Praia da Pipa, Brazil

[Luiz]

I've added to the gallery a few pictures of my recent trip to the Northeast of Brazil. The town is Praia da Pipa located in the state of Rio Grande do Norte.
From the US it is not so easy to get there. Delta has non stop flights from Atlanta (I believe) to a couple of cities in the NE of Brazil where you'll need to connect onto another short flight to the city of Natal. Most hotels will offer a 40min transfer from Natal's airport to Praia da Pipa. From Minneapolis the whole trip can take as long as 16 hours depending on the lay overs. Round trip air tickets vary but you should expect to pay over $1,000.
Once in Brazil hotel and food are relatively affordable. Beer is cheap.
Pipa used to be a remote village visited mostly by backpackers. It's still very quiet (except during the Holiday Season) but you can now find luxury hotels charging well over $100 a night. Breakfast is almost always included in Brazil.
The town is very safe and family friendly with plenty of options in case your spouse and children do not ride.
The windy season starts early August. It blows hard until mid December. Winds are stronger in the beginning of the season. But the swell gets bigger at the end.
I was lucky to be there when it was blowing steady 20~25 knots side-on shore the whole week. Waves were 6 to 8 feet. It was sunny every day with air temp around 90F, and water temp around 75F.
To my surprise there were not many kiters out, and absolutely no windsurfers. I've heard the place gets busier later in the year. There were just a handful of riders out. All of them with 7 & 8 meter kites.
There are plenty of options for riding. From full on wave riding to flat water inlets perfect for beginners. A few shops in town offer kitesurfing lessons ($60/hour for individual lessons) and rental ($50 per day for kite and board but you need to be certified).
The locals said that Kauli Seadi (PWA former wave world champion) is building a windsurfing center there. I would expect that within a few years that town will be a major destination for wind/water/wave enthusiasts.
If you are thinking about visiting Brazil for the first time, I would recommend that you go to Cumbuco (kiting) or Jericoacora (windsurfing and kiting) where the winds are stronger. But in case you have been there already and is in search of a different spot then Pipa can be an excellent option.
Let me know in case you need any info or help traveling to Brazil.

[Geo]

...so did you get to sail, or not?!?

[Rick R]

Wow
Nice Pics. South America, nice. Lucky you

[Luiz]

Geoff, being a beginner without a certification I had to pay for "supervised" rental gear. Expensive. I only rode for 2 hours and they charged me $75 for the gear plus the instructor's time to keep an eye on me (keep an eye on their gear I guess). He ended up giving me a lot of tips.
I was on a 7m RRD Rebel kite and 132 RRD Poison board.

[Chris]

I want to be the night watchman for Kauli's windsurfing center.
I need to learn portugese.
I need to learn how to say, "Good morning Kauli. Nothing to report except the usual stolen board and sail. I think I know where they are and I'll bring them back tonight -- I always do!"

[dtownkiter]

what a cool spot! Brazil is on my "someday" list! thanks for sharing and great photos.

[Luiz]

Chris, here's a link to a video showing the beach where Kauli will be opening his 2nd wind and kitesurfing center. There's already a RRD rental center there (kite and wind).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv35FwFNCJ8&NR=1