Boa Vista: Buggy Tour to Santa Monica Beach & Desert Ruins

4.97

(136 reviews)

What’s the experience like?

The first thing I remember is the crunch of sand under our boots as we clambered into these chunky buggies, helmets a bit too big and the sun already sharp over Praia de Chaves. There was this old chimney sticking up near the coast — our guide, Paulo, waved at it like an old friend and said something about pottery and how his grandmother used to talk about it. I didn’t catch every word (my Portuguese is... not great), but you could tell it meant something. The air smelled salty, hot, with a little hint of dust that stuck in your throat if you laughed too hard.

We zigzagged past dunes where the sand looked almost gold in the morning light. Morro de Areia was quieter than I expected — just wind and the occasional shout from someone in our group who hit a bump too fast. At Verandinha Beach, there’s this natural arch that looks like it’s been carved by giants. Paulo pointed out crabs scuttling sideways (I tried to get a photo; failed). Then came Santa Monica Beach — honestly, it goes on forever. Over 20km of empty white sand and barely anyone else around. We just stood there for a while, letting the wind whip around us. I still think about that view sometimes when I’m stuck in city traffic.

Boca Beach came next — we got cold drinks here, sitting on plastic chairs that wobbled in the sand while Paulo told us stories about fishermen who used to camp here before tourism really took off. The last stretch was bumpier than I thought: we rattled past more dunes until these half-buried ruins appeared at Curral Velho. It felt lonely out there, but peaceful too. Fonte Vicente was our final stop; by then my hair was full of sand and my cheeks hurt from grinning so much. Not sure if it was the ride or just being somewhere so different.