Tourism in Alagoas: a 2026 guide to what to do, when to go and how much it costs

Alagoas has 102 municipalities and 230 km of coastline, and whoever types "trip to Alagoas" into Google almost always wants to answer three questions: what's worth it, when to go and how much it costs. This guide answers all three, written by the people who run the tours every day, with prices that come from our booking system and update on their own.

An honest note first: of the 102 towns, the Brazilian Tourism Map recognises 44 as having tourist infrastructure. The rest have a church, hills, a river and a festival, but no tour with a timetable, a ticket and someone to look after you. What follows is what you can actually visit.

• Capital: Maceió, where you sleep and where almost every tour leaves from.
• North coast: Maragogi, São Miguel dos Milagres, Porto de Pedras, Japaratinga, Paripueira, Ipioca. Natural pools, coconut groves, postcard beaches.
• South coast: Praia do Francês, Barra de São Miguel, Praia do Gunga, Lagoa do Roteiro, Dunas de Marapé. Cliffs, lagoons and dunes.
• Sertão and the São Francisco: Piranhas and the Xingó canyons, historic Penedo, Piaçabuçu and the river mouth.
• Airport: Zumbi dos Palmares (MCZ), 25 km from Maceió. Many people also fly into Recife and come up by transfer.

September to March is the dry season: steady sun, clear sea, natural pools at their best. April to July is rainier, not all day long, but the sea turns murky and some boat departures get cancelled.

More important than the month is the tide. The natural pools in Maragogi, Milagres and Pajuçara only appear at low tide, and on some days low tide falls in the small hours. Before settling on a date, check the tide table: it marks the ideal days for each tour, month by month.

To avoid high prices and crowds: May, June, August and September. To be sure of sun: October to February, accepting pricier hotels over New Year and Carnival.

The most sought-after destination after the capital. The Galés natural pools lie 6 km offshore and at low tide form an aquarium of warm water. The Moses Path (Caminho de Moisés), in Barra Grande, is the strip of sand that surfaces in the middle of the sea only on tides of 0.2 m or lower. From Maceió it's 130 km: a full day, with a stop in Japaratinga on the way back.

A hundred kilometres from Maceió, the quietest stretch of the north coast: Praia do Toque, Porto da Rua, jangada rafts out to the natural pools and, next door, Porto de Pedras (Praia do Patacho, the manatees of the Tatuamunha river) and Japaratinga. It's the destination for anyone who wants coconut groves without the crowds.

The cliff coast begins 40 km from Maceió. Praia do Gunga is a tongue of sand between the sea and the Lagoa do Roteiro, with a lookout over the coloured cliffs and buggy or quad bike rides. Praia do Francês, in Marechal Deodoro, has calm sea on one side and surf on the other, with the historic town ten minutes away. Further south, the Dunas de Marapé in Jequiá da Praia complete the trio.

Brazil's most Brazilian river meets the sea at Piaçabuçu, between golden dunes and the Cabeço lighthouse, and 30 km away is Penedo, with its heritage-listed historic centre and colonial houses. It's the longest tour from Maceió (150 km) and the most different: a boat trip, dunes and lunch, all in one day.

For the days when you don't want to drive 130 km: the Pajuçara natural pools (catamaran from the beachfront itself), the 9 Islands tour across the Lagoa Mundaú and the beach clubs of Ipioca, 30 km away. We have a guide just for those: Ipioca beach clubs: day use, prices and how to get there.

Piranhas is the sertão destination: a heritage-listed historic centre, the Rota do Cangaço and the catamaran trip through the São Francisco canyons, with rock walls up to 170 m high. It's 280 km from Maceió, a two-day trip, not a day return. We don't operate Xingó yet; it's here because it's the most common question from anyone planning a week in Alagoas.

• 3 days: Maragogi · Gunga · Milagres. The tripod, and the house's best-selling combo.
• 5 days: the three above + Praia do Francês + an Ipioca beach club.
• 7 days: all of that + Foz do São Francisco + a free day for Pajuçara and the Maceió beachfront.

The combos come with one day per destination and a single payment. If you'd rather put it together your own way, Build your itinerary lets you choose the tours and the dates, and the tide helps you pick the right day for each one.