Active Vacation

This is the itinerary for those who want to be out doing -- hiking, climbing, swimming, diving. Brazil is rich in outdoor sports, be they on mountain peaks, on the beach, in the ocean or underneath it. This route starts in Rio, then has three different options for hiking -- in the mountains near the city, on an island covered in Atlantic rainforest, or farther north in the dry highlands of Bahia. The route then includes time in Fernando de Noronha and the Lençóis Maranhenses, two magical landscapes found nowhere outside Brazil.

Days 1 & 2: Rio de Janeiro

Arrive in Rio de Janeiro. Spend a half-day rock climbing up the Sugarloaf, or else hike the Floresta de Tijuca, a vast rainforest that wraps itself around the city. Or rent a board and catch the surf bus out to Barra for the city's best waves.

Days 3-6: Teresopolis to Petrópolis

The 2-to-3-day hike between the royal cities of Teresopolis and Petrópolis takes in the high mountain terrain (approximately 1,500m/4,900ft.) in Serra dos Órgãos mountains close to Rio de Janeiro. Hiking specialists Rio Hiking can arrange transfer to and from the city, and make your trek more comfortable.

OR

Days 3-6: Chapada Diamantina

Fly to Salvador and get a bus or plane up to the Chapada Diamantina. This magic highland area is full of bluffs and buttes and waterfalls, and laced with stunning crystal caverns. Do day hikes from the city of Lençóis, or contract a guide to take you on a multiday trek past the Falls of Smoke (Cachoeira de Fumaça).

OR

Days 3-6: Ilhabela

From Rio, head south on the bus to Ilhabela, on the gorgoeus green coastline of the state of São Paulo. Stay at the Porto Pacuiba Hotel. Maremar Turismo can show you where to kayak the small bays and inlets, or rapell the island's many waterfalls. Espaço Ecologico specializes in trekking.

Day 7: Transit Day

Whether you start from Rio, Ilhabela, or the Chapada Diamantina, it's going to take you most of a day to get to the island of Fernando de Noronha.

Days 8-11: Fernando de Noronha

Grab your scuba gear and go diving. This isolated archipelago has the best underwater sea life in Brazil. Atlantis Divers is the company to go with. Don't foget to rent a buggy and explore the island. While you're there, try to see the baby sea turtles hatch.

Days 12-15: Lençóis Maranhenses

From Fernando, fly to São Luis and catch a plane or bus for Barreirinhas, gateway to the Lençóis Maranhenses. An ecosystem unlike anything else on earth, the Lençóis is a vast desert of shifting white-sand dunes, chock-full of rainwater. In the wet season the rainwater collects to form countless crystal pools and lakes in the depressions between dunes. Best of all, the sand is so fine grained that it's cool on your feet, even in the height of summer.