande!

 

Marau Peninsula

Camocim

 

Camocim is all about its beaches and sand dunes. Enjoy glamping on some of the most pristine dunes on the planet and take a trip to Love Island (the real one!) for exquisite seafood and sea views that will blow your socks off! Take a visit to the Tatajuba Lagoon, a freshwater lagoon where you can take a raft ride; have fun on a waterslide; practice SUP, or simply relax in your nets inside the water. Restaurants offer delectable seafood dishes.

 

Camocim

 

Preá

 

Preá is famous for kitesurfing. Preá is found on the north coast of Ceara, and it’s the perfect spot for chillin’. There is no hustle and bustle lifestyle here, just good vibes and peaceful times. Plus, the beaches are top-notch, so you can kick back and get away from all the stress of city life.

 

Preá Coastline

 

Jericoacoara

Jeri as its more commonly known, is famous for its beautiful beaches and sand dunes, the hammocks that are set over the lagoons, the perfect weather conditions for kitesurfing and windsurfing, nice restaurants, and the fun nightlife. Some people get stuck for weeks, or months even! Jericoacoara is famous throughout Brazil for windsurfing and kitesurfing, but these aren’t the only attractions of this tropical paradise. Surrounded by beautiful wide beaches and sand dunes, it’s the perfect place to relax during your adventure. There are no streets in Jeri just small sandy paths that lead you to and from the many pousadas (inns) to the many restaurants. During the night you’ll find live music everywhere in Jeri and you can enjoy a Caipirinha sitting in one of the beautiful wooden rooftop bars.

 

Jericoacoara

Trairi

While the Trairi quartet only sees a fraction of the attention that other beaches in Northeast Brazil receive, the number of visitors continues to grow. And the state authorities have just made the beaches in Trairi easier to get to. Nearly 30km of the highway have been converted to a dual-carriageway between the exits to Paracuru and Trairi. This makes it much easier and quicker to reach Trairi from Fortaleza city and the Fortaleza International Airport. Tourism will only rise in the area as more and more holidaymakers discover the potential of ‘this last big secret’ in Northeast Brazil.

 

Stormy Trairi

Fortaleza

 

Considering its isolation, Fortaleza is a surprisingly large and sprawling place. It’s one of Brazil’s biggest cities, and an economic magnet for people from Ceará and beyond. It’s also a draw for tourists from Brazil and overseas, who come for its beaches, party atmosphere, and the spectacular smaller beach spots, rolling dunes, and fishing villages accessible from here. With approximately 26km of coastline, Fortaleza is home to many white sand beaches. However, it’s anything but a sleepy surfer town. Catch a show at the Dragão do Mar Center of Art and Culture, hunt for souvenirs at the Mercado Central, or visit the neo-gothic Catedral Metropolitana, the activities are endless in Fortaleza.

 

Fortaleza Sunset

Book this off-the-beaten-track beach tour of Brazil´s beaches with Va Expeditions here!