The Crowds of Balneario Camboriu

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Nestled along a picturesque coastline, Balneario Camboriu emerges as a vibrant jewel, boasting a two-mile stretch of wide, sandy beach hugged by towering apartment buildings. The skyline, framed by lush green hills at each end, exudes a charm reminiscent of the famed Rio de Janeiro, yet on a cozier scale, thankfully minus the notorious crime and poverty. This bustling haven, a magnet for tourists from Brazil and Argentina, pulsates with life along its vibrant beachfront.

Right in the heart of this lively town, we found our temporary home – an apartment situated on a pedestrian street teeming with shops, restaurants, and bars, and tantalizingly close to the beach, just a block away. Though it cost eight times more than our accommodation in Curitiba, the location in the midst of Balneario Camboriu (or BC, as we fondly call it) seemed like a stroke of luck.

The beach, a two-mile-long and two hundred feet wide expanse, is a mosaic of colorful umbrellas stretching up to the streets. The beachwalk, while gorgeous and expansive, is a bustling maze of tourists and vendors. Intriguingly, there's a churro and corn stand every thirty feet, numbered up to 250, doubling as both beach chair rentals and handy landmarks. We've made number 73 our own little landmark. We live at 73.

Our first sunset, we head out to Christo Luz. Up on a hill behind the city, it is remarkably similar to Christ the Redeemer in Rio. But this one has an expensive entry fee and serves as a party spot late at night, so we have the place almost all to ourselves. The view of the giant Jesus Christ is impressive as is the view out into the city. But we also marvel at the inland view of the sun setting over the layers of hills. Baby Bear mostly likes the small aquarium filled with a few fish but hundreds of tiny snails.

The next day we head to the beach, vast and recently expanded to thrice its original size, thanks to an innovative process that dredged sand from the sea. Equipped with beach chairs, umbrellas, and a neighbor's ingenious 'sand sucker' tool for planting umbrellas, we spend a delightful day by the sea. The sand sucker is basically two nested PVC tubes that acts as a syringe to suck sand out of the ground to create 2-foot-deep holes perfect for planting your umbrella. Baby Bear has a blast digging for tatuira while we lounge in our charis, enjoying the sea breeze.

The day before new years eve we decide to take the cable car up to Parque Uniprais. The ride is stunning, with a view looking down along the entire stretch of beach and highrises.

Up top, there’s a little hike to get to the viewpoints and a few rides. There’s a cute, slow train for little kids, a thrilling zipline for the adults, and the “Yoohoo” ride, a little bobsled-like car on rails that was just perfect for us. Baby Bear is developing a taste for thrills and wanted to go on the Yoohoo, so away we went! It was a fun but rather short ride.

There is also a very pleasant food court up top with a view out to the ocean. We decide to try corn milk finally. I actually like corn as a flavoring, and it was quite good, but it was also extremely heavy, like drinking a giant cup of cream. Pro-tip: Adding a lot of cinnamon helps balance it out a bit.

We decide to take the cable car down to the other side of the hill, where there’s a little beach called Prai Laranja. Not a great idea. The beach itself (lacking the vastness of the city beach) is completely mobbed with people. The beach umbrellas cover every speck of sand all the way and into the water itself. We see a retail cart literally IN the water. It’s a spectacle almost worth the 1.5 hour line to get back onto the cable car.

Back on the other side, we walk along the pier to yet more gorgeous views of the skyline. I never tire of the dramatic juxtaposition of sea, sand, and city. On the way home, we stop at a lovely Italian restaurant with locally influenced Lasagna (Blumenau sausage) and truffle porcini pasta and inspect the models of the upcoming high-rises being built. Driving back takes just as long as walking as the traffic moves at a crawl, but our feet our weary from the long day of waiting in lines. Tomorrow is New Years Eve, and I am a little worried about the craziness that may ensue.