Porto de Galinhas

Porto de Galinhas is a coastal town in the municipality of Ipojuca, in Pernambuco.

Understand
Porto de Galinhas is a small beach town, very popular as a weekend getaway for people from nearby Recife. The area is stunningly beautiful with amazing reefs. Hotels range from cozy "pousadas" to five-star resorts. Do not miss nearby Maracaípe.

By plane
The closest airport is in Recife/Guararapes, some 60 km north of Porto de Galinhas. The bus company Cruzeiro ( or ) operates buses (ônibus) from Recife center to Porto de Galinhas from 04:45 until 22:30. These busses stop at Recife Airport.

Further flight connections you can find to the airport of Maceió.

By bus or carpooling
From Recife, two bus lines make the trip to Porto, as locals call it. The bus company Cruzeiro ( or ) operates buses (ônibus) from Recife center to Porto de Galinhas from 04:45 until 22:30. The first bus line takes around 2 hours to 2 hours 30 minutes and stops at the airport and several other locations in Recife. It costs R$12.50 (April 2021) and doesn't have air-conditioning. If the bus is full you will have to stand for the trip.

The other one is bus line 195. It's operated by Cruzeiro as well, has busses equipped with air conditioning, better seats and a semi-express route. It costs R$18.25 (April 2021) and leaves each hour from Cais de Santa Rita in Recife. At the other end of the Rua de Esperança is the praçinha (little plaza), the city center on the beach and near the tide pools.

From Recife there are shared rides offered on Blablacar. The prices are around R$12 (April 2021).

From Maceió there are a few shared rides offered on Blablacar. You can also take an intercity bus or shared ride to the Recife airport and continue from there with the bus operated by Cruzeiro or with another shared ride to Porto de Galinhas.

The in Porto de Galinhas is next to the gas station o posto at the end of the Rua de Esperança, the main street of Porto de Galinhas.

By car
Porto de Galinhas is about 80 km from Recife (via BR-101 and PE-60 roads), 330 km from Natal, 800 km from Salvador, 2.300 km from Rio de Janeiro and 2.800 km form São Paulo.

By taxi
You can also take an Uber, 99taxi or local taxi from Recife or from other places around Porto de Galinhas.

Get around
The town is small and easily navigable on foot. Uber and 99Taxi also work, as of December 2019, and a typical 10-minute trip costs about R$ 6.

There are very frequent vans between Porto de Galinhas and Maracaípe for R$3,50.

Buggys are available for rent with or without driver, which presents a great alternative to traditional car rental.

See
Bustling beach town in summer, lots of dining places, local "churrascarias" (barbecue) and good seafood. Lots of beach activities in the area. Amongst them, visits to the "piscinas naturais" in a jangada, a local raft tour to the nearby reefs, where sea water makes natural ponds, and lots of different fish can be seen.

If lucky enough you might attend a sea turtle birth at full moon in midsummer, plan for a full moon stay.

Note that the beautiful reefs are only available at very low tide, for about two hours a day. Ask for information at travel agency or tourism information center for the recommended days and hours to visit reefs.

Do

 * Visit the "Piscinas naturais" - gaps in the reef where small fish can be found. R$30 for 45 minutes, with tickets available at the booth near Giroskka Bar in Praça central. Snorkel gear is provided. The snorkeling is fun for beginners, but nothing to write home about if you've snorkeled in Hawaii, the Riviera Maya, or the like. Only one type of fish.
 * Take a trip on a little boat in the lagoon and swim with the fish (take some kind of footwear as the rocks are sharp!).
 * Walk to nearby Maracaípe and watch the surfers.
 * Find a spot on the beach, order shrimp and beer, sit back and relax.
 * In the beach point Pontal do Maracaípe local kitesurfers can be seen. For the more adventurous, classes on this sport are available as well.
 * Visit beautiful Praia dos Carneiros. White sandy, crystal clear water beach south of Porto de Galinhas, very near Tamandaré. Can be reached by boat trip.
 * Visit beautiful Praia dos Carneiros. White sandy, crystal clear water beach south of Porto de Galinhas, very near Tamandaré. Can be reached by boat trip.

Buy
The shops in the pedestrian zone in the center of town offer local crafts, clothing, and beach equipment.

There are ATMs from the banks 24Horas and Caixa, but none from Bradesco.

Eat
Don't leave Porto de Galinhas before trying traditional tapioca.

Drink
Many bars and restaurants serve the weekend party crowd. It isn't hard to find a place for a drink along the beach, on either of the two main roads, or from a number of stands set up at night where the two main roads connect near the beach. Sometimes it is possible to see and even participate in an impromptu drum circle at this intersection on weekend evenings.

On the very shore of the beach, you can find carts that sell pina colada out of the actual pineapple, for R$ 20.

Sleep
Hotels range from cozy "pousadas" to top-quality five-star resorts (Nanai and Summerville). Especially at weekends the city center will be very loud. The streets around the Pracinha are full of party-goers and the bands play on the streets in front of the pousadas. Especially Pousada Benedita and Pousada Marakatu are only a few meters away from the street parties. Room prices in one of the posadas at the city center start at R$50. Avoid being led to a hotel by touts, as you will get an inflated price.

Go next
Within walking distance on the beach to the south is the smaller town of Maracaípe. If you want to get away from the noise it is a quiet place. Further south, lies the "Recanto do Cavalo Marinho", a protected area for seahorse breeding. A local "jangada" can take you as well.

Beaches further south are also beautiful, but harder to access. Tamandaré can be accessed going south on the PE-60 road. There are signs on-route with directions to Carneiros. Toquinho and Serrambi are some of the other options.

You can also go to these places; all of them have dormitories:
 * Recife
 * Maragogi famous for the swimming pools inside the Atlantic Ocean. From Porto de Galinhas there are a few Blablacar rides. And there are Blablacar rides from Recife to Maragogi. For those you can ask the driver to pick you up in Porto de Galinhas.
 * Maceió
 * São Miguel dos Milagres The 'Caribbean of Brazil'. There is a hostel. See Get In