Schooner ride in Florianópolis passing by Baía dos Golfinhos

I've lived in Florianópolis my entire life, but I've never been able to take tours around the city or visit places I've never been to.

This summer, I decided visit other beaches, try to go hiking and get to know the island better. I took advantage of the fact that part of my family from Rio de Janeiro is here and I have already ventured on some trips with them.

The last one was a day on a schooner, leaving the harbor at Beira-mar Norte and passing through Baía dos Golfinhos.

Schooner Tour in Florianópolis

We close the tour with schooner Andorinha, and we paid R$55 per person, as we booked in advance via WhatsApp. For those who want to close immediately, the price is R$75 and does not include lunch or other fees.

The excursion leaves the Beira-mar Norte pier at 10:30 in the morning and has an estimated duration of 6 hours, following the itinerary:

• Dolphins Bay
• Lunch in Governador Celso Ramos
• Visit to the Fortress of Santa Cruz de Anhatomirim
• Visit the Fortress of Santo Antônio de Ratones
• Deep sea diving near the island of Ratones Grande

The crew was super friendly and taught us all the safety rules before we started the adventure.

Dolphins Bay

For many, perhaps the most anticipated part of the schooner trip in Florianópolis, after all, dolphins are cute haha.

I went without much hope, as my family has done this trip other times and never seen one. But aren't we lucky? We saw lots of dolphins! I didn't even imagine that there were that many here, I thought it would just be one or the other.

We took several photos, some people cried (!) and we spent a long time looking at the water looking for more of them.

It's worth remembering that you stay inside the boat, they don't come very close, you can't touch any of them or take photos with them. This is an observation tour only.

Lunch in Governador Celso Ramos

As it was a little after noon and we had already seen several dolphins, we headed for lunch at Gov. Celso Ramos. It was a great idea, because at the end of the meal the pirate ships arrived and filled the place.

the place is pretty, full of fishermen's boats and a beach with clear water, a little paradise.

We went to the restaurant Dolphin Coast, the only one in the region. The all-you-can-eat buffet costs R$28 per person, there is no way to pay by weight, and drinks are the part. They do not accept any type of card, payment is cash only, so remember to bring it in kind.

The food is a very simple buffet, with plenty of salad, seafood, rice, beans, pasta, etc. I missed fries, but that must be because I love fries and I think they should be mandatory everywhere lol.

Our lunch break was short, so we ate quickly and went for a walk along the beach. We wanted to walk on the rocks, but we needed to cross a small mangrove to get there and we gave up.

Anyone who wants can dive into the sea, and the water was delicious!

Santa Cruz de Anhatomirim Fortress

After lunch it was time to visit the island of Anhatomirim. Access to the fortress costs R$8, but you can buy a pass for both included in the tour for R$10. Again they do not accept cards and this value is not included in the tour.

I had already visited the fortress when I was at school, so I expected this part to be difficult, after all the temperature was almost 40ºC. I was wrong, we took several parts with shade and it wasn't unbearable at all Beto Carrero style.

One of the crew members was accredited by UFSC, which takes care of the site's maintenance, and guided the group for almost an hour. I found this part sensational, because the fortress becomes much more interesting when you understand what you are seeing. We listened to interesting facts, learned a little about the history of the place and took lots of photos.

I confess that I don't have much knowledge of the historical part, but anyone who is curious can check it out on Floripa guide.

Fortress of Santo Antônio de Ratones

The Santo Antônio de Ratones Fortress is much smaller than Anhatomirim, and we were only there for 30 minutes.

This time, the guide did not accompany us, and we explored freely. The main house had two photography exhibitions, which showed photos of what the place looked like in the past and some of the restoration work.

As it was hot and there was little to see, we took advantage of the last moments to swim in the sea. The water was full of rocks and vegetation, rather than sand, so I recommend going in with flip flops and not bare feet. It was great to cool off!

Deep sea diving

We went around the island of Ratones Grande, where the Fortaleza de Santo Antônio de Ratones is located and the boat stopped for us to dive there. When I say diving, I mean we entered the water, and not that we had any equipment like scuba diving or snorkeling, okay?

This was the only “disappointing” part of the tour for me, because it didn’t even last 15 minutes properly. We had to stay very close to the schooner, there were several people accidentally stamping their feet on each other, there was a crowd to take photos… A little confusion. 

Honestly, I was so happy with the trip, the day was so beautiful, the landscape was incredible and I didn't mind too much. But if you're going more because you want to swim in the open sea, this might not be the best option.

After that, we returned to Beira-mar Norte and ended the schooner trip in Florianópolis, almost 5 o'clock in the afternoon.

I had a lot of fun, I was positively surprised and I recommend it to everyone visiting the island! Some observations:

• Bring sunscreen, a hat, a sarong and a towel if you are going to go into the water.
• There is only one stop to eat, so I recommend bringing snacks. Almost everyone brought cereal bars, fruit and sandwiches.
• If you forget, no problem, the schooner itself has a bar that sells water, beer, soft drinks and snacks like Elma Chips.
• One of the waterproof camera It's cool for the final dive, but with that exception you can get by just fine with a normal camera or cell phone.
• Bring cash, as all extra costs had to be paid in cash, as no type of card was accepted.
• Make a reservation via Whatsapp to get a R$20 discount (information from January 2017, may have changed).

So, were you tempted to take this schooner trip in Florianópolis? Have you done it? Did you see the dolphins? Tell me in the comments! =)