4 Best Sights in Boipeba, Salvador and the Bahia Coast

The pace on Boipeba is syrupy slow, but if you manage to make it out of your hammock, there is much to explore on and around the 7-km- (4-mile-) wide island. Hire a boat through the local guides' association or via one of the pousadas and spend the day exploring the natural swimming pools that lie before the Ponta dos Castelhanos. After lunch, head to Vila de Moreré, a small beach community of 250 people; some accommodations are available here. Other activities include sunset canoe rides through the mangrove and a visit to Velha Boipeba (the commercial heart of the island). Some pousadas, like Pousada Santa Clara, offer the chance to take part in local environmental and community projects.

Ponta dos Castelhanos

Boipepa Fodor's Choice

Named in honor of a Spanish galleon that sank off the coast in 1535, this postcard-perfect deserted beach fringed in coconut palms offers good snorkeling (take your own masks) in calm crystalline waters framed in coral reefs. Access is by boat from Velha Boipeba, Boca da Barra, or nearby Moreré. Bring your own water as there are no beach vendors. Amenities: none. Best for: snorkeling; swimming; walking.

Boca da Barra

Boipepa

The closest beach to Boipeba's small town, Velha Boipeba, is also the island's busiest, dotted with pousadas and beachfront restaurants serving Bahian seafood and ice-cold beer. Although the turquoise waters are calm enough for swimming, they get rougher when the tide comes in, swallowing most of the sand and making sunbathing a challenge. Where the sea joins with the Rio do Inferno is one of the island's best spots for watching the sunset. Amenities: food and drink. Best for: sunset; walking.

Praia da Cueira

Boipepa

A 40-minute walk along the sand from Boca da Barra, following the jungle track after Praia Tassimirim, is the immense curved Bay of Cueira, a favorite for local soccer matches and for families to spend the day. A smattering of restaurants, including Guido’s lobster shack, serve lunch and ice-cold coconuts. Amenities: food and drink; toilets. Best for: swimming; walking.

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Praia de Bainema

Boipepa

A 20-minute walk along a lovely trail that winds between the forest and the beach from Moreré, this deserted beach’s long stretch of golden sand is a favorite with families due to the calm waters and natural pools that form at midtide. Make sure you bring your own water and seek shade beneath a coconut palm. Amenities: none. Best for: surfing; swimming; walking.

Salvador and the Bahia Coast

Salvador and the Bahia Coast

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