Alter do Chão, 33km west of Santarém, is justly the subject of a thousand postcards. A sandbar directly in front of the town forms a picturesque white-sand island, known as Ilha do Amor (Island of Love). The island is largest and most attractive when the water is low, usually June to December. In the wet season it’s greatly reduced, though still pretty.
Cachoeira, affectionately known as the jewel of the recôncavo, is a sleepy place, full of colorful, mostly preserved colonial architecture uncompromised by the presence of modern buildings. The town sits below a series of hills, strung along the banks of the Rio Paraguaçu in a face-off with its twin, São Félix. A steady trickle of tourism flows through the area, attracted by Brazil’s best tobacco, its reputation as a renowned center of Candomblé and a strong wood-sculpting tradition. If you get an early start, Cachoeira and São Félix make a great day trip from Salvador, or stay the night and explore at a more relaxed pace.
With its fine beaches along the stretch of coast closest to São Paulo, once-glamorous Guarujá has suffered from overdevelopment. Still, if you can’t get further afield, it makes a good getaway from the ‘other’ big city – even if concrete towers line the beaches, which get packed with weekend day-trippers. A recent cleanup of waters and sands has renewed interest in a town that was the extreme of chic back in the ’70s. Surfers should note that there are good waves along Praia do Tombo.
The coastal city of João Pessoa is the capital of Paraíba and the third-oldest city in Brazil. It claims to have more trees than any other capital city, including an Atlantic rain forest preserve, and has a reputation for being friendly and safe (some would say boring). Tourism is developing gradually here, and the city is an increasingly popular destination for Brazilian families. The city center has a few interesting churches, and Praia de Tambaú is particularly clean and relaxed for an urban beach.
Created in 1939, this national park covers 118 sq km of mountainous terrain between Teresópolis and Petrópolis. A distinctive feature of the park is the strangely shaped peaks of the Pedra do Sino (2263m), Pedra do Açu (2230m), Agulha do Diabo (2020m), Nariz do Frade (1919m), Dedo de Deus (1651m), Pedra da Ermitage (1485m) and Dedo de Nossa Senhora (1320m). With so many peaks, it’s no wonder that this is the mountain-climbing, rock climbing and trekking center of Brazil. The region has extensive trails, the most famous of which is the 42km, three-day traverse over the mountains from Teresópolis to Petrópolis. Unfortunately, most of the trails are unmarked and off the available maps. Hiring a guide, however, is easy and inexpensive. Inquire at the national park entrance (2642 1070; admission R$3; 8am-5pm) or go with a group organized by one of the hiking and mountaineering clubs in Rio. The best time for walks is from May to October (the drier months).
Santarém is a pleasant city, blessed with river breezes and a mild climate. Its location at the confluence of the creamy-brown Rio Amazonas and the much darker Rio Tapajós means Santarém has its very own ‘Meeting of the Waters, ’ as the two rivers flow side-by-side without mixing, two bands of different-colored water clearly distinguishable from the waterfront. A stop here is a good way to break up the five-day boat trip between Belém and Manaus.
Although most visitors have a hard time tearing themselves away from Rio’s many charms, some spectacular destinations are less than a day’s travel from the cidade maravilhosa. Gorgeous beaches lie all along the coast, with the Costa Verde (Green Coast; south of Rio) boasting the rainforest-covered island of Ilha Grande and the elegant colonial town of Paraty. In the opposite direction, along the Costa do Sol (Sun Coast) you’ll find the laid-back surfing town of Saquarema, the more upscale beaches and nightlife of Búzios and the white sands of Arraial do Cabo.
The savage beauty of Angra dos Reis’s tropical, fjordlike coastline has been badly blemished by industrialization. Supertankers dock in Angra’s port, a railway heads inland to the steel town of Volta Redonda, and the nearby Petrobras oil refinery and nuclear power plant stick out like sore thumbs. If you’ve got your own wheels, there are plenty of gorgeous beaches to explore east and west of town, but for those traveling by bus, the main reason to pass through Angra is to catch the ferry for Ilha Grande.
Known as the Cidade Morena not for its beautiful women but rather its red earth, Campo Grande is the capital of Mato Grosso do Sul, a modern city that has become a major gateway to the Pantanal. Manganese, rice, soy and cattle are the traditional sources of its wealth, while education (there are four universities in the city), commerce and tourism are growing industries. Campo Grande lies 716km south of Cuiabá and 403km southeast of Corumbá. There’s not much to see in the city itself, but it’s a lively place, especially at night.
Founded by the Portuguese in 1538 to defend Brazil from the Spanish, Iguape is one of the oldest towns in Brazil and one of the few along São Paulo’s coast to retain its colonial contours. While beaches are a bit of a hoof, the town makes a tranquil base from which to explore the region.