Brazil Buzios, Paraty and Costa Verde

Overview

Head either east or southwest along the coast from the bright lights of Rio de Janeiro and you enter a different world.  The forest-smothered coastline, scalloped with rocky bays and exquisite beaches, is studded with laid-back beach resorts, secluded upmarket hotels, and colonial-era ports.

Búzios is a chic resort set on a peninsula fringed by white-sand crescent coves three hours’ drive east from Rio. Revealed to the world by Brigitte Bardot, it resembles somewhat a privileged spot on the Côte d’Azur, but with a genuine Brazilian vibe. You'll find smart villas, cobbled streets, trendy shops, boutique hotels, elegant restaurants and lively nightlife.

Heading out of Rio in the opposite direction, a winding coast road skirts waves of steep mountains cloaked in dense mata Atlântica rainforest and tumbling to tiny sandy bays. This is the Costa Verde. The utterly photogenic little port of Paraty brims with colonial baroque architecture and inviting inns – a delightful spot to relax for a couple of days or take a schooner tour to nearby beaches.

The jade-green ocean is peppered with islands, the largest being Ilha Grande. Still relatively undeveloped, car-free Ilha Grande is ringed by sugary beaches and with a choice of simple, laid-back pousadas and hiking trails. On a perfect sunny day it can be hard to imagine anywhere more alluring.