Alter do Chão

So we found something to do with our extra day in Santarém. The Guardian published an article in 2009 on the 10 best beaches in Brazil and there at number 1 is Alter do Chão. This qualifies It as a ‘hidden gem’ which these days means that only 50 million people know about It.

The bus from Santarém to Alter do Chão takes about an hour, and dropped us off just a couple of minutes from the beach. White sands, sparkling river wáter, with forest in the background - It is a beautiful place although I’m not convinced It will be the most beautiful in all of Brazil.

It was quiet too, most of the bars and restaurants on the beach were closed. Clearly not peak season. But the one place that was operating still did good business serving drinks and food to tables that are placed in the water a couple of metres off the beach.

A very relaxing day, with another boat trip just ahead of us. There wasn’t nuch OSM mapping going on either, although we took advantage of the wait for the bus to add a few more points in the town.