Armação dos Búzios is the peninsula that Brigitte Bardot made famous in 1964 and Cariocas have been politely reclaiming ever since. Three hundred and sixty-five days of sun, twenty-four beaches, a single pedestrian street, and water the colour of a jeweler's window. Two hours from ADV 001 — a drive, a speedboat, or, on the best day of your trip, a helicopter.
How to arrive
By car
Two hours via the BR-101. Our driver takes the coastal detour through Saquarema and Arraial do Cabo — not faster, but markedly more beautiful, and an excuse for one coconut-stand stop on the way back.
By speedboat
Three hours from the Marina da Glória on our 55-foot charter. Lunch on board, swim stops at Arraial, arrive at Búzios in time for the aperitif. The best way.
By helicopter
Thirty minutes. Depart from the Copacabana Palace heliport, land at the Búzios aerodrome, a chauffeured car waiting. The single most extravagant way to spend a morning in Rio state — and, for the day, perhaps worth it.
The beaches, in the right order
- Geribá — for surf, bossa, and the afternoon crowd. Go early.
- Ferradura — the horseshoe. Glassy water, a restaurant called Rocka with the prettiest terrace on the peninsula.
- Azeda & Azedinha — accessible by trail or boat; the water is a swimming pool of Bahamian turquoise.
- João Fernandes — the gold-sand beach with Bardot's bronze statue watching from the rocks. Order oysters at Chez Michou.
- Praia da Tartaruga — calm, cove-like, turtle-spotting at low tide.
Where to have lunch
Rocka Beach Lounge (Ferradura). The wood-fired pizza and the ceviche are the order. Daybeds at the water; book ahead.
Chez Michou (Rua das Pedras). Crêpes for half a century, exactly as they should be. A pit stop, not a meal.
Satyricon (Ferradura). A legendary Italian-Brazilian kitchen — fish crudo, grilled lobster, an old-money hush to the whole room.
Between meals
Walk Rua das Pedras, the cobbled spine of Búzios — a kilometre of linen boutiques, a few good galleries, an ice-cream shop called Chez Michou which also makes the crêpes (they do everything well). Take a schooner boat tour at 11 a.m. if you didn't arrive by speedboat — four or five beaches in three hours, small cove snorkeling, a decent caipirinha.
"Búzios is the only Brazilian village where you can wear a linen shirt at midnight, walk barefoot to dinner at midnight-thirty, and be home by two — still barefoot, still in linen."
The day, timed
- 7:30 AM — car leaves Copacabana (or 9:00 AM on the speedboat).
- 10:00 AM — arrive, drop bags at Rocka, first swim.
- 1:00 PM — lunch at Rocka or Satyricon.
- 3:30 PM — beach change. Geribá, Azeda, or João Fernandes.
- 6:00 PM — sunset at Ferradura point.
- 7:30 PM — aperitif on Rua das Pedras; depart for Rio.
- 9:30 PM — home at ADV 001, in time for a late Carioca dinner.
We organise the entire day — car, boat, table, or helicopter — with a single message to the concierge.