Natal Things to Do

The fortress was built in 1598, using wood, stones, sand and whale oil; it was the first building in Natal. Gaspar de Samperes, designer of the building, adopted the conventional design for a maritime fortress: a five corners stars.
In 12th December 1633, the fortress was taken over by the Dutch, who stayed until January of 1654, when the Portuguese got back the place.
You won't find any furniture there, just empty rooms. But the views are very nice.

Apart from Praia da Pipa (south of Natal) and Genipabu (north from Natal), you can also go to Maracajau. It is located around 54 km from north from Natal. From there you take a boat to reach the natural swimming pools, 7 km far from the beach.
Incredible transparency of the water. Snorkel is already included in the boat trip.

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If you go to Natal, you will want to take a buggy ride through the dunes of the Litoral Norte (Santa Rita, Genipabu, Pitangui, Jacuma, and Muriu). The most picturesque place is Genipabu, where you can sandboard

Dunes are located north of Natal, between these dunes you can find sweetwater lakes which are brilliant for swimming and cooling down. Water is clear and so much more nicer than seawater which is salty.

Buggy Drive at the dunes is a great fun for one day. Hire a buggydriver and load up to 3-4 persons into a buggy and have day that you will remember.

While driving with "motion" at sand-dunes you will be natures own made rollercoster and you will come to one of these places where you can jump into one of these aerial cableways from the top of the dune, all the way down to a sweet water lake - SPLASH.

There will be waiting a "boat" on which you climb or you can swim back to the shore.
From here there will be waiting a carriage on rails. WV Beatle driven engine will then tow you back to the top of the dune.

If this is too frightening for you, there is also similar high dunes from which you will have a sledride down to a lake.

Natal is extremely boring so unless you're a beach fanatic you'd probably want to get away from there as soon as possible. The best Option is to go to Olinda, 5 hours with bus south of Natal. This is a beautiful colonial town where you can spend a couple of days walking the narrow streets, have a look at the ugly art in the galleries and sit on the sidewalk for a beer in the evening.

Apart from Olinda it is difficult to find any interesting places close to Natal. The problem with Brazil is that it is so big. If you want to see something different from the dry, shrub vegetation surrounding Natal you have to go far, very far.

The Praia do Meio area is in the northern part of Natal; there are several beaches, with undefined boundaries: Praia do Forte (around the fortress), Praia do Meio, Praia dos Artistas (around Chaplin) and Areia Preta.
There is a tourist office at Praia dos Artistas, close to Chaplin; also, right beside, a 24/7 Banco do Brasil ATM.
Until about ten years ago, this was the busiest area in Natal; the today closed Hotel dos Reis Magos was famous for the parties which congregated the high society of Natal.
Today, the place is decadent; the city government has been trying to revitalize the area (the pavement was refurbished, a communitary sports court was built), but results are still incipient. The beaches are frequented mostly by locals who live around the area.
Don't walk very far towards the fortress by night. Even though very diminished from recent years, street prostitution still exists, both on main avenue and lateral streets.
The beaches are lined by reefs; when the tide lowers, water pools are formed, good for children. During the high tides, the waves here and bigger than in Ponta Negra, making Praia dos Artistas a favourite place for surfers.
Hotels along the beach avenue are cheaper than in Ponta Negra. Quality and prices vary much, but you can certainly find comfortable places here.
Praia do Meio and Ponta Negra are about 12 km apart.

The Center of tourism had functioned as a House of Detention until the decade of 60. It was inaugurated in 1976 and is located on the top of a hill with a privileged sight of some urban beaches in Natal and part of the city. Besides providing touristic information, it has many little stores installed in what was once the prison cells, and filled with the most varied craftsmanship (carnauba fiber, sisal, ceramics, embroiderings, typical products and foods...), an art gallery, an antiquary, a night club and a restaurant.