Yet despite its obvious allure, Ilha Grande has remained largely off limits for most of this century.

BBC: Brazil��s threatened slice of paradise

Pereira named it Ilha do Cerne, the Island of the Swan, after his ship, then sailed away to obscurity.

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Local organisations like CODIG (Committee for the Protection of Ilha Grande) are lobbying to repeal the decree, but for now, preservation and sustainability have become the buzzwords of the day on the island.

BBC: Brazil��s threatened slice of paradise

Retreats like The Island Experience allow visitors to experience Ilha Grande's splendour through a program of sea-kayaking and hiking, along with yoga and capoeira (Brazilian martial art) workshops from its ocean-front perch.

BBC: Brazil��s threatened slice of paradise

Across the bay, fancy yachts and speed boats crowd the shores of the Ilha, a once almost deserted strip of sand used mainly by poor fishermen, on which smart restaurants and nightclubs for the new elite are now springing up.

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