Going to Fernando de Noronha

What to do in Fernando de Noronha

by Michael T. Luongo

Few travelers get to visit—or even know about—Fernando de Noronha, a spectacular group of 21 islands about 200 miles off the coast of northern Brazil's Pernambuco state. Only one island is inhabited, the volcanic Fernando de Noronha, from which the group of islands takes its name. The year-round population is about 2,800. The main town, Vila Dos Remedios sits on the north coast of the island, where several small hotels and posados, (bed & breakfast-style inns) are within walking distance to the beach.

The Portuguese first discovered the islands at the very beginning of the 1500s and for centuries they were fought over by the British, French, and Dutch. Today, the government strictly regulates tourism in order to protect the island: Only a few hundred visitors are allowed on the island at any given...

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