The longest and best boat tour I took on Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was the full island tour (Volta à Ilha). It takes visitors around the entire island in a speedboat, beginning and ending at Vila do Abraão. In my opinion, this boat tour stopped at the most beautiful beaches on the island. It should cost about R$220 (as of June 2024).
On Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site, one of the most popular and cheapest activities is to take a boat to Lopes Mendes Beach (Praia Lopes Mendes). It’s considered the most beautiful beach on the island – a 3km stretch of white sand beach with strong waves.
The most exhausting thing I did on Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was to go hiking on one of the many trails through the rain forest. I took trail T10, which begins just outside the Aquário Hostel in Vila do Abraão. The trail ends at Pouso Beach (Praia do Pouso), where it’s possible to pick up trail T11 to Lopes Mendes Beach (Praia Lopes Mendes).
A nice boat tour I took on Ilha Grande, a UNESCO World Heritage site, was the half island tour (Meia Volta). It took me to a few of the beaches and coves on the bay side of the island to the north.
There is one main settlement on the Brazilian island of Ilha Grande, Vila do Abraão. It has a lot of restaurants (some on the beach), stores, a laundromat, and small clinic.
A popular day trip from Búzios takes visitors to a quick stop at the popular resort of Cabo Frio, and on a great boat ride to one of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil at Arraial do Cabo. This entry focuses on Cabo Frio.
I took a three hour cruise from Búzios that stopped at a few spots for swimming and went near Ilha Feia, a deserted island. It should cost about R$90 (as of June 2024) and there are a few companies offering the tour.
Armação dos Búzios, better known as Búzios, is a resort town about three hours from Rio de Janeiro. It was made popular in the 1964 when French actress Brigitte Bardot visited with her Brazilian boyfriend, Bob Zagury. This small town has several good beaches, great nightlife, and lots of shopping and restaurants.
Leme is a small stretch of beach to the east of Copacabana, at Avenida Princes Isabel. It’s a much quieter beach than Copacabana, and there’s much less action.