1. General questions
* When
is the best surfing season in Santa Catarina?
2. Getting to Santa Catarina
* Can I book my international
plane tickets through BrazilSurfTravel (for example USA -
Brazil - USA)?
* How do I get to Santa Catarina,
once I'm in Brazil (for example in Rio de Janeiro)?
* How much cost the Brazilian domestic flights?
* How will I get my Brazilian domestic flight
tickets, if I acquire them through BrazilSurfTravel?
* How safe is traveling in Brazil for single women?
* Will I be picked up at the airport of Florianopolis (Santa Catarina's Capital)?
3. Lodging
* Are the Pousadas (Cottages)
on the beach?
* Are there many mosquitoes in Santa Catarina and, do
they transmit diseases?
* Can we cook at the Pousadas (Cottages)?
4. Surfing
* Are there sharks around in Santa Catarina?
5. Costs/down payments/payments
* What costs will I have on this journey?
* Can I use my credit card in Santa Catarina to pay
for meals etc.?
* Do larger groups get extra discounts ?
6. Booking
* How far in advance do I have to book?
Answers
1. General
When is the best surfing
season in
Santa Catarina?
For total beginners we recommend December
to March, since the waves are small then (2 to 4 feet) and the
weather is hot.
But, please note that Brazilian summer holidays extend from Christmas until
two weeks after Carnival, with many Brazilian tourists around (especially surfers...),
and much higher lodging prices than during the low season.
From April to September, temperature drops and from June on waves get bigger,
between 3 and 7 feet (up to 10 feet in July/August). On the other hand beaches
and peaks are crowd-free then.
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2. Getting to Santa Catarina
Can I book
my International airplane tickets through BrazilSurfTravel (for
example USA - Brazil - USA)?
No, this wouldn't be favorable for
you, since international flights bought inside Brazil are much
more expensive than bought anywhere else in the world.
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How do I get to
Santa Catarina (Florianopolis),
once I'm in Brazil (for example in Rio de Janeiro)?
To get to Santa Catarina, you'll have
to go to Florianopolis (Santa Catarina's Capital) first. Florianopolis
has an airport with connecting flights to any bigger Brazilian
city airport.
We offer Brazilian airline tickets from any airport in Brazil to Santa Catarina.
To get exact pricing for this service, please send us an e-mail with
your complete name, the desired flight routes, as well as dates and daytimes,
so we'll send you an offer.
From Florianopolis we offer an airport
shuttle. More information about how to get to Santa Catarina,
is on our Getting therre -page.
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How much
cost Brazilian domestic flights?
The price of the internal
Brazilian airline tickets depend on the route, on the time of
booking, and on the dates of the flights. We get discounts for these
tickets of up to 50% on the normal rates. In order to guarantee
a price, please send us an e-mail with
the complete name of the passenger(s), the desired routes, dates
and daytimes.
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How will
I get my Brazilian domestic flight tickets, if I acquire them
through BrazilSurfTravel?
The flight ticket will
be sent to the office of the corresponding airline, inside the
Brazilian airport from which you'll depart. You'll pick it up
there, by means of a PTA code (Prepaid Ticket Advise) and your
passport.
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How safe
is traveling in Brazil for single women?
No problem! Brazilians
are very helpful people, and women are very well respected. We
don't want to deny the fact that many Brazilian men are machos,
but they are non-offensive and friendly. Assaults to women are
not more common than to men. Assaults in general happen where
there is no police around, for example in big cities at night,
close to slums (favelas), on public markets, inside the cheapest
public busses etc. Either avoid these places or don't carry any
valuables/documents with you then.
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Will I be picked
up at the airport of Florianopolis (Santa Catarina's Capital)?
Yes, we offer an airport
shuttle from Florianopolis to you accommodation option.
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3. Lodging
Are the
Pousadas (Cottages) on the beach?
Yes, most of the surf
spots in Santa Catarina have accommodation right on the beach,
but the prices tend to be higher than, for example, a cottage
3 blocks away from the beach.
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Are there many
mosquitoes in Santa Catarina and, do they transmit diseases?
Since Santa Catarina is
in the middle of an area called "Atlantic rainforest", naturally there
are always some mosquitoes around. But don't worry these mosquitoes
don't transmit Malaria or any other disease.
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Can we cook at the Pousadas
(cottages)?
Yes, most of our accommodations
have kitchens well equipaded. But you can eat in many cheap (and
good) restaurants around. A regular meal costs around US$ 3.
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4. Surfing
Are there sharks around
in Santa Catarina?
Yes, we have few
shark types here. But, thank God, there hasn't been any shark
attacks of humans in the history of Santa Catarina.
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5. Costs/down payments/payments
What costs will I have
on this journey?
1. Your journey to and back home from Florianopolis (Santa Catarina's Capital)
or, in other words, your international and domestic Brazilian flights.
2. Lunch and dinner in Santa Catarina. Plan another US $ 15 per day/person
for these meals (not including excessive drinking...).
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Can I use my credit card in
Santa Catarina to pay for meals etc.?
Yes and no... More and more shops and
establishments in Santa Catarina accept credit card payment,
but it's not the majority.
If any credit card is accepted, it's almost always VISA. You still can get
cash at an ATM machine at Banco do Brasil in Santa Catarina with VISA-, EC-,
and MAESTRO-cards + pin.
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Do larger groups get extra discounts?
Of course, let us know about your
plans for the group and we can give extra discounts.
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6. Booking
How far in advance do I
have do book?
Since the demand on surf
trips in Santa Catarina has been growing constantly while we're
not willing to increase our maximal group size (to guarantee
our service quality), we strongly recommend booking at least
1 month in advance.
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