Florianopolis, state Santa Catarina

Флорианополис См. Фото-галерею

The economy of Florianópolis is heavily based on tourism and services. The city has 42 pristine beaches and is a center of surfing activity. VEJA magazine, a Brazilian publication, named Florianopolis "the best place to live in Brazil." As a result of this publicity, Florianopolis is growing as a second home destination for many Paulistas, Argentines, North Americans and Europeans.

Most of the population lives on the island's northern half. The southern half is more isolated and less developed. Many small commercial fishermen populate the island. Although originally settled by the Portuguese (from the Azores), the city has a strong German and Italian influence, like the rest of the state. The Azorean spirit, inherited from immigrants who settled the region 250 years ago, marks the island personality. The fishing boats, the lacemakers, the folklore, the cuisine and the colonial architecture distinguish the tourism and attract resources that compensate for the lack of large industry. Villages immersed in tradition and history, such as Santo Antônio de Lisboa and Ribeirão da Ilha resist the advances of modernity.

Tourism is one of the staples of Florianópolis' economy; it is considered by many inhabitants and tourists that Floripa has a singular beauty endowed with strong lines of Azorean culture, observed in the buildings, workmanship, folklore, culinary and religious traditions. Its environmental restrictions on building and commercial development have been more or less regularly enforced. This accounts for the singular natural beauty of this island.

In addition to its popular sugar soft white sand beaches Florianópolis offers many historical attractions, including the sites of the original Azorean colonists, the Lagoa da Conceição lagoon, and Santo Antônio de Lisboa. Tourism in Florianópolis has grown significantly over the past 10 years, with increasing numbers of visitors coming from other large cities in Brazil (particularly Porto Alegre, Curitiba, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro) as well as other South American countries (particularly Argentina, with direct flights offered daily from Buenos Aires).

During the past several years a greater number of international tourists have also begun to frequent the island (particularly from Europe and the United States), and 2006 marked the opening of the city's first multinational hotel, a Sofitel[3], and first US-based specialty tour operator, Nexus Surf[4]. As the number of visitors to the island grows each year, Florianopolis faces the ongoing challenge of ensuring that its limited insfrastructure and resources will continue to adequately accommodate them.

One of the most famous beaches is Praia Mole, noted for its rolling green hills and rock formations on either side.

Barra da Lagoa This is the world famous "Bunny Slope" of Surfing. It is home to world champion Jacqueline Silva and 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) from Praia Mole which usually hosts the WCT Surfing Championships. Barra da Lagoa is a quaint fisherman's village but the physical characteristics of the beach make it the perfect place to learn to surf. It is a cove on the Eastern part of the island and stretchs into Moçambique beach for 15 kilometres (9.3 mi). It is in a natural setting as there are no huge hotels on the beach and the Southern headquarters of Projeto TAMAR (Save the Turtles) is located here. Penguins routinely swim into the canal and near the beach of Barra da Lagoa during the colder winter months of June, July and August. The canal at Barra da Lagoa connects the Lagoa da Conceição with the open sea. It is not uncommon to view pescadores (fisherman) during the night tossing their nets in the lagoa to catch shrimp they sell to the fresh fish restaurants in this community.

Armação Beach (Praia da Armação) The Sant'Anna Church, built by the Armação fishing company, is part of the beach’s history. It was from there that whale harpooners and crewmen confessed and attended the mass before going fishing. Next, the priest would go down to the beach to bless the boats that would sail out to sea. Today, the boats leave there for Ilha do Campeche, one of the most visited islands around Florianópolis. It is also in Armação that one finds one of the most important archeological sites of the State of Santa Catarina.