How to Get to Santo Amaro do Maranhão
The road to the most preserved base town in the Lençóis, told by someone who has been making this trip since before the pavement.
From São Luís to Santo Amaro
The route starts in São Luís, the main gateway to the region, whose Marechal Cunha Machado Airport (SLZ) receives flights from Brazil's major capitals. From there to Santo Amaro it is 240 km, about three and a half hours of travel, with paved road all the way to town.
It was not always like this: the paved road only arrived in Santo Amaro in 2017. Before that, getting there took hours of sand and adventure, and it is precisely because of that late arrival that the village preserves an atmosphere the other base towns no longer have.
From town to the dunes
From the village to the dunes and lagoons, park access is regulated and done in 4x4 vehicles run by accredited local tour companies, which you hire at your destination. In Santo Amaro there is only a small dune access fee of R$ 10; it is the only base town with a fee, and even then a symbolic one.
In Santo Amaro I work side by side with the team at Renilton Turismo (reniltonturismo.com.br), an accredited local operator I recommend to my couples. We have been partners since 2017, since the pavement arrived, and it is with them that my couples usually book the tour.
What to expect when you arrive
Santo Amaro is a small, quiet village, far less crowded than Barreirinhas, with welcoming pousadas and the dunes practically at your doorstep. It is the most exclusive and preserved base in the park: fewer people, more untouched lagoons and the feeling of having the Lençóis all to yourself.
A photographer's eye
It is no accident that Santo Amaro is my favorite base for photo sessions. The most preserved lagoons in the park are here, minutes from the village, and at golden hour, from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm, you can pick the right dune without rushing and without a crowd behind you. It was here that I photographed Winnie and José, who found me through a video on TikTok.
If Santo Amaro made it onto your route, you are already closer to the most exclusive scenery in the Lençóis. And if you want to bring this trip home in photographs, this is where I most love to shoot.
Compare the three base towns →