Feedback received 09 May, 2020:

My husband and I stayed at Marina Jacaré Village in April and May 2020 (during the Covid-19 crisis).

Coming from St Helena, we decided to break up the long passage to the Caribbean with a stopover in Jacaré /Brazil. In the end this turned out to be a serious stroke of luck as the Covid-19 situation escalated during our passage and most of the Caribbean rapidly went into shutdown – had we sailed there directly, we would not have reached Grenada in time. Fortunately, we managed to slip into Jacaré on 19th March, less than a handful of days before Brazil closed its borders as well.

Subsequently, we had such a positive experience at Marina Jacaré Village, especially given the difficult conditions of the Covid-19 crisis, that we feel we need to share our impressions with other cruisers:

1. Entry to Jacaré
The entry through the channel was very easy as it was well buoyed up until the harbour of Cabedelo. After that, both the waypoints provided on the Marina Jacaré Village website, as well as, the Navionics charts were spot on. We entered during daylight and with the upcoming tide (the tidal currents get very strong here depending on moon phase, we have seen up to 5 kts on the outgoing tide during springs). We encountered a couple of small fishing boats just after Cabedelo harbour who had set up a long fishing net across the river which they quickly retrieved when they saw us coming. No issue, and they were very friendly.

Some other yachts that were there with us entered at night without problem.

We tried to call Cabedelo Port Control a few times on VHF but no response, so we proceeded straight to Jacaré Marina. Nicolas at the Marina told us that this was normal procedure ( i.e., Port Control not responding to yachts, and that yachts are permitted to proceed straight to the Marina).

2. Clearing In
We decided to use the Marina’s clearance service. For 60 Euro Nicolas drove us to Immigration and Customs one morning, and went to the Port Authority by himself the next day (our presence was not needed there). He also filled in all necessary forms for us and did all translation in communicating with officials (there is hardly any English spoken in Brazil). No visit to Health needed. All very pain free and in our view good value for money. You can otherwise do clearance independently and visit the different authorities by Uber taxi.

The Marina clearly has a very good relationship with all the authorities – this became apparent when solutions had to be found for yachts that came in after the sea borders had officially closed. In all cases, the Marina either negotiated a temporary stay permit (in case of a severely damaged yacht that had to be repaired), or otherwise a generous amount of time to rest and re-provision before moving on.

3. Mooring
We called the Marina on VHF 68 when we were about a mile away, they responded right away and were waiting for us on the arrival jetty to catch our lines. At high tide the same day we were transferred to our berth at the pontoon. To secure the boats both ways in the strong tidal current the Marina has laid mooring blocks a couple of boat lengths behind the pontoon, to which either bow or stern can be tied (whichever part of the boat is facing away from the jetty). The boatmen of the marina help all boats with all manoeuvres on the pontoon and moorings – they are courteous, efficient and know their job.

The pontoons are in a very good state and all have potable water and electricity (access to the latter at a small fee – we didn’t us it as we are a “basic boat” ) ?

The marina also has a number of swing moorings in the river, at half the price of the cost of a berth. The mooring blocks are solid 1000kg cement bases (we saw a few being constructed during our time there as the Marina added to the existing ones), they are well maintained with clean lines and generously spaced out for a bit of privacy.

You can also anchor in the river and use the marina facilities against a fee, but after we saw the strength of the current we decided against it (one night we woke up dreaming that we were underway sailing, such was the gushing of the water along the hull).

4. Marina Facilities
The Marina has a spacious seating area / restaurant area with free Wifi at good speed. The area is open air with a very high roof which lets a nice little breeze through and there is plenty of shade. Needless to say that we spent a lot of time there, chatting, on the internet, playing games, eating.

There is a nice BBQ area which you can use free of charge – and we did!

Everything was clean and well maintained, and you can constantly see little projects for improving the premises going on.

The Restaurant / Bar – run by Belgium chef Jean-Pierre – served delicious food, with a different “special” each day, at prices between 18 and 40 Real for a main course. Jean-Pierre’s Caipirinha was mouth watering and very more-ish!

5. Security
No issues while we were there. The pontoons have lockable gates (with access code), there is a security guard at night who also patrols the pontoons and the restaurant area has CCTV installed. The people in the fishing village next door are generally friendly and respectful. We felt very safe there.

6. General attitude of staff
Both Francis and Nicolas (the Marina Managers) were friendly, courteous, easy-going and made us feel “at home”, safe and looked after. Nicolas speaks excellent English and both are fluent in Portuguese. In a country where otherwise almost no English is spoken their help with arranging doctor’s visits, making phone calls to parts suppliers, giving tips where to buy what etc. was invaluable. All other staff were likewise very nice and welcoming.

Moreover, Francis and Nicolas went out of their way to help out yachts that were no longer allowed to enter Brazil, buying food and diesel for them, allowing them to fill up their water tanks, arranging flights, finding solutions with the local authorities. One yacht had come in after completing their circumnavigation and had to stay at anchor in quarantine. Francis and Nicolas took them a food package and all ingredients for a Caipirinha, so at least they were able to celebrate a bit!

Overall, as much as we found it difficult to be stranded because of Covid, Marina Jacaré Village was probably the best place we could have ended up at.

A million thanks to all of the Marina team – you have managed to turn an involuntarily prolonged stop into a very pleasant and happy experience, and we promise to be back one day to explore your beautiful country more fully…!

Monika & Didier
on circumnavigation with SV Harmoni

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Feedback received 16 July 2015

We were at Jacare Village Marina, Cabedelo, for almost a month and we had a good relaxing time.

The entrance and channel are well marked but not all beacons are lighted, the river is quite wide but has several shallow areas – unless you know the place well, best is to do a daytime entry or exit. Jacare Village marina has a useful website and waypoints are posted here (http://www.marina-jacare-village.com/wordpress/).

You can independently anchor close by to the marina, tie up to one of their mooring buoys or moor at their dock marina. The inner marina docks are quite shallow and the outer docks have a depth of around 4.5 meters. Power supply is 220 volts (60 hertz), fresh water is on tap (you can drink it but it tastes of chlorine), bottled water is readily available close by, the marina serves food and drinks, there is a small swimming pool, toilet, and shower facilities, they provide help and assistance with many things – checking in or out, suppliers, arranging rudimentary repairs and will even call a taxi for you.

Call them on VHF Channel 68 a couple of minutes before arriving and they will help you tie up to the marina docks. The marina management speaks several languages; French, Portuguese and English.

There are a couple of other adjacent boat yards where boats can be hauled out for repairs – mainly self-repair. There is also a German sailmaker who can repair sails and do odd repairs. Cabedelo has numerous supermarkets and chain stores and the bigger city of Joao Pessoa is a mere 20 to 30 kilometers away. There are no chandleries and just about all parts will have to be imported.

There is a train service a short distance from the marina and you can ride between Cabedelo and Joao Pessoa for a mere pittance. There is a fresh produce market, open on a daily basis, but is best on a Saturday when all the local producers bring their produce to market. There are numerous restaurants and local eateries around from cheap to expensive. In the afternoon, you can expect a couple of party boats traveling past the marina to watch the local saxophone player playing the “Bolero” at sunset about 500 meters further up the river (see our comment on the Cabedelo page about the local sax player).

The river runs strong and if at anchor, make sure you have an adequate ground tackle. During our time there, a dinghy engine was reportedly stolen from a yacht tied up at the moorings. Checking in or out is a breeze and is certainly the quickest we have seen anywhere in Brazil. The quality and prices of beer and Cachaca are good and you will be well advised to stock up on these.

SY Revelations (who spent 5 months in Brazil)
http://www.svrevelations.com/

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Feedback received 3 September 2012:

We are very happy to stay in this very little marina. It’s the Concita y Luciano’s house with a pier! that´s an opportunity to stay in a calm place and meet Brazilian people.

Nous y sommes en ce moment et nous apprecions reellement apres nos six+trois annees de navigation.

Cathy and Titou

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Feedback received 29 September 2010:

1) Anchoring in Cabedelo is not recommended. Nasty little anchorage in front of the docks, with ferries crossing all the time.

Much better to go up the river, although the charts are very imprecise. It’s straight forward, the channel is easy, then stay towards the Eastern side of the river up to the large water tanks, look out for the white sticks on port and stay within 100 m of them, then stay in the center of the river. We had 3m at low tide and probably were out of the deepest parts…

2) Jacare Marina Club appears after the turn in the river. Excellent anchorage (free, but you need to pay 80 reals per week if you want to leave the dinghy at the marina and get water), and the marina run by Frenchman Philippe is OK, cost 60 reals/day for a 54 footer, includes water, electricity, Wifi, good security, and a small swimming pool.

3) Formalities: Whereas in Salvador we had to visit the Policia Federal to leave for Cabedelo, when we did the same here, the police (50 reals round trip by taxi) in Cabedelo stated firmly that only upon arrival in the country and departure from the country does one need to visit the police…

So anyway, checking in and out (when coming from another port in Brazil, and going to another port in Brazil) needs only a visit to the Capitenia at the port in Cabedelo (Marina do Brazil building on the docks). You can do both checking in AND out at the same time, as long as you pretend to have arrived less than 3 days ago, and leave within 72 hours of check out. Although the police do seem to patrol Jacare on weekends, we’ve met several boats that have been there for weeks AFTER checking out without a problem.

Olivier
SY Mary Ann

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We recently spent 4 weeks in Jacare (July 2010):

The first week at anchor in front of “Jarace-village” and the last 3 weeks at “Ribeira adventure club”. This is a new option in the area. Luciano, a local Brazilian, started this small marina only 4 months ago on the other side of Stuart Island. He sailed the South American East coast extensively in the last 5 years before settling here. Luciano and wife, Concieta, are very friendly and helpful. He speaks Spanish and English.

Ribeira is a very small and tranquil fishing village with no food shops. The marina is still in the early phase of development. At the moment he offers cheap prices, front and back moorings for about 10 boats and anchor space. Water, electricity and internet use is available. One can enjoy cruisers-meeting-drinks and tapas at Luciano’s small bar.

The best is to visit his website: www.ribeiraadventureclub.blogspot.com and get the waypoints, as there are sandbanks on the way to Ribeira. We had no problem with a draft of 1.7m.

There are regular water taxis at 2R/S pp from your boat to Jacare. This place is a welcome relief from the all-night loud music at Jacare and a very good option for the cruiser on a tight budget.

Jaco and Christelle
SV Songerie

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I spent five weeks here during May and June 2010:

Holding is excellent in soft mud over hard sand. Watch for the small fishing boats which string long nets across the river. Some of these are lit at night but a night entry would be inadvisable.

Entry formalities vary depending on where you came from (i.e. another country, another state within Brazil or from within the same state). All are dealt with in Cabedelo – a 20-minute train ride away (from Jacare).

Jacare Club is no longer a club. You can leave a dinghy at their dock during the week but at weekends many speed boats are launched from there and you should not use it.

Jacare Village Marina has space for about 40 boats stern/bow-to on a crudely made jetty. They have water and 220-volt electricity. There is Wi-fi, a scrubbing dock (R$50 per tide), a plunge pool, the gym consists of two antiquated pieces of equipment, showers just OK, the restaurant has a very limited menu, bar barely stocked (one brand of beer only, no gin, whiskey or rum). There is no fuel dock but they will deliver fuel in cans at a 10% surcharge on top of the price (see Intermares later). Nobody I met used their laundry facilities for a second time.

For a fee of R$80 per week, you can anchor off and use the marina facilities (such as they are). If you just want to tie up your dinghy and use no facilities, it is still R$ 80 a week.

Brian Stevens, an English boatbuilder, is a Jacare institution. He can undertake any type of marine repair work to a very high standard at competitive prices. He is an absolute gentleman and a font of all local knowledge. Just beware of his timescales. He no longer has showers or moorings but will put a mooring down for you.

There is an internet cafe in the village beside the bakery and a couple of very basic supermarkets.

Further up river, there is a series of bars with jetties. The last one furthermost upriver is Bar Bombardo owned by Leonardo. Very helpful, he speaks English. His dinghy dock is in a state of disrepair but he promises to fix it. You can use his dock for no charge. If you have the odd beer in his bar he will give you free water and take your rubbish.

Everywhere in Jacare noise can be a problem with loud music going on until 0500 at weekends. It is difficult to predict where the noise will come from as several establishments open up for private parties.

The village of Intermares is a 20-minute walk away. The Texaco station on the far side of the main road (not the one on the same side of the road as Jacare) is the place to get fuel. They will deliver free of charge to Jacare. This station has ATMs. There are two good supermarkets and a large bakery. But remember that there is a good bakery in Jacare. Intermares is close to a long yellow sand beach.

Anthony Swanston
SV Wild Fox

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Related content:

Cabedelo Port Information on Noonsite

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The opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of Noonsite.com or World Cruising Club.