Cabo Polonio
Cabo Polonio, Rocha, Uruguay
Cabo Polonio is a beach village inside a national park on Uruguay's Rocha coast, still off the public power grid outside the lighthouse itself. Solar panels and generators run the pousadas and bars, and one of South America's largest sea lion colonies hauls out on the rocks near the point. There's no paved road in, and that's most of the appeal.
The off grid village and the sea lion colony make it genuinely unlike anywhere else on this coast, though the dune crossing means it takes real planning, not a spot to show up to without a bit of homework first.
How we score beachesBuses from Montevideo stop at the highway turnoff, not the village itself. From there it's either a paid 4x4 truck ride over the dunes or a free walk of about an hour, budget accordingly.
Park at the lot near the Ruta 10 turnoff (a daily fee applies), then either buy a ticket for one of the double decker trucks that cross the dunes to the village, or walk in over the sand instead.
The truck or walking route into the village crosses about seven kilometers of open dune, not paved and not workable for strollers or wheelchairs. Once inside the village, the sand and the lighthouse point are a short walk from wherever the truck drops off.
Uruguay runs a normal four season year rather than a wet or dry split, so December through February brings the warmest water and the busiest village, while June through August is cold and quiet with most of the pousadas still open. Water stays chilly by tropical standards even at the summer peak.
More South America beaches
Tabatinga Beach
Conde, ParaĆba, Brazil Ā· South America
Tabatinga Beach sits along the Conde coastline in ParaĆba, Brazil, known for a run of clay cliffs striped red, yellow, and purple where the vegetation cuts off and bare earth takes over. Two lookout points sit above the sand, one nicknamed Dedo de Deus. Coconut palms line the beach itself, and the water stays calm most of the year.
BaĆa do Sancho
Fernando de Noronha, Pernambuco, Brazil Ā· South America
BaĆa do Sancho is the beach most people picture when they imagine Fernando de Noronha, a cove cut into cliffs off the Brazilian coast, part of Pernambuco's marine national park. You reach it either by boat or by climbing down a metal stairway wedged into a crack in the rock, and either way the water below is clear enough to see the reef fish from the ledge above.
Praia do Satu
CaraĆva, Bahia, Brazil Ā· South America
Praia do Satu sits about three kilometers north of the car-free village of CaraĆva in southern Bahia, Brazil, past cliffs and a couple of small natural lagoons. There's no road in. Most people cross the Rio CaraĆva by canoe from the village, then walk the beach north, or hire a speedboat straight there. It's one of the quieter stops on this stretch of coast.