In northeastern Brazil (northwest of Natal – the city closest to Africa and the easternmost “tip” of South America), the beaches were already great: dunes, wide, rather barren vegetation and above all very windy. The more we come south to the eastern coastline, towards the state of Bahia, the greener it gets and the predominant Atlantic rainforest in some places is denser than the (remaining) jungle in the Amazon. Extensive palm groves now stretch up to the beach, provide shade as well as wonderful scenery and photo opportunities. The tourist infrastructure and thus the price are – unfortunately – also increasing. The distances remain enormous (only the state of Bahia is as big as France) and you cannot consistently drive along the coast, but must always go back to the main road inland, as lagoon and rivers hamper the onward journey directly along the coastline. We take a lot of time – at least for our standards – and stay at several dream overnight spots 2-3 nights. Shujoo, our quad, is used intensively for local excursions and long beach trips. It is also nice to have some less eventful days after our tightly scheduled sightseeing program in Colombia, Ecuador and Peru in recent months as well as the adventure driving on the Transamazonica. Vacation at the right moment before the final stage of our trip through South America. Rio de Janeiro, Pantanal, the Iguazú waterfalls etc. are waiting for us to explore.
Highlights of this section were for us the little village Canoa Quebrada on top of steep cliffs, the fishing village Sao Miguel de Gostoso with its nearby dream beach Playa de Tourinhos, the fishing village Maracajau, the colonial town of Olinda near Recife, the Praia de Toque at the Rota Ecologica, the dream island Ilha Boipeba (where we have treated ourselves a really nice Pousada) and the fine and extremely stylish resort of Trancoso with our favorite of all beaches: the Praia do Espelho. The vibrant city of Salvador was nice, but the beautiful beaches and our dream overnight places for Shujaa impressed us more. Rarely have we been so tanned in our lives … but never before have we been on beaches for a total of 5 weeks.
If someone would like to do a beach vacation, for several weeks, at beautiful beaches with great climate (not too hot, not too cold, not too humid), with cool bars, romantic Pousadas, delicious food – we can clearly recommend North-/East Brasil.
