Sand streets
A village without tarmac.
idobi — CC BY-SA 3.0 · TADEU JOSE MIGOTO — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Rafael Nicolaidis — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Sibelicarvalho — CC BY-SA 3.0
Jericoacoara, or Jeri as Brazilians call it, is a former fishing village on the west coast of Ceará that has become one of Brazil's most famous destinations; its name comes from Tupi and means lair of turtles. Its streets are sand without tarmac, and it is surrounded by Jericoacoara National Park, created in 2002 to protect the fragile dunes after being an environmental protection area since 1984. The Spanish navigator Pinzón is said to have anchored in its bay in 1499. Only licensed four-wheel-drive vehicles may enter the village, so visitors leave their cars in the town of Jijoca and cross the dunes. Jeri is famous for strong, steady winds in the second half of the year, making it one of the best places for windsurfing and kitesurfing, and for the sunset watched from the dunes and the beach every evening. Every visitor pays a sustainable tourism tax on entry, from which children under 12 and seniors are exempt. It is best to stay several nights to combine the village with the Pedra Furada arch and the lagoons of Jijoca.
A village without tarmac.
From dunes and beach.
Steady winds.
Jijoca de Jericoacoara, west coast of Ceará
To the town of Jijoca by car or bus, then by licensed 4x4 across the dunes, as ordinary cars cannot enter the village; the sustainable tourism tax is paid on entry.