Dune trails
With a guide and ranger.
MILENA MARIA DE FREITAS — CC BY-SA 4.0 · Fabiogurgelamaral — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Fabiogurgelamaral — CC BY-SA 3.0
Natal Dunes State Park, the Parque das Dunas, protects 1,172 hectares of dunes and Atlantic Forest in the heart of the city, along the coastal road beside Mãe Luiza, Capim Macio and Ponta Negra. Created in 1977 as the first protected area in Rio Grande do Norte, it is described as Brazil's second-largest urban park and is part of UNESCO's Atlantic Forest Biosphere Reserve. The public area, the Bosque dos Namorados, covers about 7 hectares with more than 1,300 native trees, a visitor centre, open-air amphitheatre, lake, playground and jogging track. Three guided interpretive trails cross the dunes: Perobinha (800 m, 40 minutes), Peroba (2.8 km) and Ubaia Doce (4.8 km, 2 h 40), leaving at 8:00 and 14:00 with a guide and an environmental police officer; they must be booked ahead by phone or email. Entry costs R$1, free for children up to 5 and over-60s; it opens 7:30-17:00 and is closed on Mondays.
With a guide and ranger.
1,300 native trees.
Park exhibition.
Coastal road, between Mãe Luiza and Ponta Negra, Natal
Yes. All three trails are guided, leave at 8:00 and 14:00, and are booked ahead by phone or email.