Lençois Maranhenses Trek

5 Days / 4 Nights

Hiking Tours of Brazil

Our Hiking Tours of Brazil are all basic ideas that can be tailor-made to match your requirements. Any tour can include one or more destinations, and can be purely dedicated to hiking, although some mountains may include a little climbing that is still suitable for those without much experience. We can also arrange serious climbing trips. We can also mix them with other activities such as climbing, kayaking or tandem hang-gliding flights, some regular tourism, and some nightlife. We include all that you need during your trip, the accommodation with breakfast; all airport transfers and other road journeys; any activities and excursions with English-speaking guides and relevant entrance fees; plus some popular extras. For our Hiking Tours of Brazil, you only need to bring your favourite hiking boots and regular outdoor clothing and equipment. Any parts where a little climbing is necessary will include ropes, helmets and safety harnesses. All hikes and climbs are undertaken with an experienced, qualified local guide, with activity insurance included.
Your Hiking Tour of the Lençois Maranhenses National Park in North-East of Brazil begins on arrival in Sao Luis, the state capital of Maranhao. You travel into remote and beautiful coastal lands, with dunes, lagoons and stunning natural scenery, for day hikes in the dunes, a boat ride down the Lazy River to the disappearing village of Cabure, and the spectacular three day hike through the park.

The return journey can be made to Sao Luis, or you can continue onwards, heading through the smaller dunes to the Parnaiba Delta and Jericoacoara, before finishing in Fortaleza.

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from $ USD

5 Days / 4 Nights

Destinations Visited

Sao Luis & Lençois Maranhenses

Trip Style

Adventure

Activities Included

Hiking & Trekking
Ecotourism
Beaches

Tailor Made Tours

All our Brazil and South America Tours, are completely flexible with regards to dates, duration or the tours, activities and accommodation that we can include. All the tours featured on our website are our recommendations based on our experience of how to make the very best of your time in South America. We can adjust these details in any way that you wish. We are here to organise a tour that suits you after all!

Itinerary

Day 1

All the Way to Maranhao

Destination: Sao Luis to Barreirinhas

On arrival in Sao Luis, the state capital of Maranhao in the north-east of Brazil, you will be welcomed at the airport and transferred through the rugged and remote interior of the coast to Barreirinhas. The 3hr journey on the modern highway gives you a chance to appreciate the flora and fauna of this region, plus the climate so close to the equator on the north-facing coastline. On arrival in Barreirinhas, you can check in to your hotel and then have the rest of the afternoon to explore the town. Barrerinhas sits amongst the dunes and vegetation that border the Rio Preguiças, the Lazy River. The pace of life here is as laidback as the river, with restaurants on decks overlooking it.

Day 2

Lençois Maranhenses Hike

Destination: Barreirinhas to Atins

In the early morning you head into the dunes of Lençois Maranhenses, the only desert on the planet with its own freshwater lakes. This national park is one of the most photogenic areas of Brazil, with wind-carved dunes curving into the distance and the clearest water forming lakes between them. You hike between Lagoa do Peixe and Lagoa Bonita, spending the morning leaving footprints in miles of empty white sand and refreshing in the blue lakes between them. After lunch in Barreirinhas, you take the boat down the Lazy River to Atins, stopping along the way at the Mandacaru Lighthouse, and the community of Vassouras with its friendly monkeys.

Day 3

Trekking Through the Dunes

Destination: Atins to Baixa Grande

Your Lençois Maranhenses National Park Trek begins… in the dark! The heat of the day this close to the equator, and with white sand to reflect the sun, make an early start essential as after 10am is usually too hot to handle! You begin the walk out of Atins and along the flat sand of the coastal plain before entering the dunes themselves. Walking barefoot on the cool white sand under a starry sky, with the dark shapes of the dunes outlined against it is a special moment. If the moon is out then you get a little extra help, but if not then you have to be careful not to bump into a sand dune! On arrival in the tiny community of Baixa Grande, you stop for the rest of the day.

Day 4

Oases in the Desert

Destination: Baixa Grande to Queimada dos Britos

The two communities of Baixa Grande and Queimada dos Britos are the only parts of the national park with water and people! These two oases in the desert are very simple places, with water pulled from wells and electricity provided by generator if possible. The middle of the day is for relaxing in hammocks and cooling in the small lakes nearby. A short hike to the highest point in the area for sunset is another highlight. Meals are eaten with the families, and accommodation is also in the hammocks. Early nights and early starts are the order of each day! You should also likely be lucky enough to enjoy all your trek with the tranquility of solitude, as the areas you cross have few visitors.

Day 5

Walking Away from Maranhao

Destination: Queimada dos Britos to Santo Amaro & Sao Luis

The final part of the trek takes you to Santo Amaro, a small village on the edge of the national park, and from there you drive back through the afternoon to Sao Luis, where you fly away to your next destination, either in Brazil, or connecting to flights home via Sao Paulo, Rio or Brasilia. This 3-Day Trek through the Lençois Maranhenses National Park is a tough proposition for anyone, a serious undertaking of some 70km, all of it on soft sand and sometime through the shallow waters. If you can handle the hard slog and the simple lifestyle encountered, then the endless photogenic views of one of the most beautiful parts of Brazil are very rewarding.

Prices

* Domestic Flights Estimated Price
N/A

** Prices Per Adult based on two people travelling and sharing accommodation
Simple B&B
from $525 USD Request Quote
3 Stars
from $550 USD Request Quote
4 Stars
from $975 USD Request Quote
5 Stars
from $1,225USD Request Quote
* Prices vary depending on travel dates and flight availability. Peak periods in Brazil including Carnaval, public holidays and Christmas/New Year usually require a minimum number of nights, so in these cases itineraries may need to be changed. ** Domestic flight prices are estimated on typical values when reserved six months before travel. Prices can never be guaranteed until reservations are made, and do usually become more expensive closer to the travel period.

* Domestic Flights Estimated Price ** Prices Per Adult based on two people travelling and sharing accommodation

N/A

Simple

3 Stars

4 Stars

Luxury

from

$525 USD

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from

$550 USD

Request Quote

from

$975 USD

Request Quote

from

$1,225 USD

Request Quote

* Prices vary depending on travel dates and flight availability. Peak periods in Brazil including Carnaval, public holidays and Christmas/New Year usually require a minimum number of nights, so in these cases itineraries may need to be changed.

** Domestic flight prices are estimated on typical values when reserved six months before travel. Prices can never be guaranteed until reservations are made, and do usually become more expensive closer to the travel period.