Good For You

Just two hours from Florianapolis, Brazil’s glammed-up beach resort, this wild and natural place affords an opportunity to experience the beauty of Brazil’s southern coastline away from the crowds.

While on weekends the beach fills with surfers, Praia Rosa is otherwise a very quiet place with just a few wooden shacks on its white sands, and the soft dunes swelling behind. The sea itself is home to the magnificent Southern Right Whale, which you can spot on guided tours led by scientists and researchers from the Southern Right Whale Institute.

At the pousada, owned by a delightful Argentine couple, seven villas sleep two to ten guests in comfort and style, all enjoying sea views and a quick scamper over the dunes to the perfect surf beach, Praia de Rosa.

Good For Brazil

The Pousada’s Argentine owner, Enrique Litman, founded the Southen Right Whale Institute to support research, conservation and education in relation to the whales and their habitat. The Institute is based at the Pousada, and a portion of the Vida Sol e Mar’s profits revert to the NGO to help its work.

Rooms

Food

Features & Facilities

Whale watching: The Pousada serves as HQ for the Southern Right Whale institute, so there are plenty of experts around to help you enjoy the company of these annual visitors. Well-designed whale-watching tours are the best in the area.

The resort has a pool while two of the villas boast pools of their own. The resort provides chairs, parasols and towels for the beach.

Villas all have wireless internet access so guests can connect through their own laptops, and for a modest cost those without their own computers can get online in the hotel’s reception area.

The nextdoor gravel tennis court is available to all guests.

The resort can host large meetings and events in its 220 m2 Conference room, which enjoys a panoramic view of Rosa Beach and seats up to 200 people. By prior arrangement, a full range of conference equipment is available along with bilingual secretaries.

Local Info & Activities

The beach: Busy with surfers on weekends but otherwise almost deserted, Praia Rosa is just 50-100 metres away from the resort’s villas and offers clean, soft sand and perfect surf waves. If you just want to relax, ask for towels, parasols and beach chairs at reception. The warm lagoon is great for swimming.

Surf school: Rodrigo makes an excellent instructor for groups of up to four people. The lagoon provides a gentle place to get started, and the beach has great waves for both beginners and experienced surfers.

The village: The local town of Praia de Rosa comprises just a few low-rise buildings with surf shops and simple restaurants.

The whales: Between July and November Southern Right Wales come to breed and nurse their young in the waters around Praia Rosa. You can see them from the shore or take a tour organized by the Pousada, which owns two boats captained by sailors who know how to avoid disturbing the magnificent creatures.

La Laguna – You can take a 4-hour round trip with one of the hotel's driver-guides (approx US$30 per person plus lunch), passing forest clad mountains along the coast until you reach the sleepy town of La Laguna where you can watch dolphins working with fishermen from Molhes da Barra. A 5-minute boat trip takes you across the estuary to enjoy a wonderfully fresh, simple seafood lunch, followed by a brief tour of the historic colonial town to learn. On the way back you visit tiny Whale Museum at Imbituba, the last whaling station used for hunting whales.

Hiking: The local beaches, forests, dunes and cliffs offer a great range of hiking experiences, and local guides can be hired to show you around. One worthwhile hike is to the waterfalls near to town of Paulo Lopes, using a local guide (approx $30 per person) and walking about 45 minutes through Atlantic rainforest.

Horse Riding: a nearby farm charges $25 per person for a trail ride through the Atlantic rainforest, dunes, beaches, lagoons, lakes and local buffalo farms.

To explore the area by boat, nearby Garopaba Beach has a boat service that can take you on different length trips (1.5-5 hrs) to various beaches and islands - snorkelling can also be included.

If you want to venture away from the resort for a meal, it's a 5-minute drive or 10-20 minute walk over the hill and along the village dirt track to a handful of local restaurants offering simple Italian, Brazilian and Asian meals. The wooden shacks on the beach keep you going with drinks and snacks.

Sustainability

5% of the hotels’ profits go to Brazil’s Right Whale Institute, which was founded by hotel owner Enrique Litman in 2001. The Institute, which is based at the Pousada, is an NGO that works with scientists and educators to help protect the whale population and foster conservation of the Southern Right Whale Federal Environmental Protection Area, founded by the Brazilian Government in 2000.

The Institute’s goals include improving the habitat of local fauna and flora; to protect and recover the surrounding terrestrial and maritime ecosystems; to support scientific research and improved systems forgathering important scientific and cultural information about the area; to boost local employment through training and job-creation; and to promote local, regional and national development through sustainable ecotourism.

The hotel tries to produce as much of its own food as possible, growing its own lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, herbs and fruits like bananas and papayas.

The remote location of the resort makes local and green purchasing difficult, but the hotel does its best to stay green with recycling and waste reduction.

The hotel employs mostly local staff.

Getting There

Vida Sol e Mar is on teh South coast of Brazil, on the Praia do Rosa Beach, which is 80km south of teh Santa Catarina State capital Florianopolis.

Florianopolis is a one hour flight from Rio and 90 minuntes flying time from Rio. The airport is 110 km from the hotel. The hotel can arrange a transfer service and the drive take approximately 2 hours.

Visit our Transport section for flights, hybrid car rentals and train bookings.

Rates & Bookings

There’s a seven-night minimum stay in the high season, and a four-night minimum in the low season.

Deluxe Rooms - Villa Jerivá, Gavião or Cardeal (sleeps 2): US$ 163 per night

Suite - Villa Gavião, Jerivá or Cardeal (sleeps 2): US$ 211 per night

Standard Room - Villa Itadega (sleeps 2): US$ 211 per night

Deluxe Room - Villa Itadega (sleeps 2): US$ 231 per night

Whole Villa – Coruja (sleeps 4): US$ 296 per night

Hut option - Villa Jerivá, Gavião or Cardeal (sleeps 4): US$ 373 per night

Whole Villa - Jerivá, Gavião or Cardeal (sleeps 6): US$ 487 per night

Hut option - Villa Itadega (sleeps 6): US$ 615 per night

Whole Villa - Itadega or Gaviota (sleeps 10): US$ 893 per night The prices include daily breakfast, maid service and beach services. It does not include excursions, transfers or the 10% tax that applies to meals.

Rates increase at Christmas, New Year and Carnaval – please inquire ahead.

From July to November, the hotel offers 4-, 5- and 8-day Whale Watching packages - please ask for further details and prices when requesting your preferred room type.

booking & cancellation policy

To confirm a booking a 20% deposit is taken by The Good Travel Company, this deposit is non-refundable. The balance is payable directly to the hotel at time of stay.

Want to avoid cancellation fees? Visit our Insurance section for information on travel insurance.