Praia de São Lourenço, Beach in Bertioga, Brazil

Praia de São Lourenço is a beach in Bertioga, Brazil, with a wide stretch of pale sand that runs from the foreground toward the back, where a row of white-framed structures with canopies and thin poles stands, along with two small wheeled carts with dark frames and pale surfaces resting to the left and right. The sand is mostly smooth and flat, marked by scattered footprints and small uneven patches, and a slightly darker band appears closer to the back where the beach meets the edge of the built-up area.

The Riviera de São Lourenço was created in the 1970s as a planned neighborhood with 33 modules, and it grew alongside the older, traditional settlement. Over the decades, the area became one of the most developed stretches of the São Paulo coast, and in early 2026 a sewage contamination episode led to water quality warnings and a public investigation.

The beach is split between the traditional São Lourenço neighborhood and the planned Riviera de São Lourenço, and you can notice the difference in the buildings and the pace of the two sides. Near the water, vendors sell corn, coconut, and açaí from carts, while the wide sand fills with families, cyclists, and people playing sports on weekends.

The beach is long and open, so it helps to pick a reference point near the water or the row of structures at the back before you settle down. Access is public and free, and the flat sand makes it easy to walk or cycle along the shore, but keep an eye on the water quality notices, especially after heavy rain.

Despite the high-end condominiums nearby, the entire beach and its access points are public and free for anyone to use. The beach also has two distinct stretches: the traditional neighborhood side and the planned Riviera side, and the water is usually calm but forms sandbanks near modules 2 and 6 that attract surfers.