Alter do Chão

I spent the past few days in the vicinity of Santarém in the western part of Pará state, and I spent the first full day of my mini-vacation 35 km from Santarém on the river beach of Alter do Chão. Alter do Chão only appears in the dry season when the waters of the Tapajós River lower to expose the white sand beaches that line its banks. While there are many kilometers of nice beaches in the region, Alter do Chão is one of the best and most accessible. I’d say it is among my top five favorite beaches in Brazil.



The laid-back village is across the river from the beach. Normally, visitors take quick canoe trips to reach the sand, but because the Amazon is experiencing its worst drought in 40 years, we were able to walk across the shallow river bed. Other than increased accessibility, the drought had no other effect on the beach. I had a fantastic lunch of tucanaré (peacock bass), rice, beans, salad, and beer at the beach shack shown above.