An essential guide to exploring the Brazilian coastline

On the Brazilian coast for months, the most important thing for us was to avoid the main road, the famous BR-101, also known as the Translittorale. Almost 5,000 km from north to south, really unpleasant both by bike and by car. Of course, there are secondary roads, but how do you find your way through this labyrinth?

Our best ally was the Guia Quatro Rodas, Praias, nothing less than Brazil’s beach guide! We had no desire to visit all 1700 of the country’s official beaches. On the other hand, this precious book had detailed maps of every coastal state. Asphalt roads, dirt roads, precarious roads, there was even information on small ferries, most of which are only accessible on foot or by bike. There were signs for accommodation and restaurants, as well as logos for historic towns, diving, surfing, fishing and even polluted beaches. The only difficulty for foreign tourists with this guide is learning Portuguese!