Jenipabu - Genipabu

Distance from Natal: 30 Km
Access: via boat or via RN 160.

One of the most famous beaches in Rio Grande do Norte. Jenipabu is located in Extremoz, which is the first city north of Natal.
Genipabu of Jenipabu? The locals have always used "Genipabu", but, being a word of indian origin, the correct, according to Brazilian Academy of Letters, is using a "j", hence, Jenipabu. The word derives from "jenipa-bu", and means "eat jenipapo", or, a place where indians used to eat jenipapo, a Brazilian fruit.

Lagoa de Jenipabu

Jenipabu, along with Ponta Negra and Pipa, is one of the most visited places in Rio Grande do Norte. Jenipabu gained fame because of the mobile dunes, where experienced buggy drivers take tourists for a wild ride; the dunes become a roller coster, where the buggy is the cart. The driver goes up hills you think are impossible to climb, then comes down, safely, in a way you think you are going to die.
Notice that the trip may be "with or without emotion". You can ask the driver to go as crazy as safety allows, or you can just ask him to go slowly. Only well trained drivers, certified by the Tourist Board, are allowed to enter the mobile dunes.

Dromedaries in Jenipabu

After the buggy ride around the mobile dunes, you can also visit the fixed dunes. From the top of the fixed dunes, you have a wonderful view of the Lagoa de Jenipabu, and the beaches of Jenipabu, Graçandu and Pitangui; the Lagoa of Jenipabu deserves a visit by itself (there are bars serving food, and you can swim in the crystaline waters).
Also at the top of the fixed dunes, you can ride the back of a dromedary. The animals were brought from Africa, and receive special care to adapt to the climate of Jenipabu (which is much wetter than a desert). Being photographed on a dromedary, having tropical beaches in the background, is something you won´t be able to do anywhere else in the world.

Restaurante 21

Back to the beach, you can have lunch at Restaurante 21, one of the postcards of Jenipabu. The restaurant has an uncomparable view: dunes, palm trees, the beaches, the waves. Right beside the restaurant, you can hire a board and practice a tropical version of snowboarding, called sandboarding: sit on a board an slide down the dunes to splash in the sea waters.




Read also: Tours to Jenipabu

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visitors since April 5th 2005