Making the most of Angra Dos Reis
Use these notes to shape a realistic day ashore, then confirm any time-sensitive information for the date of your call.
Arriving at the port
Angra dos Reis port sits in the city's central district.
On 6 January 1502, Portuguese fleet commander and navigator Gaspar de Lemos came ashore at Ilha Grande on “Kings' day”, or “Dia de Reis”. The location was therefore called “Angra dos Reis”, translated as “Creek of the Kings” or, more loosely, “Anchorage of the Kings”.
Formerly a haven for enslaved people and pirates, Ilha Grande is now valued as an ecological sanctuary of dense vegetation and beaches washed by transparent water. A rewarding walk leads to the dark sands of Praia Preta and the little Cachoeira da Poção.
Angra dos Reis is a small port close to and east of Rio de Janeiro, on the island-filled expanse of Ilha Grande Bay. It handles output from the agricultural interior, a significant fishing trade and Volta Redonda, an industrial city 35 miles (56 km) inland. Beaches and moving palms accompany colonial landmarks including the 17th-century Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, the Igreza Matriz de Nossa Senhora da Coceicao, the convent of Sao Bernadino de Sena and the church of Nossa Senhora da Lapa da Boa Morte.
Fine beaches and the surrounding region have turned the municipality into an important tourism centre, both within the state and nationally. More than three hundred islands fall inside its boundary; many belong to Brazilian and international celebrities, and the largest is Ilha Grande, Portuguese for Big Island.
Getting around
Operators at the harbour offer numerous fishing and boat outings to islands close by.
Angra's Centro de Informações Turísticas, positioned between the bus terminal and ferry quays, supplies information about Ilha Grande. It opens 8am-7pm Mon-Fri & 9am-4pm Sat & Sun.
Food and shopping
For galleries, souvenirs and regional crafts, nearby Ilha Grande, or the "Big Island", is the most promising choice.
Money
The currency used is the Brazilian real.
Staying connected
Portuguese is the spoken language.
Only a limited number of cafés give customers free Wi-Fi.
Opening Hours and
Normal trading hours for most businesses and shops run from 9am until 6pm, with a long lunch break of roughly noon to 2pm.
Monday is a closing day for many museums.