The Coral Coast
As I mentioned in my previous post, Brazil’s Costa dos Corais (Coral Coast), also known as o Caribe Brasileiro (the Brazilian Caribbean), stretches alongside roughly 200 kms of the northeastern coast between Porto de Galinas in the state of Pernambuco and Maceio in the state of Alagoas. The area is home to some of the country’s most incredible beaches including Carneiros (which I covered last time) and Antunes (which I’ll discuss here).
Praia de Antunes
Praia de Antunes (Antunes Beach) is roughly 3 hours south of Recife, an hour further south than Carneiros. Given their proximity, it’s unsurprising that Carneiros and Antunes are similar in some ways. However, Antunes has its own special vibe and, of the two, was our clear favorite.
Why?
It was like visiting a postcard.
Or the set of a beer commercial.
The water was so clear and so blue it reminded us of the Maldives or the Philippines or, naturally, the Caribbean. Incredibly, there weren’t many people around. If Carneiros is chic and up-and-coming, Antunes is a natural beauty flying under the radar.
Heaven.
Antunes Beach is just that: a beach. It’s smaller and, it seems, less well-known than Carneiros with a string of low-key pousadas (bed and breakfasts) and beach apartments running along the relatively small stretch of sand. Day trippers visit the piscinas naturais (natural pools) just off shore but few make it onto the beach.
Again we found ourselves stunned to have so much of such a beautiful place to ourselves.
Given its size, Antunes has hardly any infrastructure; during our stay, only one of the neighboring pousadas had a restaurant open during the day. Dinner required a drive of at least 20 minutes to the north or south.
Most travelers seem to prefer to stay in one of the larger nearby towns and then travel to Antunes on a boating day trip or beach buggy tour. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with this approach, we prefer walking to the beach over walking to dinner.
On our search for a decent dinner, we had our best luck driving north to Sao Jose de Coroa Grande (just over the state line) and would recommend the following:
1. Cia de Macaxeira Pizzaria – surprisingly delicious pizza with dough/ crust made primarily from manioc (cassava).
2. Calamares Restaurante – Brazilian beach cuisine; we loved the grilled fish and veggies
3. Miraculo Beach Club and Restaurante – a HUGE, brand new space with a giant menu and several options for an evening experience (i.e. lounge, dinner table, buffet).
Maragogi
The largest and most well-known town on this stretch of the Coral Coast is Maragogi. We decided to check it out our first night, hoping for dinner and a supermarket to supply us with breakfast essentials. Unfortunately, the only supermarket was closed before 7pm and the dinner options were limited almost entirely to pizza and fried foods. Still, the town was buzzing with life and appeared to be very popular with families.
Much like Tamandare, Maragogi is enjoying a tourism boom but has not yet received a tourist make-over. In other words, it’s a little rough around the edges. We were happy to head back to the peace and quiet of Antunes.
Things to Do
1. Get a Picture in a Hammock – For the Instagrammers among us, Praia de Antunes has several hammocks in the water which make for a fantastic photo op. While these water hammocks are not unique to Antunes, the water color certainly is.
2. Walk to the Piscinas Naturais – During low tide, the Antunes piscinas naturais (natural pools) can be reached on foot. It isn’t a quick walk, but it’s beautiful. Take your time, your camera, and a beer.
3. Take a drive – On a cloudy day, we decided to take a drive south along the coast until we reached the Manguaba River which separates Porto de Pedras from the rest of the coast. The drive itself is beautiful, with much of the AL-101 "highway" (road) actually in view of the ocean. Along the way we passed through several sleepy towns and found new beaches to explore.
As an alternative to driving yourself, buggy tours are popular in the area. As an added bonus, the drivers know where to find the hidden gems and the best places to take pictures. While stopped for lunch, we watched one driver conduct an entire photoshoot with his clients on some beautiful rocks beside the ocean. +10/10.
4. Walk the beach – On our day away from Antunes, we found ourselves completely alone on Praia do Boqueirao. Since the weather was cloudy, we enjoyed walking from one end to the other, close to the mouth of the Manguaba River.
Overall:
Water so clear and blue, you can’t believe it’s real. Antunes Beach is truly THE Brazilian Caribbean. Invest in accommodations with a kitchen or be prepared to drive for dinner. Skip Maragogi but don’t be afraid to explore the rest of this wild, undiscovered coast.
