Bombinhas
Cluster of small beaches with the clearest water in the state — snorkelling, marine reserve, terrible summer traffic.
Clear blue water at a small cove beach in Bombinhas peninsula
Why people stay in Bombinhas
Bombinhas sits on a peninsula that pokes out from Porto Belo into the Atlantic, and it has the clearest water anywhere on the southern Brazilian coast — visibility routinely 8–15 metres at Praia de Sepultura and around the Arvoredo Marine Reserve. There are 39 beaches on the peninsula, most small and rocky, several accessible only by trail. It's a legitimate snorkel and dive destination for people who want the Caribbean look without leaving Brazil. Off-season it's paradise; in January it's a traffic-managed nightmare.
The summer catch: Bombinhas municipality enforces a vehicle quota. On peak days (December 26 to Carnaval, plus long weekends) they cap entries and turn cars away at the entrance road (SC-412). Arrive before 8am or after 6pm. Once you’re in, parking is a second layer of frustration. The workaround: stay overnight, walk everywhere, use the local jitney buses. Bombinhas rewards patience — arrive with a plan, treat it as a slow week, and it's the best swimming water on this whole coast.
By 9pm Centro Bombinhas is mostly quiet: a short strip of pizzerias and seafood kiosks near the pier stays open to around 11pm, families walk the waterfront with ice cream, and the loudest thing on the beach is the surf on the rocks at Sepultura. There's no real nightlife here — Bombinhas is not Balneário Camboriú, twenty minutes down the coast, and it doesn’t try to be. That's the appeal for the divers, snorkellers and retirees who fill the pousadas; anyone chasing bars and late kitchens should book Camboriú instead and day-trip in.
Families with small children do well in Bombas, where the sand is flatter and the water calmer than the rockier coves further round the peninsula. Divers and snorkellers should base themselves nearer Sepultura or Quatro Ilhas and skip Bombas altogether — the visibility there is muddier because it faces more swell. Come in April or October for the clearest water without the January chaos: the sea is warm enough, the pousadas drop their rates by a third, and the vehicle quota disappears completely.
Centro de Bombinhas (the main village with Praia da Sepultura and Praia dos Pequenos) is the walkable base — pousadas at R$280–R$550 peak, R$180–R$300 shoulder. Bombas, immediately north (technically the neighbouring beach), is where most family pousadas concentrate at slightly lower prices. Quatro Ilhas at the peninsula's east side is quieter and has the cleanest water but requires a car for anything. Avoid Zimbros (the far south) unless you specifically want isolation — it's 25 minutes from the main beaches. The lanes around the Sepultura car park hold the densest cluster of pousadas within walking distance of the water, and paying slightly more there over Bombas removes the need for a car. In low season (May–August) rates often drop below R$200 a night. For most visitors, book Centro Bombinhas near Sepultura.
Things to do in Bombinhas
The small protected cove at the west end of Centro Bombinhas. Walk in from the parking area on Rua Sepultura, R$5 entry. Rock reefs on both sides, visibility usually 6–12 metres, sergeants and parrotfish. Snorkel rental R$25 at the entrance. Best 9am–11am before winds pick up.
Departures from the pier at Centro Bombinhas 9am and 1pm. R$150–R$180 per person for a half-day snorkel trip to the marine biological reserve. Book the day before at the pier kiosks — Aventuras Marítimas is the reliable operator. Fins and mask included.
40-minute trail from Quatro Ilhas over the headland to a small hidden beach. Signed trailhead on Rua Reta da Lagoinha. Bring water and reef shoes — the beach is rocky. Empty except on weekends. No infrastructure, no kiosk, take everything in and out.
The peninsula's highest point, 220 metres. Trailhead from Rua Vereador Manoel dos Santos in Bombas, 30–40 minutes uphill through Atlantic forest. Viewpoint at the summit covers the whole peninsula and the offshore islands. Best light 40 minutes before sunset. Descend before dark — the trail is unlit.
Bombas' calm, shallow water suits beginners. Rental kiosks along the beachfront promenade rent SUP boards and kayaks from R$40 an hour, no experience needed. Mornings before 10am are flattest. Good option on days when the swell makes Sepultura too rough to snorkel comfortably.
Several dive operators near the Centro Bombinhas pier run PADI open-water courses over two to three days, from around R$1,200 including gear and the Arvoredo dive. Discover-scuba single dives for non-certified visitors run about R$250. Book a day ahead in peak season — boats fill fast.
What to see
Hotels near Bombinhas
No hotels are listed in Bombinhas yet. The nearest ones are on the region page.
Every hotel we cover in Bombinhas
- Vento Solar Pousada 3★ · 5/5
- Pousada Paraiso 2★ · 5/5
- 1069 Praia de Bombinhas locação de temporada 1★ · 5/5
- Pousada Morada da Praia 3★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Praia Da Lagoinha 3★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Riviera Bombinhas 3★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Vila do Bosque 3★ · 4.8/5
- Baia dos Golfinhos & Vista Bella 2★ · 4.8/5
- Kia Ora Bombinhas 2★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Gruta do Monge 2★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Latitude 27 2★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Retiro das Ilhas 2★ · 4.8/5
- A195 Ed. Giardino D’Itália apto térreo 1★ · 4.8/5
- Pousada Bora Bora 4★ · 4.7/5
- Refugio Costeiro II 4★ · 4.7/5
- Bombinhas Blue Suites 3★ · 4.7/5
- Hospedaria Canto do Morro 3★ · 4.7/5
- Pousada Enseada dos Golfinhos 3★ · 4.7/5
- Pousada Gaúcha 3★ · 4.7/5
- Pousada Pedra da Gaivota 3★ · 4.7/5
- Pousada Refugio Costeiro 3★ · 4.7/5
- Pousada Vale Del Sol 3★ · 4.7/5
- Refugio Costeiro 2 3★ · 4.7/5
- Residencial Kalpas 3★ · 4.7/5
Getting around Bombinhas
From Florianópolis it's a 90-minute drive north on BR-101 then SC-412 into the peninsula, Uber R$220–R$260. From Navegantes Airport 45 minutes, R$110 — the closer airport for most visitors, while Florianópolis suits travellers already routed through the capital. Public bus from Rita Maria (Florianópolis) to Porto Belo (R$45, 2 hours) then local bus to Bombinhas (R$8, 30 minutes) — cheap but painful. Inside the peninsula the local jitney (linhas municipais) connects the beaches every 30 minutes for R$5. Walking between Centro Bombinhas and Bombas takes about 25 minutes along the coast road, often quicker than waiting for the jitney at peak times. In summer weekends the vehicle cap makes staying and walking essential.
Questions about Bombinhas
Not closed but capped. On peak days (December 26 to Carnaval, holidays) the municipality operates a vehicle quota and turns cars away at the SC-412 entrance once capacity fills, usually by 9am. Guests with pousada reservations can enter with proof of booking; day-trippers should arrive before 8am or after 6pm. If you’re staying overnight, park at the pousada and don’t move the car.
Praia de Sepultura for easy shore-entry snorkel (rock reefs both sides of the cove, visibility 6–12 metres). For the real experience take a boat to the Arvoredo Marine Reserve, 1 hour offshore — visibility 15–20 metres, actual reef fish, occasional turtles. R$150–R$180 for the half-day boat trip from the Bombinhas pier.
Three full days covers the main beaches, a snorkel session at Sepultura and a boat trip to Arvoredo without rushing. Divers or people doing a PADI course should plan four to five days. Anything less than two days means picking one or two beaches and skipping the trail network entirely.
Bombas and the calmer stretches of Centro Bombinhas work well for families — shallow, gently sloping sand and short walks from the pousadas. The rockier coves like Sepultura and Lagoinha suit older kids and adults better, since entry is over rocks and the water deepens quickly. Bring reef shoes for any of the smaller beaches.
