Florianópolis -- any suggestions on what to do there?
 

Hey, folks. There hasn't been much discussion about Florianópolis in this thread in recent years. My wife and I will be there for six days later this month. She's doing Ironman Brazil on day 5, so that and recovery day 6 are spoken for.

But we'll have some free time in the days prior. Any suggestions? Thanks.

It's mostly a beach vacation destination. Miles of beaches. Known for partying and clubs. Lots of crowds, tourists, particularly from Argentina, in the summer months, and traffic jams. In off season, which your dates are, very quiet. There's some surviving Azorean culture on the island to discover. No guidebook-must-see sights, really, of note. Otherwise, the normal life of a medium sized city.
You could go the couple of hours to Blumenau to see the architecture. Or to the amusement park Beto Carrero World. Or an hour south to charming Praia da Rosa, but again, more beach. Or fly to Iguacu or stay longer in S.P.

Thanks for the ideas, VidaNaPraia.

That is a limited amount of time. I would spend one day driving between certain beaches and stopping at Bar Do Arantes, for example. Mole Beach is one of my favorites due to the waves, but for more serenity, there are other places. Probably a must is a drive to Balneário Camburio. There’s also Centrino da Lagoa (stop at Café Cultura and walk around) and that would make Joaquina beach a must. It's really hard to answer your question without knowing what type of folks you are (e.g., have to see a downtown, fashion, etc.). Also, if you are going now or during the northern hemisphere's summer, you are going to be cold there and I would probably limit beach time. If you have some specific Qs, you can PM me, and I'll try to respond.

Excellent! Thank you, dcpdxtrans!

If you're going to drive around to chilly, off-season beaches, Mozambique is very wild and picturesque. Do they still have the surfing down the sand mountain at Joaquina in off season?
The beach where Bar do Arante is reminded me of the Azores, with the hills rising out of the ocean. Unfortunately it's one they let people park next to the spot on the beach on which they choose to swim and sun, so you can have a lovely view of the underside of your neighbor's car from your chair or beach blanket.
You can leave your note with the others. (See photo on website.)
http://www.bardoarante.com.br/bar_do_arante/

Sounds like our kind of thing. Thanks. And we live in the SF Bay Area, so what might be a "chilly, offseason beach" there is probably what we have here almost all the time.

Yeah, I'm a fan of the Marin beaches (Stinson, Muir) when nobody else much is there, Point Reyes, Ocean Beach in the city.....but Mozambique reminded me of the National Seashore beach at Nauset on Cape Cod. There were big, dramatic clouds the day we went, and beach to the horizon.

If you have a Bay Area connection, have you seen the film Woman On Top, about a woman from Salvador, Bahia who comes to S.F.?
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_on_Top
The actor who plays the husband is a Brazilian soap opera star, and the two guys in his restaurant are two of the most famous actors in Brazil, both from Salvador, in a bit part speaking English.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lázaro_Ramos
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wagner_Moura
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murilo_Ben%C3%ADcio

Just got back from a hike to Tennessee Beach with my elder daughter, VidaNaPraia. It was foggy, breezy and about 15 C. We like it that way.

Thanks for the movie recommendation. I'll put that on my Netflix queue.

Yeah, in the headlands, right. Boy, I'm feeling "saudades" for the area.

Here's Mocambique (shows how wild, but not the expanse of beach)




Here's another (filmed in summer). You'll likely encounter no one in off season.



And: