No roads, no cars — 100km² of Atlantic Forest and 102 beaches
Ilha Grande is an island off the coast of Rio de Janeiro state where there are no roads, no cars, and no motorbikes — everything happens on foot or by boat. The entire island is covered in Atlantic Forest (one of the world's most biodiverse and endangered biomes) down to the waterline, with 102 named beaches ranging from the developed and lively Abraão (the main village) to remote crescents accessible only after a full day's trekking. The island spent most of the 20th century as a prison and later a leper colony — which inadvertently preserved its ecology — and became a state park in 2002 aft…
Before the Portuguese arrived, Ilha Grande was inhabited by the Tupinambá people who called it 'Ipaum'. The Portuguese used it as a provisioning stop for ships, and later the island became a transit point for enslaved Africans being brought to Rio de Janeiro — many died of smallpox here in quarantine. A prison was established in 1884 (the Lazareto) and the island became associated with incarceration for over a century: the Cândido Mendes prison housed political prisoners during the military dictatorship (1964–1985) and was notorious for its violence; it was finally demolished in 1994. The abs…