Brazil – from Rainforest to Mega-cities to Beaches..

Visiting the largest country in South America can be a whole holiday in itself, but luckily the coastal cities are more open than ever for cruise business.  I’m lucky enough to have visited 3 of the most popular destinations on the Atlantic coast, and would love to share my experience with you in this week’s blog….

Most people will think of Rio de Janeiro as the main destination, and indeed it still has the greatest number of tourist visitors, and for good reason.  The spectacular setting of numerous mountains (Sugar Loaf and Corcovado included, the latter hosting the famous ‘Christ the Redeemer’ statue), and beaches (of which Copacapana and Ipanema are just 2 of many), is one you will never forget.  Add to that the Maracana stadium, and an assortment of activities, including hang-gliding over the city, and you’ll see there’s plenty to do.

Further up the coast is Salvador, which is culturally just as rich as Rio, as it has some fascinating Portuguese colonial architecture, particularly in the old centre, and Salvador was the centre for commerce in the days of the slave trade, which means that nowadays the African cultures shine through, due to the high population percentage descended from the men who suffered enforced migration across the South Atlantic many years ago.

Right up near the Equator, around the city of Natal, you have the driest part of the country, where sands which have been blown high up in the air from the Sahara have landed near the coastline, and formed dramatic dunes that roll right to the sea-shore.  A day on a guided dune-buggy tour is a must if you venture up this far.

Brazil is certainly a country of contrasts, unified by the language of Portuguese, and accessible to all of us, thanks to the increasing number of cruise ship visits…why not add it to your bucket list for 2019?