Pipa Beach |
Considered one of the most beautiful places of Brazil’s shore and the most famous
of Rio Grande do Norte, “Pipa” is not famous by chance. Located at Tibau do Sul, 87km away from Natal, the main beach is surrounded by “falésias”
and Mata Atlântica, where the white sand perfectly combines with the crystal clear water of the sea.
It’s not rare to see dolphins at Pipa, which is also a place of sea turtles spawning.
Exactly for this reason, the main street of Pipa is called “Avenida Baía dos Golfinhos”, a great corridor of craftsmanship, costume jewelry,
clothes stores and bars. Most of them open only at night. The fun is so good that it even attracts young people from Natal and João Pessoa.
Formerly, Pipa Beach sheltered villages of fishermen who lived neither with
electricity nor water supplying system, until the hippies, surfers and foreign tourists arrived, in the decade of 1970. Today, it’s possible to
go there by buggy, which goes through the shore leaving from Natal.
In the village, there are from simple to more sophisticated restaurants, camping
area, inns and hotels. At night, nightclubs play reggae and forró, while capoeira groups dance at the shore. To buy craftsmanship goods, the
best options are the small fairs.
The path that goes direct to the beach takes visitors to a place of concentration
of fishermen, where Stones don’t make difficult the passage of boats, but make impracticable to swim. To the north, in the reddish sand “falésias”,
is the part proper to those who enjoy the warm waters of Pipa Beach. Before the beach, there’s “Santuário Ecológico da Pipa”, located in the detour
of “Rota do Sol” to “Estrada da Pipa”, with trails highly frequented by visitors.
Try to avoid going there between August and September, because, although it doesn’t
rain, the wind is too strong and the blue waters get quite turbid.
There are many ways to go there. The trip from Natal’s airport to Pipa Beach costs
between R$ 80,00 and R$ 90,00 (2005 June). In case tourists decide to stay there, many inns have transportation service, so, the ideal is to ask
for information.
Going by car, tourists have to go through BR-101, enter in the city of Goianinha
and follow the plaques to Pipa Beach. Another way is leaving from João Pessoa and then go towards Canguaretama, 100km away, after Barra do
Cunhaú and take the ferry to Sibaúma (about 10 minutes). From there, there’s a road to Pipa.
Many companies of Natal have buggy roads, leaving from Ponta Negra Beach towards
the beaches of the south shore, passing through Barra de Tabatinga and crossing with the ferry (about 10 minutes) to Tibau do Sul. At the highway
bus station of Natal there are buses that make the course. |
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