Pousada da Amendoeira, Praia do Toque, Alagoas - style, service, and gourmet food, right on the beach

Pousada da Amendoeira is total tranquility. You wake up to the sound of the waves gently breaking on the beach and to the sun rising directly in front of you. All 6 individual bungalows face the sea and are set in a “v” shape so that all have some kind of seaview. “Rustic chic” in style, floors are of polished concrete, inlaid with bricks and antique tiles; furniture in turn is a mix of paint stripped French style and roughly hewn specially made wood furniture, a combination which somehow works. Beds are comfortable, showers are good and hammocks sway gently on the verandas and by the beach.

All this would be enough for a great stay on its own but what makes the whole pousada special is the wonderful personal service, together with little touches like the twigs which double as hooks in the bathroom, the bamboo lampshades, the fresh flowers in your room, the tables made out of treetrunks and the delicious home-made food.

Pousada da Amendoeira came highly recommended, so we were expecting good things. We were definitely not disappointed

If you have ever heard of Alagoas you are most definitely in the minority. Even in Brazil those that know anything about it equate the state with corrupt politicians and huge resorts rather than anything remotely beautiful.  But then most people don't know that between Barra de Santo Antonio and Maragogi the main north-south road veers off inland, leaving behind the orginal track and 40 kms of  unspoilt beaches dotted with coconut plantations and small villages, where time has effectively stood still for generations.

Alagoans call their whole coastline the Costa dos Corais or coral coast after the enormous coral reef just offshore, but many people have started using the term "Rota Ecológica" or ecological route to describe the 20km stretch from Barra de Camarugibe in the south to Porto de Pedras in the north where pousadas like the ones on Hidden Pousadas have grouped together  in their own association, AREAL. All of these pousadas have their own individual identity but they share a common preoccupation with sustainable tourism coupled with an ecological conscience and respect for the local communities. Everyone needs to attract guests here, but nobody wants the predatory tourism typical of resorts and large hotels, and the result is some of the most wonderful places to stay you could ever come across anywhere in the world.

The first time we came here we started from Maceió; the second time from Recife and it doesn't really matter which way you do it as the Rota Ecológica is pretty well equidistant from the 2 capitals- about 150kms. All the pousadas here run a half board system, usually of breakfast and dinner, so you don't actually ever need to leave the pousada, but a car is useful if you want to explore as public transport, or indeed any transport other than bicycles, is pretty scarce here. Put that with the quality of the pousadas themselves, the swaying palm trees, the deserted beaches, the natural swimming pools and the warm warm sea and this area is nothing short of pure paradise.

• visits to Praia do Morro, Praia do Carro Quebrado and the Mirante do Farol in Porto de Pedras
• the sunset from a jangada boat
• trips to the Rio Tatuamunha and the piscinas naturais (natural swimming pools)
• Peixe-Boi preservation project  
• diving and kayaking tours organised through the pousada

• impecable hospitality from owners Tsachi and Jessy 
• beautiful tropical and tranquil surroundings
• delicious gourmet style food

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Price Guide

Prices below are low season rates for two people in brazilian reais (R$). Standard double room, with en-suite shower room, breakfast included.

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