This is the fourth on a series of videos produced by the Brazilian tourism authorities. They all have a common theme: those states that will host 2014 World Cup games. During the coming weeks we will present all those videos here in the blog. They are shortish videos, with conventional but beautiful images of the states and its main destinations.

Rio Grande do Norte:

We have devoted several blog posts to the state of Rio Grande do Norte, including our guides to Natal and Pipa.

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RELATED POSTS:
institutional videos: Paraná
institutional videos: São Paulo
institutional videos: Ceará
institutional videos: Bahia
institutional videos: Pernambuco
institutional videos: Rio Grande do Sul
institutional videos: Rio de Janeiro
institutional videos: Minas Gerais
destination: Natal
destination: Pipa

Most of those who holiday in Natal will eventually visit Pipa. Here’s how to get there.

BY CAR

Leaving Natal, head south on the BR-101. At Goianinha, turn left and take the RN-003 direction Tibau do Sul. When reaching Tibau, turn right until you get to Pipa. Depending on traffic conditions, the trip can take between 1 1/2 hours and 2 hours. Careful with the final stretch, plenty of bends. Up until recently there were no gas stations in Tibau or Pipa. If you need to refill, Goianinha is the place.

You could drive along the beach as well, for as long as you were on a buggy or a 4-wheel drive.

The following map illustrates the route to be followed:

View Larger Map

BY BUS

Buses leave from Natal bus station. The company operating the service is Oceano. There are 10 buses during the week and just four during the weekend. No website I’ve heard of. I’ve seen timetables in several sites on the Internet but they do not match. I’m sure wherever you are staying in Natal you will be able to get the timetables for the Pipa service.

The cost of the ticket last year was R$8,50 each way.

SEE ALSO:
- Destination: Pipa
- Hotels and pousadas in Pipa

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Whether it’s capoeira or straightforward gymnastics, I can’t tell for certain. But watching mr muscle exercising at the beach can be a fascinating way of spending your time. We saw our friend here at the praia do Amor, in Pipa.

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There are dolphins all along the Brazilian coastline, as well as a river dolphin, pink in colour, that lives in the Amazon, the boto (Inia geoffrensis).

A few places where dolphins can be seen real close:

Fernando de Noronha

From the viewpoint at the top of the Baia dos Golfinhos you can contemplate on a daily basis the evolutions of a large group of cetaceans that spend the day at the bay. The number of dolphins ranges from 50 up to 300. They spend the day jumping out of the water and running from one place to another. Most guides recommend getting up really early to see the dolphins entering the bay – we don’t feel it’s necessary, they stay at the bay the entire day.

There is a boat trip outside the boundaries of the National Park where the chances of seeing the dolphins are quite high. They usually follow the boat for a while (see photo above). The best time to see the dolphins on the boat trip is when they are either getting into the bay or leaving the bay. The NGO that looks after the dolphins maintains a bulleting board at the harbour where they record the number of dolphins present at the bay every day, the time they got in, and the time they left.

As well as the two places mentioned above, in Noronha there is also the chance of encountering dolphins while diving on the open sea.

Pipa

At the Baia dos Golfinhos, near Pipa, a few dolphins pop up every day, usually in the morning. If you seat on the sand, you’ll see them chasing fish. When I was swimming at the bay one day, I had a dolphin at less than 10 meters – I didn’t see it, I was looking the other way.

As well as the places mentioned above, where I have seen dolphins, there are other places where they are spotted on a regular basis:

• on the Amazon river
• on the southermost tip of the state of São Paulo
• on the coastline of the state of Rio de Janeiro (Paraty, Ilha Grande, Arraial do Cabo). If you are very lucky, once or twice a year a group of killer whales get very close to the urban beaches in Rio, a real event that usually makes it to the news.

As ever, the best thing is to ask the locals.

I have been to scores of places in Brazil where I’ve been able to see and photograph wildlife. These are the top 10 places (in no particular order).

1. scarlet ibis in Alcântara, Maranhão [chances of spotting them: high - at the Praia da Baronesa and a nearby wetland. The scarlet ibis go to the shore to feed when the tide is out]
2. dolphins in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco [chances of spotting them: high - on the boat trip around the island or from the Baia dos Golfinhos viewpoint]
3. turtles in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco [chances of spotting them: medium - snorkelling at the Santo Antônio harbour and at the baia do Sueste]
4. fish in Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco [chances of spotting them: high - snorkelling in most of the island beaches and definitely diving]
5. fish in Bonito, Mato Grosso do Sul [chances of spotting them: high - snorkelling in the Sucuri river and the Rio da Prata]
6. dolphins in Pipa, Rio Grande do Norte [chances of spotting them: medium - at the aptly named Baia dos Golfinhos in the morning]
7. toucans in Foz de Iguazú, Paraná [chances of spotting them: 100% - at the Parque das Aves]
8. monkeys in Vassouras, Maranhão [chances of spotting them: high - there is a forty-odd colony of monkeys living near the huts, ask the locals]
9. scarlet ibis in Caburé, Maranhão [chances of spotting them: medium - near then mangrove in Caburé when the tide is out]
10. macaws in Bonito, Mato Grosso do Sul [chances of spotting them: medium - at the Buraco das Araras]

N.B.: in actual fact, the toucans at the Parque das Aves in Foz do Iguaçu are not in the wild, they are kept within giant cages.

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Pipa is a very popular destination south of Natal, in the state of Rio Grande do Norte. Different groups come to Pipa, the party animals, the surfers, but also couples that want a bit of piece and quiet.

WE LIKE THE MOST: walk along the empty beaches during the low season; swimming with the dolphins; watching the turtles; those prawn crepes!

WE LIKE THE LEAST: the chaos during the high season, the precarious infraestructures

HOW TO GET THERE: by bus or by car from Natal

CAREFUL WITH: the tides, you won’t be able to walk to some beaches during the high tide; the pousadas in the centre of the village, incredibly noisy day and night during the high season

FAVOURITE PLACES: the baia dos Golfinhos (Dolphin’s bay), the praia do Amor (love beach)

PIECE OF ADVICE:

• if you get up early and walk to the Dolphin’s bay (you can walk from Pipa during the low tide) you will sea the dolphins swimming and running after fish really really close to the shore
• take water and a hat, in most beaches there isn’t a single shade

ACCOMMODATION: full listing of hotels and pousadas in Pipa

LINKS: Pipa com.br, Pipa Online, Praia da Pipa com.br

WEATHER FORECAST: The weather in Pipa (Tibau do Sul) for the next 10 days

GOOGLE MAPS: Pipa

PHOTOS: Natal y Pipa

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1. Praia do SANCHO (Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco)
2. Praia dos PORCOS (Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco)
3. Praia da ILHA DO CAMPECHE (Florianópolis, Santa Catarina)
4. Praia do Forno (Arraial do Cabo, Rio de Janeiro)
5. Praia do CACHADAÇO (Trindade, Rio de Janeiro)
6. Praia da Conceição (Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco)
7. Praia de Domingas Dias (Ubatuba, São Paulo)
8. Baía dos Golfinhos (Pipa, Rio Grande do Norte)
9. Praia de Paraty-Mirim (Paraty, Rio de Janeiro)
10. Barra do Sahy (São Paulo)

Honourable mentions:

• praia de Pitinga (Arraial d’Ajuda, Bahia)
• Caçimba do Padre (Fernando de Noronha)
• praia dos Coqueiros (Trancoso, Bahia)
• praia do Félix (Ubatuba)
• praia de Copacabana (Rio de Janeiro)
• praia de Ipanema (Rio de Janeiro)
• praia de São Conrado (Rio de Janeiro)
• praia Azeda (Búzios, Rio de Janeiro)
• praia Azedinha (Búzios, Rio de Janeiro)
• praia do Amor (Pipa, Rio Grande do Norte)

Special mentions from my Brazilian other half (places I haven’t been to yet):

• praia de Lopes Mendes (Ilha Grande, Rio de Janeiro)
• Bombinhas (Santa Catarina)
• fourth beach at Morro de São Paulo (Bahia)
• praia dos Dois Rios (Ilha Grande)

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