The Costa Verde

Brigitte Bardot put Búzios on the map when she visited the place back in the 1960s. It has since become one of Brazil’s most exclusive resorts favoured by the South American jet set. The beaches are stunning (there are twenty four of them to choose from), the seafood superb and nightlife tireless – all within a couple of hours’ drive from Rio.

Moving south of Rio and Buzios, Paraty is an immaculately preserved Portuguese colonial town, framed for its white sands and lush tropical mountains. It is the jewel of the Costa Verde and hosts the Paraty Literature Festival every July. Set out by sailboat to a private beach for a lunch of grilled lobster and champagne, before returning for a massage and cocktails at one of the nine suites in a gorgeous boutique hotel in the city’s old town.

Winding south through the coffee plantations, cattle ranches and pine forests of Santa Catalina, Florianópolis and the surrounding island boasts some of Brazil’s most delicious shellfish (the oysters are out of this world) and its most shamelessly indulgent resort, perched on a privately-owned peninsula on the Emerald Coast. This is also a great area to watch southern right whales which come here to breed between July and November.