These Are the Best Beach Towns in Latin America

Friday, September 18, 2009

Margaret here: On Wednesday, I wrote about Uruguay’s beach towns. I believe they are the best beach towns in Latin America. Ronan saw my alert at the same time you did. What ensued was some…well, let’s call it a lively conversation.

“Yeah, right, Margaret, did you not open your eyes when you were scouting the beach towns to the east and west of Fortaleza? These ARE the best beach towns in Latin America”...

Dear Reader,

The best beach towns in Latin America are in northeast Brazil.

Hundreds of miles of dazzling, white-sand beaches surround Fortaleza. It’s clear, tropical ocean waters maintain a year-round temperature of 80˚F. Even in the rainiest month of the year (April), sunny days are frequent and rain rarely gets in the way. Though just south of the equator, a constant breeze keeps temperatures comfortable.

The most direct route to travel along this coast is to drive along the beach. The beach is only interrupted by small rivers meeting the ocean. Here, locals are on hand to pull you across in makeshift ferries. Little fishing villages and towns dot this coast. Back from the beach their cobblestone streets radiate out from central squares.

Before tourists arrived, the beach was the road, and fishing the main commerce. Villages and towns grew up right on the beach. Village houses backed onto the beach. They are so spoiled with beach they didn’t even bother to point their houses in the direction of the ocean. Kids spend long days playing soccer and volleyball. There is no competition for court time. They have more beach than they could ever use.

Today tourists are here. Their focus, too, is the beach. With them comes more restaurants, kite surfing and beach buggy tours. These are not tourist towns that shut down when the tourists go home, however. These are working fishing villages where people want to visit and are welcomed. The balance hasn’t flipped towards the visitors.

The beach towns and villages I am talking about are less than an hour from here

Amazingly, many of the villages and towns I’m talking about are less than a one-hour drive from Fortaleza’s boardwalk (and international airport) and the conveniences that go with a city of 3 million people. If you feel like Chinese food, you most likely won’t get it in your beach town… but you know you can pop downtown for your fix and then retreat to the beach. It’s comforting to have the conveniences of a major city easily accessible yet still be away from the hustle and bustle…

My Three Favorite Beach Towns Within an Hour of Fortaleza
#1: Praia das Fontes

Heading east at Praia das Fontes (Fountains Beach). A beach buggy is the most convenient mode of transport

To the east of Fortaleza, the beach and coastline is like nothing I have seen anywhere else. Red and white cliffs rise from flat beaches. This unique and beautiful stretch of coast has been a favorite with Brazilian tourists for many years, yet it remains undiscovered by North Americans.

Fresh water gushes from streams that fall from the cliff (perfect for a shower after a dip in the warm waters of the south Atlantic). The beach-side bars grill fish taken straight from the boat. In the evening the colors are fantastic as the fishermen’s little jangadas come home fat with their catch.

A busy day at the office a couple of minutes from Fountains Beach

The municipality of Beberibe attracted 800,000 Brazilian tourists last year. This area is packed during the major Brazilian holidays—Christmas, New Year, Carnival, and Easter—and includes the village at Fountains Beach.

Real Estate Recommendation:

Perched on a small cliff over the beach, each unit will have sea views. The Fountains has direct access down to the beach. All but five units have sold and one-bed units start at $66,000.

#2: Cumbuco

If you look closely, you can see Fortaleza’s skyline in the distance. We’re that close…

This is my favorite little beach town along the northeast coast of Brazil. This is where I come to relax when I have a few spare hours on my scouting trips. Thing is: this little beach town is just 30 minutes west of Fortaleza. From the beach, you can see the downtown skyline shimmer in the distance.

There’s a very relaxed beach-town vibe here. Cumbuco has an internet café, a hotel, and several guesthouses, but it’s still a local town, with kids playing soccer…cobbled streets…

Cobblestone streets are typical of the beach towns dotted along this coast

Norwegians have been coming here for years. There are several little beach communities that were developed by Norwegians, for Norwegians. This was the first beach town to start seeing foreign interest and development. There is much more on the way.

A major Portuguese resort and golf course developer, Vila Gale, has just started construction of its golf course. The project, Cumbuco Golf, will include five-star hotels in the 450-hectare site. Construction is well advanced on the first hotel. Next door, a Spanish group plans a 990-unit project. The Spanish group’s neighbor is a project by a major Brazilian group of 1,400 units.

In five years’ time, this sleepy beach town will be barely recognizable. Soccer-playing kids will compete for space on the cobblestone streets with foreigners browsing in the shops or on their way to dine in the new restaurants that will open during the boom. Golf carts carrying golfers will be as common a sight as dune buggies carrying windsurfers.

For the moment, I’m enjoying Cumbuco’s small-town charms.

#3: Taiba

This little town is picture perfect

Less than an hour from downtown Fortaleza is the fishing village of Taiba. The locals are used to sharing their village with outsiders. First, wealthy Brazilians from Fortaleza came to build their weekend homes on the beach. In more recent years, northern Europeans (mostly Norwegians) have come to escape the Scandinavian winters. Others just visit to kite-surf. Those who don’t have their own condo stay in one of the pousadas (inns) dotted along the beach.

Boutique restaurants and hotels have opened as more visitors arrive. Taiba has gained a reputation as a gourmet location. Restaurants are high quality and very affordable. Taiba even has an annual food festival, which attracts over 10,000 visitors. Yet Taiba retains a quaint fishing and beach town feel.

Downtown Taiba at rush hour

Real Estate Recommendation:

Three minutes from the village by beach buggy is a small condo project called Taiba Gardens. It’s right on the beach, and the common areas are lush landscaped gardens. Amenities include a pool, gym, steam room, relaxation deck and hammock area. Residents can barbecue by the pool and enjoy their meal with friends and neighbors at poolside dining tables.

Listing just three towns was difficult. Ask me tomorrow and I might give you a different answer. I’m sure however that any additions to the list would be in northeast Brazil. The beach towns there are just that good. Better yet: they are that good 12 months of the year…and they are that good while still on the doorstep of a major city. You really need to check them out for yourself.

Ronan McMahon