BEST SURF SPOTS IN BRAZIL
FLORIANOPOLIS (ONE OFTHE BEST CHOICE ALSO FOR BEGINNERS)
Time of Year: March – September
Breaks: Campeche, Praia Joaquina, Praia Mole, Barra da Logoa, Praia Riozinho
Level: All levels
Cost: Inexpensive – Moderate
Intro: Ah Brazil, a country with seemingly more similarities to the U.S than differences and home to surf culture second only to the United States.
The beach is a way of life in Brazil, and they’re blessed with thousands of beautiful miles of it. They’re also blessed with thousands of other things.
Florianopolis is a peninsula in the Southern Brazil with excellent exposure to Southern Swell and dozens of beaconing beach breaks (42 beaches in all).
The beaches of Florianopolis are some of most beautiful in Brazil. Brazilians have a reputation for being aggressive in the water but with miles and miles of beach breaks, you’ll see their welcoming and friendly side. And with dozens of clubs, you see the other side of Brazilian beach culture.
Through the summer months, you won’t need anything more than a shortie and trunks will be fine for most of the time. After March though the water and air cools off and you’ll want a 3/2 fullsuit. Surf is small for the summer months, but picks up after March. Though it rarely gets big, standard short board will suffice for most days.
Getting there: Flights are reasonable $600-800 in the off season (after February and before December). Expect to pay more during the peak season (December – February) when the beaches swarm with crowds during the warm Brazilians summer months marked by New Years and Carnival.
If you do go during December and February, don’t expect too much in terms of surf because of small waves and late parties.
Arriving in Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro, Florianopolis is a short one and half hour flight. Spend a day or two in Sao Paulo or Rio on your way down. Rio has it’s share of surf, but expect serious crowds and hassling for waves.
Breaks: Florianopolis is a peninsula surrounded by beaches, most of which have decent surf. The best breaks are along the East exposed to the Atlantic and the Southern Swell of Brazilian winter. Campeche, Joaquina, Mole, Riozinho are the best known beach breaks with the easiest access, but also the most crowded (Joaquina and Mole host the annual WCT contest in October). Mocambique and Lagoinha de Leste are less accessible but offer great beach break waves. Praia Mole has a great surf scene with beach bars and clubs playing music all through the day in the summer months.
Crowds: The popular breaks can get crowds but with beaches around every corner, it’s not hard to find an empty spot.
Accommodations: Staying in and around Praia Mole and by the Lagoa will provide you with the best and quickest access to surf on the island. Accommodations of all prices are available from hostels to high end hotels and vacation rentals. The Lagoa has a tons of restaurants and lively nightlife, but the biggest and best clubs are downtown.
Nexus Surf provides excellent higher end accommodations and they are recommended surf and cultural guides.
Eats: The food in Brazil is very diverse with everything from sushi to BBQ. You can find tons of good restaurants wandering down by the Lagoa or in downtown Floripa. Brazilians love their meat and buffets. Check out a Churrascaria, Brazilian all you can BBQ. They feed you roasted meat until you can’t move. Perfect pre-club dinner.
Here’s a longer list of good eats.
Nightlife: Nightlife in Florianopolis is half of what you come for. During the summer months clubs like El Divino fill up with thousands everynight! Don’t arrive before 12 AM, Brazilians run on their own time. The Lagoa has a more lay back scene of bars. Downtown has a row of nightclubs.
When the Surf’s Flat: You can kiteboard in the Lagoa and sandboard the dunes by Praia Joaquina.
Don’t Miss: Bar Do Arante-best seafood on the island–located at the southernmost part of the island, at a beach called Pantano do Sul.
SAO FRANCISCO DU SUL
This decent quality sandbar below San Paulo, on the east coast,
is
where they hold Brazilian surfing competitions.
Amazingly, it still has a
fun-loving atmosphere, plus some nice bars from which to watch the surf
until sunset and savor some seriously tasty local grub.
Getting there: Fly into Joinville-Lauro Carneiro de
Loyola Airport; Sao Francisco do Sul is 75 minutes' drive away. Get a
taxi along the BR-101 and BR-280 which will cost around US$15.
 |
hurley pro jr - São Francisco do Sul 2011, 1 day before the surf championship
|
PRAIA MOLE
 |
| Barrels are always on offer |
Quality
Wave quality > World
Classic
Frequency > Very
consistent (150 day/year)
Experience Required > All
surfers
Wave
Type > Beach
break
Direction > Left
and right
Power > Hollow,
powerful, fast
Bottom > Sand
Swell
and Wind
Minimum Swell
Size > 0.5 m | 1ft
Maximum Swell
Size
> 2,5 m | 8 ft
Swell Direction
> S, SE, E, NE
Wind Direction >
N, NE
More Details
Crowd during
the Week > Few people
Crowd on the Week-end
> Very crowded
Hazards >
not going to surf because
of the girls on the shore ! ! !
Infrastructure
Accommodation > Hotel,
local houses, camping and cottages
Commerce > Grocer's
shop, supermarket, snack bars and restaurants
Nightlife > Center
of the island, lagoa da conceição
and others - Everyday!!
Health assistance > Hospitals
and medical centers available on the
island.
Comments
This
the "Fashion" beach nowadays, something
Joaquina use to be years ago, the waves
themselves are pretty good, with the
left side producing good lefts during
E,SE swells. On the
right side there's a spot called Canto
do Gravatá which wakes up during
big South Swells, big paddle, big waves.
You can surf good lefts and rights all
along the beach, during summer and on
weekends a lot of girls.
There are places there where you can eat and have some drinks looking at the
ocean.
The crowds are less agressive. Opened during Mullet fishing season. Close to
Praia Mole, there's another excellent spot called Gravatá. Gravata is the best
option on massive south swell.
 |
| Mole viewed from its neighbor beach Galheta. |
 |
| Peak in the middle of the beach. |
JOAQUINA
 |
| Double overhead |
 |
| No waves? Try sandboarding at the dunes.
|
Quality
Wave quality > World
Classic
Frequency > Very
consistent (150 day/year)
Experience Required > All
surfers
Wave
Type > Beach
break
Direction > Left
and right
Power > Hollow,
powerful, fast, long
Bottom > Sand
Swell
and Wind
Minimum Swell
Size > 0.5 m | 1ft
Maximum Swell
Size
> 3 m | 10 ft
Swell Direction
> S, SE, E, NE
Wind Direction >
N, NE
More Details
Crowd during
the Week > Crowded
Crowd on the Week-end
> Very crowded
Hazards >
Locals
Infrastructure
Accommodation > Hotel,
local houses, camping and cottages
Commerce > Grocer's
shop, supermarket, snack bars and restaurants
Nightlife > Center
of the island, lagoa da conceição
and others - Everyday!!
Health assistance > Hospitals
and medical centers available on the
island.
Comments
Probably
the best and most consistent wave in
the Island. It is the capital of surfing
in Southern Brazil, handles almost any
swell, but the best conditions are
E swell with NE wind or W wind. The famous left breaks from behind the Pedra
da Careca, a small rock which stands close to the left side of the beach. On
good days there's some really long and powerful waves with several sessions.
If you go further south down the beach there's always good surfing spots with
good lefts and rights.
At these
points the crowd factor and hassle are
reduced. Locals surf on the left side
more often. If you're here in Florianopolis
you HAVE TO surf at Joaquina.Opened during
Mullet fishing season.
 |
| The eye - Peak in the middle of the beach. |
BARRA DA LAGOA
 |
| Surf school teacher and professional surfers Evandro dos Santos |
 |
| Surf School |
Quality
Wave quality > Regional
classic
Frequency > Allways
has a surfable wave (beginners)
Experience Required > All
surfers
Wave
Type > Rivermouth,
breakwall and beach break
Direction > Left
and right
Power > Fun
wave
Bottom > Sand
Swell
and Wind
Minimum Swell
Size > 0.5 m | 1ft
Maximum Swell
Size
> 1,0 m | 4 ft
Swell Direction
> E, SE
Wind Direction >
S
More Details
Crowd during
the Week > none
Crowd on the Week-end
> few people
Hazards >
none
Infrastructure
Accommodation > Hotel,
local houses, camping and cottages
Commerce > Grocer's
shop, supermarket, snack bars and restaurants
Nightlife > Center
of the island, lagoa da conceição
and others - Everyday!!
Health assistance > Hospitals
and medical centers available on the
island.
Comments
This
place is such a paradise for beginners
surfers of all ages, our surf school
operates here providing a safe and fun
place to get your first waves. Also
Barra da Lagoa is a trendy place full
of young people from all over the world,
you will make new friends everyday.
Barra
da Lagoa used to be a fishermen village,
but it has became a destination for travelers
due to its great infrastructure of hospitality.
There you can find nice and cheap accommodation,
good food, internet access, nightlife,
snack bars, supermarkets and many shops.
For experienced
surfers this might be a good option in
a solid E swell and S wind it
works pretty rarely, and when it's happening
the locals dominate the line up. Plan
to get there early to get your share.
 |
| Barra da Lagoa's rivermounth |
MOCAMBIQUE
 |
| Nice & easy! |
 |
| Double overhead! |
Quality
Wave quality > World
class
Frequency > Very
consistent (150 day/year)
Experience Required > All
surfers
Wave
Type > Beach
break
Direction > Left
and right
Power > Long,
hollow, powerful, fast
Bottom > Sand
Swell
and Wind
Minimum Swell
Size > 0.5 m | 1ft
Maximum Swell
Size
> 2 m | 6 ft
Swell Direction
> NE, E, SE, S
Wind Direction >
Light N, NE
More Details
Crowd during
the Week > none
Crowd on the Week-end
> few people
Hazards >
none
Infrastructure
Accommodation > Hotel,
local houses, camping and cottages
Commerce > Grocer's
shop, supermarket, snack bars and restaurants
Nightlife > Center
of the island, lagoa da conceição
and others - Everyday!!
Health assistance > Hospitals
and medical centers available on the
island.
Comments
Mocambique
is the longest beach of Florianopolis
and one of the best barrels machine in
Brazil.
This 14 km beach is all preserved with no buildings or commodities, a quiet
, uncrowded place with powerful, tubular
waves, both lefts and rights.
It's never crowded, just drive
a little more towards north and you will
find a peak just for you and your friends.
Enjoy it!!
There
is no infrastructure on the beach, so
bring food and water. Access by car trough
Rio Vermelho road.
CAMPACHE
 |
| The end section |
 |
| One of the tube sections. |
Quality
Wave quality > World
Classic
Frequency > Regular
Experience Required > All
surfers
Wave
Type > Point
break
Direction >
Right
Power >
Hollow, powerful, fast, long
Bottom >
Sand
Swell
and Wind
Minimum Swell
Size > 0.5m | 1ft
Maximum Swell
Size
> 2,5 m | 8 ft
Swell Direction
> S, SE
Wind Direction >
W
More Details
Crowd during
the Week > few people
Crowd on the Week-end
> crowded
Hazards >
Locals
Infrastructure
Accommodation > Local
houses, camping and cottages
Commerce > Grocer's
shop, supermarket, snack bars and restaurants
Nightlife > Center
of the island, lagoa da conceição
and others - Everyday!!
Health assistance > Hospitals
and medical centers available on the
island.
Comments
The
same beach as Joaquina, but further south.
The Praia do Campeche itself it is located
in front of the Campeche Island, the
road leaves you directly there. When
it is breaking that's the place to be.
Needs big or good size S swells and W
wind. Works usually during the winter
on the coldest days. Some surfers compare
it to Jeffrey's Bay. It is for sure one
of the Brazil's best wave. The wage is
a right which creates long rides, with
hollow sections. Awesome even to watch.
When it is breaking always crowded, but there's always one for you. Strong riptides,
creating long paddles. Close to this spot there's another good one called Riozinho
(Small Creek). It creates hollow , powerful waves, with barrels and barrels.
It is located north from the Campeche main entrance, close to a small sports
gymn. Ask locals. With S,SE swell hollow rigths, with E swell hollow lefts. Best
winds W or really light NE.
Also
check the peaks Igrejinha and Riozinho,
located further north, these peaks work
better on SE or E swell and use
to not get crowded.
 |
| THE CAMPECHE WAVE ! |
