Cabo Frio

Home to nine of Brazil’s best beaches.Stop by in Cabo Frio on your South America cruise holiday to Brazil, and pick up a stylish new outfit for the beach.

Situated on the coast of southern Brazil, the port of Cabo Frio is a recent addition to the cruise destinations offered by MSC Cruises. Offering a classic taste of Brazilian life, Cabo Frio is a place full of history, great shopping facilities – especially beachwear – and truly iconic beaches, full of fashionable sun worshippers.

Originally named Santa Helena de Cabo Frio (‘Cape Cold’) by the Portuguese who founded it in 1615, it owes its name to the chilly submarine currents feeding into the coastal waters from the Antarctic. As a tourist destination, the port is certainly one of the best cruise stopovers you’re likely to find.

Next to a wealth of local history and places of archaeological interest, Cabo Frio is also home to nine of Brazil’s best beaches, of which the seemingly endless Forte Beach (named after its ancient defensive fort) is probably the best known. So you’ll want to look your best, and a trip to pick up a little something in the fashionable boutiques on Gamboa Street (known as the ‘beachwear nirvana’), is a must before you hit the beach.

Then later, after you’ve had a thoroughly delicious lounge about in the sun, topping up your tan in your stylish new beachwear, you can head over to one of the colorful beachfront restaurants to try the local specialty, the thoroughly delicious and widely renowned shrimp pasta.