Praia da Concha

Concha is the bay that curls back on itself, and that shape is the whole story: it takes the ocean out of the water and leaves something closer to a lagoon at the near end. It is the only town beach where the sea is reliably calm, which makes it the obvious answer with small children and the obvious answer on a day the swell is up.

It is also a neighbourhood, not just sand. A good share of the town's accommodation sits behind it, with barracas along the front and enough going on to spend a whole day without walking back into town.

As a base it gives you a quieter week than the centre does: the night is a walk away rather than outside the window, and the walk back at the end of it is short. The trade is set out in where to stay, and what it is like with children is in Itacaré with children.