Pajucara Natural Pools

Maceio has the unusual advantage of reef pools within sight of its main hotel strip: about two kilometres off Pajucara beach a reef line drops the water to a metre or so at low tide, and jangadas - wooden sailing rafts - carry people out on a rotation from the sand. The trip takes twenty minutes each way and the stay on the reef is around an hour, dictated by the tide window. There are reef fish, and vendors on floating platforms selling drinks. The pools are cloudy on many days depending on swell and rainfall, which is the main variable. Maceio's beachfront runs from Pajucara through Ponta Verde to Jatiuca and is the city's centre of gravity for eating and walking.

What you actually see

• Reef pools off the city beach - two kilometres out, waist-deep at low tide.
• Jangada rafts - wooden sailing boats running a rotation from the sand.
• A one-hour tide window - the stay on the reef fixed by the tables.
• Floating drink platforms - vendors anchored among the pools.

When to go

September to March, on days with a good low tide. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Clarity varies a great deal and after rain the pools are murky. Rafts are crowded and the return is fixed. Sellers on the beach and on the reef are persistent. Check the tide table before booking anything.

Nearby

Gunga beach is south; Sao Miguel dos Milagres is north up the coast.