13 sizzling South American beaches

By Hanya Yanagihara

updated 10:56 a.m. ET April 17, 2009

A beach is so much more than a sunny stretch of sand — although there are plenty of those, too, in Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay, where Hanya Yanagihara surveyed more than 9,000 miles of coast to come up with 13 of the continent's best strands. Here, on South America's east coast, you'll find not only tropical heat (and the hardbodies who come with it) but pebbled shores populated with penguins, unpeopled stretches where palm trees are your only company, and waves without end that attract fledgling and serious surfers alike. Call it the thinking man's beach guide — to mindless pleasures, to be sure, but also to much, much more.

Brazil

Praia de Sibaúma, Natal
Good for: Scenery / Sun
Natal, the capital of Rio Grande do Norte State, is famous for its beaches, but Sibaúma, 90 minutes south of the city, is in a league of its own. The strand is bracketed by twin tidal pools (in the morning, when the water is low, you can watch white-and-yellow crabs scuttle into their rocky pockets), and the continuous one- to two-foot waves are perfect for bodyboarding. What's most striking about Sibaúma, however, is its absences: no garbage (just handfuls of green and burgundy seaweed tossed up by the sea), no tourists (just a few patient fishermen, thigh-deep out past the tide pools), and almost no development, in deference to an adjacent turtle sanctuary (just a solitary inn at the top of the cliff that backs the beach). This is not a typical tropical-fantasy beach: There's little shade, and the storm-colored water, while clean and nearly as warm as the air, is made silty in parts by the ceaseless surf. But one can believe, walking along its solidly packed sand, that it is wholly one's own — a fantasy of a different sort.

The 411: The five-suite Kilombo Villas & Spa — a well-intentioned but unrefined property with glorious views of Sibaúma — is a three-minute walk away, although staying here means near-complete dependence on its adequate but expensive restaurant (55-84-3246-5534; kilombovillas.com; doubles, $350-$483; entrées, $9-$30). Alternatively, Tocada Coruja Pousada, with a resident bird sanctuary and one of the area's most popular restaurants, is a short car ride away in Pipa, a pretty little village with some nice beaches of its own (55-84-3246-2226; tocadacoruja.com.br; doubles, $128-$379; entrées, $9-$21).

When to go: Bodyboarders will prefer the winter months of June, July, and August, but locals recommend late February and March, when the weather is warm but not sultry, the waves are manageable, and the post-Carnaval hangover means that everything moves in pleasant slow motion.

Praia dos Nativos, Trancoso
Good for: Sports / Sun
Sure, some of its most committed admirers now helicopter in from Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo for a long weekend, but at its heart beautiful Trancoso, in Bahia State, remains a hippie town. There are the requisite bikini shops and open-air Thai restaurants, but here the storefronts are painted vivid shades of mint green and acid pink that complement, rather than compete with, the shaggy flame trees and clumps of pink-and-yellow ginger that surround them. At the end of the Quadrado, or town square, the lawn of the sixteenth-century Church of St. John gives way to a glorious overlook of the area's seven miles of beach. The main, two-mile Praia dos Nativos begins where the Rio Trancoso flows into the sea, and is speckled with cafés blasting Bob Marley remixes and with beachgoers of all ages. Just 15 minutes to the north, however, is Taipé — a tawny plain fringed with mangrove and coconut trees that is all yours: no sunbathers, no swimmers, and no noise save for the gentle surf. At times, the water is swimming pool flat, and so cool and sparkling that it's like gliding through soda pop.

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The 411: Etnia Pousada — a fantasy of a tropical B&B, with eight bungalows, a pool, and a rustic-chic outdoor restaurant — is a pleasant 20-minute stroll inland (55-73-3668-1137; etniabrasil.com.br; doubles, $243-$304; entrées, $13-$18). If you'd rather be bang on the beach, Pousada Estrela d'Água is a cozy, crisply run resort with two pools (55-73-3668-1030; estreladagua.com.br; doubles, $455-$877). Among the Quadrado's more notable restaurants are O Cacau, with its riffs on traditional seafood dishes (55-73-3668-1266; entrées, $17-$29), and Maritaka, a swinging beer-and-pizza joint (388 Rua do Telegrafo; 55-73-3668-1702; entrées, $15-$30).

When to go: The best people-watching, weather, and water are from Christmas through Easter.

Praia do Espelho, Trancoso
Good for: Scenery / Sun
Ask 10 Brazilians to name the nation's most beautiful beach and you'll get 10 different answers — not surprising, given the country's 4,650 miles of coast. But even Cariocas who swear that the world begins and ends at Ipanema would have to agree that Praia do Espelho, an hour south of Trancoso, is one of the loveliest. Bookended by white limestone cliffs, the strand is bordered by a row of sweet, tidy bungalows and squat palms whose dry fronds chatter in the wind and whose droppings — smooth, pebble-hard nuts — freckle the sand. But the real attraction here is the water. During low tide (from morning through mid-afternoon), the sea peels back from the shore, exposing dozens of coral outcroppings that you can pick your way around as schools of glassy minnows flash past your ankles. From a distance, the ocean appears a tantalizingly unnatural aqua, but up close it's so clear and colorless that you can see every crevice and scuttling crustacean. This is not a beach for swimming, given the many rocky projections, but it is ideal for lazing away the day in the womb-warm shallows, an experience as relaxing as it is regressive.

The 411: Overnight at Etnia Pousada (see Praia dos Nativos, above). Praia do Espelho's sole dining establishment, Sylvinha's Place, also happens to be one of Bahia's best tables; call ahead, since Sylvinha herself won't cook unless she's expecting you (55-73-9985-4157; prix fixe, $26).

When to go: March, when the waves (and the crowds) are less formidable.

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Blue Lagoon, Angra dos Reis
Good for: Scenery / Sports / Sun
It's happened to every traveler: You hear of a place with an unusually evocative name, and are inevitably disappointed by its failure to fulfill its promise. But when the sun is out, the Blue Lagoon does indeed sparkle an improbable aquamarine, the light glinting prettily off its modest waves. There is no beach to speak of on this no-name speck off Ilha Grande (the largest of the Angra dos Reis archipelago's 365 islands): Snorkelers navigate around its tree-thick shoreline, which is trimmed with yellow bamboo and exuberant sprays of ferns and orchids that press right up against the water's edge. Beneath the surface, schools of silvery fish whip past, and pockmarked rocks bristle with starfish and sea anemones.

The 411: The town of Angra dos Reis, on the mainland in Rio de Janeiro State, is a two-hour drive south of Rio, but for those who don't want to tackle the logistics of reaching the archipelago, the outfitter Blue Parallel — whose owner, Emmanuel Burgio, is among Condé Nast Traveler's Top Travel Specialists — can arrange airport pickups, cars and drivers, and guided tours of the islands in a high-speed boat (800-256-5307; blueparallel.com). On Ilha Grande, stay at Pousada Naturalia, a 12-suite inn that abuts the island's extravagant jungle — ask for a room with air-conditioning (55-24-3361-9583; pousadanaturalia.net; suites, $95-$115).

When to go: The energy — and thongs — of high season (December-February) can't be beat, but if you'd rather see sea life than scantily clad posteriors, go in late February and early March, when the weather's still warm and Cariocas have returned to the city.

Praia do Dentista, Angra dos Reis
Good for: Sports / Sun
From December through February, the tourmaline-green waters of Praia do Dentista swirl with the bikinied Cariocas who've made Angra dos Reis one of the country's chicest destinations. Located on Gipóia, the second-largest of Angra's 365 islands, Dentista can be accessed only by boat; indeed, on busy days, dozens of motorboats, sloops, and speedboats make its waters an impromptu marina. Here, everything — time, responsibilities, reality — feels suspended, sometimes literally: The crescent of white sand is so narrow that you'll spend more time bobbing in the warm, jewel-bright waters than lounging on the beach. The only other diversions are people watching, paddling to the floating no-name food-and-drinks shack, and watching the brief but spectacular equatorial sunset.

The 411: Overnight at Pousada Naturalia (see Blue Lagoon, above), on neighboring Ilha Grande. Or stay on the mainland, in the lovely little colonial town of Parati, where the affordable, unassuming Pousada Pardieiro makes a good base for explorations up and down the coast (55-24-3371-1370; pousadapardieiro.com.br; doubles, $134-$158); while there, don't miss the atmospheric Porto Restaurante, which serves modern interpretations of classic Brazilian fare (14 Rua do Comércio; 55-24-3371-1058; entrées, $13-$27).

When to go: If you're a party animal, Christmas and New Year's; otherwise, stick to early February, before the rains set in.

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