This week’s dream: The Brazilian island of Boipeba

It would be hard to find another tropical paradise as delectably simple as the Brazilian island of Boipeba, says Will Hide in the Times. True, there are islands in the Maldives or off the coast of Thailand that could compete with it for "soft white sand, translucent waters, and palm trees sagging under the weight of coconuts". But most of them have been taken over by "big resort hotels, with their corporate could-be-anywhere feel". On Boipeba, by contrast, the few small tourist lodges (pousadas) "don't break above tree height"; there isn't "a jet ski or parasail in sight"; and there are no cars – "only wheelbarrows and donkeys".

The island lies a little to the south of the city of Salvador de Bahia, in the northeast of the country. It's worth lingering for a few days in the city, Brazil's third-largest, to explore its beautiful historical centre, the Pelourinho, with its "steep cobbled streets and ornate colonial churches"; and to experience its lively popular culture, the "most African" in the country. Those roots are evident in the "half-fighting, half-dancing art of Capoeira practised in the streets", in the religion of Candomblé and in the city's famously lively Carnaval. From here, it is a 40-minute flight in a "tiny, four-man aircraft" to Boipeba.

Days on the island soon "blend pleasurably into one". It is only 12km across at its widest point, and there's delightfully little to do. "Dips in the sea" alternate with "walks along the secluded beaches or into the local fishing village". There, you can enjoy "moqueca (prawn stew) and tapioca pancakes freshly prepared from a cart by the football pitch", or "charter a fishing boat" to take you "through the mangrove swamps to dine at a floating oyster restaurant", before returning to your "tastefully and simply furnished pousada" for cocktails on your balcony.

Contact i-escape (01179 428 476) to book Pousada Santa Clara  from £60 a night. ·