Praia dos Carneiros: Catamaran Tour & Mangrove Clay Bath

4.81

(307 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

You sort of wake up to it — the white sand at Praia dos Carneiros, coconut trees leaning just so, and that lazy sound of waves you only get on calm mornings in Pernambuco. We’d been dropped off right in front of Bora Bora Restaurant (they’re serious about those sun loungers), and I could already smell grilled fish mixing with salt air. Our guide, Rafael, waved us over for the catamaran ride but I kept staring at the little São Benedito church — it’s just sitting there from the 1600s, like nobody told it time had moved on.

The catamaran glides out slow, almost too slow at first. There’s this hush as we pass into the mangroves along the Arikindá River — only birds and that soft slap of water against wood. Rafael pointed out where three rivers meet; he called it “a kind of handshake” between Ariquindá, Maria Sul and Formoso. The clay bath was messier than I expected (I got some in my ear), but everyone laughed and rubbed it on anyway. It’s supposed to be good for your skin — I don’t know if that’s true but my arms felt smoother after rinsing off.

We drifted back toward shore and just sat for a while under those big umbrellas. Some people ordered caipirinhas; I stuck with coconut water because it felt right somehow. The sun came out strong around noon, so most folks wandered down to the natural pools or took photos by the old church again. I didn’t expect to feel so relaxed here — maybe it’s something about how open everything is, or maybe just being far from traffic noise for a few hours does something to your head.