Since the colonization of South America there was a custom to give towns the name of the saints day on which they were founded. Natal, which was established on December 25th, was no exception to that rule, and if its main monument has been given the name Forte dos Reis Magos (Fort of the Three Wise Men), understandably as its construction started on 6th January, the day of Epiphany.
This bastion, with its stairway architecture, firmly held by a 200 meters long sea wall, constitutes the only remains of colonial Natal and almost the only thing of cultural interest there.

However as an anecdote, it was here that Mermoz landed in 1930 in a hydroplane, accomplishing a “first” and establishing the first Aeropostale service (the antique French aerial mailing service) in South America.
Besides this is the house where St. Exupéry stayed during his stay in Natal.
It is equally here where President Getulio Vargas and Franklin D. Roosevelt negotiated and signed Brazil’s entrance into the war on the side of the allies. There are no museums to commemorate this event; the building, which welcomed this meeting, has been abandoned.

But without a doubt, what has given Natal its fame is the superb coast made up of immense sand dunes beaten incessantly by the wind. It’s no accident that the Jeep, which is the best adapted car to this type of surroundings, comes from here.
If you only have one day, you don’t need to go very far for a dose of adrenaline, the 20 miles of wild dunes of Genipabu are found at the end of the town.
If one has more time, a “must” is undeniably the jeep trip from Natal to Fortaleza (or the other way): 5 day escape, along the sublime coast, dream beaches and picturesque villages.