Balneário Camboriú (Portuguese pronunciation: [bawneˈaɾju kɐ̃boɾiˈu]) is a coastal city in the southern Brazilian state of Santa Catarina.

It is a popular tourist destination for South Americans, who are drawn to its main ocean boulevard Avenida Atlântica (Atlantic Avenue), and who swell the city's population from 145,796 (2020 census office estimate) to over one million in the summer.

[4] Ilha das Cabras (Goats' Island) is directly opposite the city and is too small for habitation but it is lit at night.

Visitors to nearby Laranjeiras Beach can sail there aboard 17th century-style pirate ships, going around Ilha das Cabras before returning to Balneário Camboriú.

Standing atop the Morro da Cruz, Cristo Luz (Christ Light) portrays Jesus holding a circular "broad-brimmed hat" at his left shoulder, symbolizing the sun, and which houses a spotlight that shines out over the city.

[6] Another common sight in the city are paragliders over the beach, alongside the tall buildings, from the gliderport in Praia dos Amores.

Europeans settled in the area in 1758 when a few families from Porto Belo moved to a site they called Our Lady of Bon Sucesso and is now known as Barra.

In 1930, the privileged geographical location began to be preferred by vacationing oceangoers, and two years later the town's first hotel was built at the confluence of Central and Atlantic Avenues.

Loose urban laws allowed the creation of some of the tallest buildings in the southern hemisphere, surpassing 280m of height in some cases.

Recent investments have been made to tackle this issue, but the city’s high density and population fluctuation makes it a challenging task.

The access to Balneario Camboriú is restricted to its main state road, BR-101, and the affluence of tourists causes large traffic jams in all directions for the most part of the year.

Regarding international visitors, 30% come from Argentina, and the rest, roughly speaking, from neighboring countries such as Uruguay, Paraguay and Chile.