Angra dos Reis private boat trip

At a glance

Getting to Angra dos Reis from Rio

Angra dos Reis is on the Costa Verde, south-west of Rio, 155 km away on the BR-101. Boats leave from Angra, so the day starts with the drive.

• A private transfer picks you up at your hotel or at Galeão airport and drops you at the pier. We work out the timing from your address in the proposal.
• If you would rather skip the highway, there is a helicopter transfer to Angra.

Rio to Angra and back with a full day at sea makes a long day, so we usually suggest spending the night before in Angra.

A private boat tour of the bay

The city’s tourism portal, Viva Angra, counts 365 islands and islets. The largest island in the bay is Ilha Grande, and in 2019 UNESCO listed “Paraty and Ilha Grande: Culture and Biodiversity” as a World Heritage site, with the bay itself in its buffer zone.

On a private boat the skipper links several stops in one day. Viva Angra puts Lagoa Azul, Sororoca and Caxadaço together as the places with the clearest water in the state. The portal describes the water at Lagoa Azul as transparent. The exact stops depend on the sea that day and on how long you want to spend swimming or eating on board.

Protected areas the route avoids

Several conservation areas sit in the bay, each with its own rules.

• Ilha Grande State Park, managed by the state agency INEA, covers 12,083.79 hectares. Visitors keep to marked trails, do not feed animals, light fires or bring pets, and carry their rubbish out.
• The Praia do Sul Biological Reserve covers 3,311.84 hectares of Ilha Grande. Under federal law 9,985/2000, public visits to a biological reserve are only allowed for educational purposes, so boats do not land there.
• The Tamoios Ecological Station is 29 islets, islands, reefs and rocks in the Ribeira and Ilha Grande bays, in Angra dos Reis and Paraty, plus the sea within 1 km of them. The same law limits visits to educational ones.

We agree the route with the skipper before the trip so the boat stays out of these zones.

Rules on the water

The Angra dos Reis office of the Brazilian Navy’s Port Authority publishes ten safety rules for boaters. They include enough life jackets for everyone on board, keeping within the boat’s capacity, keeping away from beaches and swimmers, handing the helm to a qualified person if the skipper has had a drink, and telling the marina or yacht club the plan before leaving. We check the boat’s and skipper’s documents before we book.

The Angra visitor fee (TTS)

Angra dos Reis asks visitors to issue the Sustainable Tourism Fee, Taxa de Turismo Sustentável, under Municipal Law 4,507 of September 2025.

• It is issued on tts.vivaangra.com.br or at self-service kiosks in the city.
• It is valid for 30 days, and during that time you can travel between the mainland and Ilha Grande without paying again.
• Children up to 12, people aged 60 and over and people with disabilities are exempt.

We explain what applies to your trip in the proposal.

Formats

Paraty is further along the BR-101 on the same bay. See Paraty from Rio and Ilha Grande from Rio for trips on land.

Season and weather

Viva Angra describes December to March as the months of calm sea and sun, and April to June as quieter. The UK Foreign Office notes that November to March is the rainy season in the south-east of Brazil, including Rio, so summer is also the wettest time. If the weather rules out the trip, we move it or refund the deposit in full.

Terms and price

The price depends on the boat, the number of guests, the length of the trip, the route, the season and the transfer. Our fee is already included in the price. Terms and payment are set out in the proposal; you pay nothing before you confirm.

• One-day trip: cancel up to 48 hours before and the deposit is returned.
• Multi-day trip: cancel up to 14 days before.
• One date change at no cost with 48 hours’ notice, if the provider has another date.
• If the provider cannot run the trip, we find a replacement or refund the deposit in full.

What to tell us in your request

• Your dates and how many days you want on the water
• How many people, and the ages of any children
• Where you are staying in Rio, or your flight if you come straight from the airport
• Whether you want nights on board, in Angra or on Ilha Grande
• Food and drinks on board, and anyone who gets seasick
• Extras: Paraty, a helicopter, a photographer

All boat formats in Rio and nearby are on the yacht charter page.