Pipa Beach

Geobox Settlement
name = Praia Beach
native_name = Praia da Pipa
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category = Town


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country = Brazil
state = Rio Grande do Norte
region = Tibau do Sul
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website = http://www.pipa.com.br/conteudo/informativo/english/conheca.html

Pipa Beach is a village and beach in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. It is situated in the municipality of Tibau do Sul, about 84 km south of the capital of the state, Natal.

History

The first maps of the coastline drawn by Portuguese settlers, refer to Pipa Beach as "Orotapiry", or "White man's village." In 1626, the beach became known as "Itacoatiara", meaning "the painted cliff," later becoming "Ponta do Cabo Verde" ("Green Headland"), and is now "Praia da Pipa", or "Pipa Beach."

Pipa was a small fishing village until the 1970s. Then it was discovered by surfers and backpackers, attracted by a set of natural attributes rarely found even in other Brazilian beaches: crystal-clear waters, fine, white sand, areas of preservation Atlantic Forest, 10-meter-high vertical cliffs, and friendly locals.

After the Brazilians, it was the foreign visitors who discovered Pipa, which grew very fast. Soon, it became not only one of the most popular beaches in Brazil, but also one of the most cosmopolitan.

Today, many businesses in Pipa are run by foreigners who visited the town and decided to stay. Pipa, still small in area (expansion is limited by law, with the creation of Environmental Protected Areas around the village), is one of the beaches in Brazil with the highest densities of hotels, restaurants, night clubs and other tourism-oriented businesses.

Success has also brought problems to the community. The large influx of visitors and new dwellers was not matched by investments in infrastructure. Transit is slow, public sewage is not well established, prices are high and despite attempts of protection by law, the environment is threatened by the expansion.