Porto de Galinhas
Brazil
Reef pools that appear at low tide, and a village built entirely around them
Photo by Mayumi Maciel on Unsplash
Photos by Cleber Nadalutti, Mayumi Maciel, Bruno Muniz and Sonia Nadales on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of Brazil
September to March
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 325mm in Jun
Where it is
8.50°S, 35.00°W Open in Google Maps
Things to do
Several days- Check the tide table before anything else — go out to the pools on a low tide in the morning, before the crowd and the wind
- Take a mask: the fish in the pools are the point
- Watch the sunset from Pontal de Maracaípe, where the river meets the sea
- Take the seahorse boat on the Maracaípe river, from an operator that does not take them out of the water
- Spend a day at Praia dos Carneiros, an hour south
- Stay at Muro Alto if you want a calm lagoon for children
Porto de Galinhas travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget Brazil
Mid-rangeCards are taken in the village, the resorts and most beach barracas, and Pix — which needs a Brazilian account — covers the rest for locals. Bring cash from Recife or the airport for the jangada to the pools, tips and the smaller stalls; there is nowhere useful to change money here.
ATMs & cards
There are machines in the village centre, inside shops and the small shopping arcades, and they run short in high season and on holiday weekends. Withdraw at the airport or in Recife on the way down, decline the machine's conversion, and do not count on finding one at Muro Alto or Maracaípe.
Avoid these
- relying on the village machines on a holiday weekend
Use these instead
- Banco do Brasil
- Bradesco
- Itaú
- Santander
Withdraw at Recife airport or in the city on the way down; the beaches outside the village have no machines.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of Brazil
Reasonably safeThe village itself is calm and walkable, including in the evening. The things worth attention are the sea and the roads: the pools only exist at low tide, and swimming beyond the reef at high tide is a different sea. On the drive from Recife, use a transfer or an app car rather than stopping along the way at night.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (6 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
- Porto de Galinhas village — including in the evening
- Muro Alto
- Praia de Maracaípe
Worth more attention
- The reef at high tide, when the pools are gone and the water outside them is deep and moving
- Praia de Maracaípe — the surf beach: strong currents, and the river mouth at Pontal on a rising tide
- Walking on the reef itself, which cuts feet and kills coral — the jangadeiros will tell you where to stand
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa Brazil visa rules
No visa neededup to 90 days
Other passports
e-Visa requiredup to 90 days$80
Brazil reintroduced visas for these three nationalities. It is an e-visa applied for online.
Visa required in advance
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of Brazil
Good but costlyRequired to enter
- Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Yellow fever — recommended for most of Brazil including the area around Rio
- Hepatitis A
- Typhoid
- Tetanus up to date
Getting treated
Public emergency care (SUS) is free to everyone including foreigners, but is crowded and slow. Private hospitals in Rio and São Paulo are excellent and expect insurance or payment up front.
Dengue, zika and chikungunya are all present and mosquito-borne — repellent matters. Yellow fever vaccination should be given at least 10 days before arrival.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
Very goodFish and shellfish: agulhinha frita (small fried needlefish), peixe na telha, and caldinho at the barracas. Breakfast is tapioca and fruit. The village restaurants are geared to visitors and priced for it; a beach barraca is the cheaper lunch.
Travel tipsGetting around
Limited- UberWorks here
- 99Works here
- inDriveWorks here
- BoltNot here
99 the Brazilian one, often cheaper
- Against a taxi
- Cheaper than a taxi and, in the big cities, the default for everybody.
Some favela and periphery addresses will not be accepted by drivers at night; that is a driver safety decision, not a fare one.
Time zone and your working day
America/Recife — 1 hour ahead of you
7 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–16:00 your time, 10:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 08:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 08:00–16:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
eSIM
A data eSIM for Brazil, installed before you fly and working the moment you land:
Works here
Works hereRevolutIn the app
Must-see
Travel tipsNearby day trips
Travel tipsSay a few words
Portuguese (Brazilian)
- HelloOi / Oláoy / o-LA
- PleasePor favorpor fa-VOR
- Thank youObrigado / Obrigadao-bree-GA-doo / -da
- Yes / NoSim / Nãoseeng / nowng
4 more phrases
- Excuse meCom licençakong lee-SEN-sa
- How much is it?Quanto custa?KWAN-too KOOS-ta
- The bill, pleaseA conta, por favora KON-ta
- Cheers!Saúde!sa-OO-djee
Softer and more open than European Portuguese, and the de sounds like "dje".
Travel tipsReligion
Catholic and Evangelical
The largest Catholic population in the world, with a fast-growing Evangelical share and Afro-Brazilian traditions such as Candomblé and Umbanda practised alongside.
Travel tipsDo's and don'ts
Do
- Greet with a kiss on each cheek between women, or a woman and a man; a handshake between men
- Expect physical closeness in conversation — standing back reads as cold
- Arrive late to social invitations; on time is genuinely early
- Learn a few words of Portuguese, and never open in Spanish
Don't
- Do not make the OK sign with finger and thumb — it is obscene here
- Do not walk with a phone visible in the street
- Do not wear obvious jewellery or watches on the beach or in the city
- Do not call Brazilians Hispanic or assume they speak Spanish
Where to stay in Porto de Galinhas
No Holistay rentals in Porto de Galinhas yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Porto de Galinhas on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Recife Guararapes REC
1hfrom the airport· 42 km as the crow flies
About 1h by road.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
