Barreirinhas: Gateway to the Lençóis Maranhenses

Barreirinhas is known as the “Gateway to the Lençóis Maranhenses.” It’s the most famous town in the region, with the best infrastructure of any town nearby, and it’s where most tours depart from.

We didn’t stay long in town, since we headed on to Atins (a better fit if you love a more nature-focused trip), but the town itself is quite simple, with plenty of hotels and shops.

We did one tour in the area that was absolutely worth it: a flight over the park.

Lençóis Maranhenses National Park can be visited from three different towns: Santo Amaro, Barreirinhas, and Atins.

Before we get into it, let’s prepare you for the logistics of getting to these towns — and this is a bit of a vent, honestly, because tour operators here have very little regard for schedules or commitments. Budget plenty of extra time, and only plan one activity per day, or you’ll come back more exhausted and stressed than when you arrived.

Getting to Barreirinhas

After flying into São Luís, you’ll need a van or car to reach Barreirinhas via the BR-402 highway. We left at 4 AM and it still took almost five hours by van, including one stop — and we’ve heard of people taking six. The road isn’t great and the heat is intense, so patience is key.

The stop

The rest stop is at a roadside restaurant, where the bread and tapioca quality was pretty bad, but it’s the only option along the way. We also found some unfamiliar colorful sodas and decided to try them.

Service here was also slow, with few staff and long lines for food that wasn’t very good, but it’s where we stopped to eat.

As for the drinks: River is a grape soda and drinkable; Sonho Guaraná, in blue and pink, are quite sweet and hard to place flavor-wise.

The road

The road is quite pothole-ridden and passes through several towns, so you can’t move quickly across the full 261 km.

We hired a transfer company called Tigre Turismo for the leg between towns, and initially had no delays. R$80 per person.

One note: we told them our flight would land Friday and asked to head straight to Barreirinhas early, since Andrey wanted to catch sunrise there — they told us they couldn’t wait even twenty minutes for our flight and don’t run late. When we landed, they were giving away our seats.

From there, several transport options exist to Atins: a boat, about an hour and a half (R$60 per person, on a fixed schedule set by the company — though the boat itself doesn’t stick to the schedule either, waiting instead until it’s full), a private Toyota (R$500 for the trip, or R$30 per person shared), or a private speedboat. Prices vary wildly.

Flying over the Lençóis Maranhenses from Barreirinhas

We flew with Voar Fotografia Aérea, which we loved — they were punctual, and the flight over the dunes is absolutely stunning.

The company’s office is downtown, and they can arrange to pick you up either there or straight from the airport.

They offer several routes, ranging from 30 minutes to 1 hour — we chose the 45-minute option, though we think the 30-minute one is plenty if you pick route two instead of route one. Here are the route options for you to decide.

We boarded a single-engine plane and flew over Pequenos Lençóis, Grandes Lençóis, and Atins, following the Rio Preguiça the whole way.

Price: R$340 for 30 minutes, R$530 for 45 minutes.

Once the plane lands, they’ll drop you off anywhere you need within Barreirinhas by car. And honestly, everyone there was extremely friendly.

We’re also sharing the GPX map of the route we flew.

Read more about Maranhão in São Luís and where to eat in São Luís.