Guides ·Day trips

The estuary crossing

Guarda's calling card is that you cross a river by canoe to reach the beach. Park in the village free of charge, walk to the estuary, pay R$5 for the crossing (runs 07:00-19:00), and it's a 15-minute sand path to the surf. Bring cash — the boatmen don’t do card. Bring water too; there's one kiosk on the beach charging R$10 for a coconut, R$14 for a beer.

The river is the Rio da Madre, and the canoes are small, flat-bottomed wooden boats poled across by local boatmen who have been running the crossing for generations — expect a two-minute ride, room for four or five passengers, and life jackets that may or may not fit. On busy summer Saturdays there can be a 10-15 minute wait either side, so arrive before 10:00 if you want the beach close to empty. Outside December-February the queue rarely forms at all, and the boatmen will simply wait for a couple of passengers before pushing off.

Making it a full day

After the beach, eat at Restaurante Casa da Vila in the village center — camarão na moranga R$110 serves two easily. If you have energy, walk up to Morro do Cambirela viewpoint (45 minutes, moderate). The village itself is 400 metres end to end, so once you’ve done the beach and lunch, the drive back through the mangroves of Baixada do Massiambú justifies staying till golden hour.

If lunch and the viewpoint still leave time on the clock, rent a stand-up paddleboard or kayak from one of the stalls by the estuary for around R$40 an hour and paddle upriver into the mangrove channels, where the water flattens out and herons outnumber tourists. The sand dunes behind the beach are loose enough for informal sandboarding — no rental stall for boards, so this is bring-your-own or skip it. Most day-trippers are back at their cars by 17:00, which times the drive north to Florianópolis to avoid the worst of the BR-101 rush.

Getting there by car

From Florianópolis, take the BR-101 south for roughly 40 km to the Palhoça/Enseada de Brito exit, then follow the paved access road toward Enseada de Brito and on to Guarda do Embaú village — the full run is about 55 km and takes 55-70 minutes depending on BR-101 traffic near the Anhanguera bridge crossings out of the island. There's no toll on this stretch. Parking in the village is informal and free, on the grass verges near the church and the estuary path; in January and February arrive before 09:30 or you'll be parking a 10-minute walk further back.

A rental car makes the most sense if you're also stopping at Praia do Sonho or Enseada de Brito on the way down, both of which sit just off the same access road and are worth 20 minutes each if you're not in a hurry. Fuel up in Palhoça before turning off the BR-101 — there's nothing resembling a proper gas station once you're on the village road. Google Maps handles the route fine; Waze occasionally tries to reroute through unpaved farm roads near Enseada de Brito, which are passable but slow.

Surfing and lessons

Guarda do Embaú was named Brazil's first World Surfing Reserve in 2019, a status tied to the river-mouth sandbar that produces a consistent, peeling wave rideable most of the year — this is the reason surfers drive down from Florianópolis specifically for this beach rather than the closer breaks at Joaquina or Praia Mole. The wave suits longboards and intermediate surfers best; it's not a beginner-only spot but it's forgiving compared to the beach breaks further north.

Board and wetsuit rental runs about R$50-70 for a half day from stalls near the estuary crossing, and informal lessons — usually a local instructor working freelance rather than a branded school — cost around R$80-100 for 90 minutes including gear. Swell is most reliable from April to September; summer (December-February) brings smaller, softer waves and far more people in the water. If you only surf once on this trip, this is the beach to do it on rather than anywhere closer to the capital.

Where to stay if you linger

Guarda do Embaú itself has almost no formal lodging beyond the campsite, so travellers who want a bed rather than a tent base themselves a short drive away. Paraiso Da Enseada de Brito sits in the neighbouring village of Enseada de Brito, a 10-minute drive from the estuary crossing, and is the closest proper option if you want to be back on the sand for sunrise — rooms run in the R$150-220 a night range.

Further south, Casa Temporada Garopaba puts you closer to Praia do Rosa and the surf towns of Garopaba and Silveira, useful if Guarda is one stop on a longer south-coast surf trip rather than a single day out — figure a 30-40 minute drive back up to the estuary each morning. Pousada Bosque Das Aguas Imbituba is quieter again, aimed at travellers who want distance from any beach crowd and don't mind an hour's drive north for the crossing. For a straightforward day trip with no overnight, none of this matters — Florianópolis stays the sensible base.

Best time to visit

Weekday visits year-round beat weekends, but the sharpest split is seasonal: January and February bring Florianópolis's summer crowds south, and the estuary queue and beach kiosk prices both stretch accordingly. April through September is quieter, cooler for swimming but better for surfing, and gives the boatmen far less to do, which means a faster crossing. Skip Carnival week entirely — the village has nowhere to absorb the numbers and parking disappears by mid-morning.

South of Guarda, the coast toward Garopaba and Imbituba runs southern right whale-watching season from roughly July to November, with boat tours out of Imbituba costing R$150-200 per person; it's not walkable from Guarda do Embaú in a single day trip, but worth knowing if the same visit is stretching into a two- or three-day south-coast run. For a single day out from Florianópolis, aim for a weekday between March and November and you'll get the beach closest to empty.

Frequently asked questions

What people ask before they set off on this one.

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