Find places in Brazil

Must-Haves

• Christ the Redeemer (Corcovado)
  The open armed statue on Corcovado, with the whole city and bay spread out below.
• Sugarloaf Mountain cable car (Urca)
  Two cable car rides up to Pão de Açúcar, best timed for sunset over Guanabara Bay.

Fun for Everyone

• Escadaria Selarón (Lapa)
  A staircase covered in tiles from around the world by the artist Jorge Selarón.

Must-Haves

• Ipanema Beach (Ipanema)
  The famous beach where locals gather at Arpoador rock to applaud the sunset.

Fun for Everyone

• Copacabana Beach (Copacabana)
  A long curve of sand with kiosks, beach football and the wave pattern promenade.
• Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro (Jardim Botânico)
  Royal palm avenues, orchids and toucans in a garden founded in the colonial era.

Off the Beaten Path

• Parque Nacional da Tijuca (Tijuca)
  One of the largest urban forests on earth, with waterfalls, monkeys and summit trails.

Must-Haves

• Museu do Amanhã (Centro)
  A striking science museum on the revived port waterfront about the future of the planet.

Off the Beaten Path

• Real Gabinete Português de Leitura (Centro)
  A breathtaking nineteenth century reading room lined with carved wood and old books.

Fun for Everyone

• Santa Teresa tram (Santa Teresa)
  The historic yellow bonde rattles over the Lapa Arches into a hilltop arts quarter.

Must-Haves

• Pedra do Sal (Saúde)
  Monday and Friday samba circles at the birthplace of carioca samba, outdoors and lively.

Great for Date Night

• Rio Scenarium (Lapa)
  A three floor antique filled hall with live samba and choro bands.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Bar do Mineiro (Santa Teresa)
  A beloved boteco known for its feijoada, pastéis and cold beer.

Must-Haves

• Confeitaria Colombo (Centro)
  A belle époque tearoom of mirrors and stained glass, open since the late nineteenth century.

Great for Date Night

• Aprazível (Santa Teresa)
  Brazilian cooking served on garden terraces with views over the bay.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Feira de São Cristóvão (São Cristóvão)
  A huge northeastern cultural centre with regional food stalls and forró dancing.

Fun for Everyone

• Biscoito Globo on the beach (Ipanema)
  Grab the airy polvilho biscuits sold by beach vendors, a true carioca ritual.

Off the Beaten Path

• Feira Hippie de Ipanema (Ipanema)
  A Sunday craft market at Praça General Osório with art, leather and street food.

Must-Haves

• Rio Carnival at the Sambódromo (Cidade Nova)
  The samba school parades are the most spectacular night of the year in Brazil.

Must-Haves

• Copacabana Palace (Copacabana)
  The classic grand hotel on the beachfront, with a pool that has seen decades of stars.

Must-Haves

• Mercado Municipal de São Paulo (Centro)
  The stained glass market hall famous for its giant mortadella sandwich and pastel de bacalhau.

Great for Date Night

• A Casa do Porco (República)
  Inventive pork driven cooking that has become one of the city's most talked about tables.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Liberdade street food fair (Liberdade)
  Weekend stalls of gyoza, tempura and Japanese Brazilian snacks in the largest Japanese community outside Japan.
• Bar da Dona Onça (República)
  Comfort food in the ground floor of the iconic Copan building.

Must-Haves

• MASP (Avenida Paulista)
  The red suspended museum holds the finest European art collection in the southern hemisphere.
• Museu do Futebol (Pacaembu)
  An interactive football museum under the stands of the Pacaembu stadium.

Fun for Everyone

• Beco do Batman (Vila Madalena)
  Alleys covered in ever changing street art in a bohemian neighbourhood.

Off the Beaten Path

• Pinacoteca de São Paulo (Luz)
  Brazilian art in a beautiful brick building beside the Jardim da Luz.
• Museu Afro Brasil (Ibirapuera)
  A powerful collection on African heritage and Afro Brazilian history and art.

Fun for Everyone

• Avenida Paulista on Sundays (Bela Vista)
  The avenue closes to cars on Sundays and fills with musicians, skaters and families.

Must-Haves

• Parque Ibirapuera (Vila Mariana)
  The city's great park, with Niemeyer buildings, museums and running paths.

Must-Haves

• Bar Brahma (República)
  A historic bar on the corner of Ipiranga and São João with live samba.

Great for Date Night

• Vila Madalena bars (Vila Madalena)
  Streets of open air botecos that fill on weekend evenings with locals and music.

Fun for Everyone

• Coffee Lab (Vila Madalena)
  A specialty coffee house roasting Brazilian beans with tastings and courses.

Must-Haves

• Rua 25 de Março (Centro)
  The chaotic shopping street for everything cheap and colourful, best visited carefully by day.

Off the Beaten Path

• Feira de Antiguidades do MASP (Avenida Paulista)
  Sunday antiques and vintage stalls under the museum's suspended span.

Fun for Everyone

• São Paulo Pride Parade (Avenida Paulista)
  One of the largest pride marches in the world fills the avenue each year.

Great for Date Night

• Hotel Unique (Jardins)
  A boat shaped design hotel with a rooftop bar overlooking the skyline.

Must-Haves

• Pelourinho (Centro Histórico)
  The UNESCO listed colonial old town of pastel houses, churches and drummers.
• Igreja de São Francisco (Pelourinho)
  A Baroque church lined almost entirely with gold leaf and Portuguese tiles.
• Museu Afro Brasileiro (Terreiro de Jesus)
  Orixá carvings by Carybé and collections on Afro Bahian religion and culture.

Fun for Everyone

• Elevador Lacerda (Comércio)
  The art deco lift that links the upper and lower city with views across the bay.
• Capoeira at Forte Santo Antônio (Santo Antônio)
  The fort is home to capoeira schools where visitors can watch or join a class.

Off the Beaten Path

• Igreja do Bonfim (Bonfim)
  The pilgrimage church where visitors tie coloured fitas ribbons to the railings for wishes.

Must-Haves

• Olodum rehearsals (Pelourinho)
  The famous bloco afro drum group rehearses in the old town, especially before Carnival.

Fun for Everyone

• Salvador Carnival (Barra and Campo Grande)
  A street carnival of trio elétrico trucks and blocos that runs for days.

Off the Beaten Path

• Festa de Iemanjá (Rio Vermelho)
  Every February the second, offerings are carried to the sea for the goddess of the waters.

Fun for Everyone

• Farol da Barra (Barra)
  A lighthouse fort at the bay's mouth and a favourite spot for sunset.

Off the Beaten Path

• Praia do Flamengo (Flamengo)
  A quieter beach to the north of the city with clear water and beach shacks.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Acarajé da Dinha (Rio Vermelho)
  Famous acarajé, black eyed pea fritters fried in dendê oil, from a long established stall.
• Mercado do Rio Vermelho (Rio Vermelho)
  A covered market with food stalls serving local seafood and Bahian dishes.

Great for Date Night

• Casa de Tereza (Rio Vermelho)
  Refined Bahian cooking in a stylish house in the bohemian quarter.

Great for Date Night

• Largo de Santana (Rio Vermelho)
  A plaza of open air bars where the city's nightlife begins.

Fun for Everyone

• Sorveteria da Ribeira (Ribeira)
  An old ice cream parlour with dozens of tropical fruit flavours.

Must-Haves

• Mercado Modelo (Comércio)
  The old customs house turned craft market at the foot of the Elevador Lacerda.

Great for Date Night

• Santo Antônio Além do Carmo guesthouses (Santo Antônio)
  A quieter quarter of restored colonial guesthouses with bay views next to the old town.

Must-Haves

• Parque Nacional do Iguaçu (Rodovia das Cataratas)
  The Brazilian side gives the great panorama of the falls and a walkway into the spray.
• Parque Nacional Iguazú (Puerto Iguazú)
  Cross to Argentina for walkways to the edge of the Devil's Throat.

Fun for Everyone

• Parque das Aves (Rodovia das Cataratas)
  Walk through aviaries of toucans, macaws and rescued birds next to the national park.

Fun for Everyone

• Macuco Safari boat ride (Parque Nacional do Iguaçu)
  A jungle trail and speedboat ride right under the falls, guaranteed to soak you.

Must-Haves

• Itaipu Dam (Avenida Tancredo Neves)
  One of the largest hydroelectric dams in the world, with tours inside and on top.

Off the Beaten Path

• Marco das Três Fronteiras (Três Fronteiras)
  The point where Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay meet, with a sunset light show.

Off the Beaten Path

• Templo Budista Chen Tien (Jardim Califórnia)
  A peaceful Buddhist temple with a hundred statues overlooking Paraguay.

Fun for Everyone

• Rafain Churrascaria Show (Centro)
  A large churrascaria with a show of dances from across Latin America.

Great for Date Night

• Porto Canoas (Parque Nacional do Iguaçu)
  A restaurant above the falls where the river slides past before plunging over.

Fun for Everyone

• Avenida Jorge Schimmelpfeng bars (Centro)
  The main strip of bars and pubs where locals and travellers mix at night.

Must-Haves

• Ciudad del Este markets (Ciudad del Este)
  The famous Paraguayan bargain markets across the Friendship Bridge, for confident travellers only.

Must-Haves

• Hotel das Cataratas (Parque Nacional do Iguaçu)
  The pink colonial style hotel inside the park lets you walk the falls before the crowds.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Hostels in Vila Yolanda (Vila Yolanda)
  Friendly hostels with pools, close to the bus routes to the falls.

Must-Haves

• Teatro Amazonas (Centro)
  The pink rubber boom opera house with a dome of Brazilian flag coloured tiles.

Fun for Everyone

• Palacete Provincial (Centro)
  Several small museums under one roof in an old government palace.

Must-Haves

• Meeting of the Waters (Rio Negro)
  Dark Rio Negro and muddy Solimões flow side by side for miles without mixing.

Must-Haves

• Amazon jungle lodges (Rio Negro)
  Riverside lodges offer canoe trips, night walks and piranha fishing in the forest.

Off the Beaten Path

• Anavilhanas archipelago (Novo Airão)
  Hundreds of forested islands in the Rio Negro, often visited with river dolphins.
• Presidente Figueiredo waterfalls (Presidente Figueiredo)
  A town of waterfalls and caves in the forest north of the city.

Fun for Everyone

• MUSA, Museu da Amazônia (Cidade de Deus)
  A forest reserve with a tall observation tower above the canopy.
• Bosque da Ciência (Petrópolis)
  An INPA research forest where you can see manatees, otters and monkeys.

Must-Haves

• Mercado Municipal Adolpho Lisboa (Centro)
  An iron market hall modelled on Les Halles, full of fish, fruit and herbal remedies.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Feira da Manaus Moderna (Centro)
  The busy riverside market where boats unload fish like tambaqui and pirarucu.

Must-Haves

• Banzeiro (Nossa Senhora das Graças)
  Amazonian ingredients like pirarucu and tucupi in a modern restaurant.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Tacacá na Praça (São Sebastião)
  Hot tacacá soup with jambu leaves, which make your lips tingle, from street stalls.

Great for Date Night

• Caxiri (Centro)
  Regional cooking with views of the Teatro Amazonas.

Low Cost and Authentic

• X Caboquinho breakfast (Centro)
  Try the local roll of tucumã fruit and cheese at any lanchonete in the morning.

Fun for Everyone

• Largo de São Sebastião (Centro)
  The square in front of the opera house fills with bars and free shows in the evening.

Must-Haves

• Parintins Folklore Festival (Parintins)
  The Boi Bumbá contest between two teams on an Amazon island each June.

Fun for Everyone

• Amazonas Opera Festival (Centro)
  An annual opera season at the Teatro Amazonas.

Must-Haves

• Lagoa da Conceição (Lagoa)
  A lagoon at the heart of the island with dunes, restaurants and nightlife.

Fun for Everyone

• Praia Mole (Leste)
  A surf and sunset beach backed by hills, with a lively crowd.
• Joaquina dunes (Joaquina)
  Sandboard down the big dunes beside a famous surf beach.

Off the Beaten Path

• Lagoinha do Leste (Pântano do Sul)
  A wild beach reached only by a forest trail or boat.
• Ilha do Campeche (Campeche)
  A protected island with clear water and ancient rock carvings, visited by boat.

Off the Beaten Path

• Santo Antônio de Lisboa (Norte)
  An Azorean fishing village with colonial houses and sunset oyster bars.

Must-Haves

• Ribeirão da Ilha oysters (Ribeirão da Ilha)
  The island's oyster farms supply waterfront restaurants in a historic village.

Low Cost and Authentic

• Box 32 (Mercado Público)
  A busy bar stand in the old market for seafood snacks and cold beer.

Must-Haves

• Mercado Público de Florianópolis (Centro)
  The historic market hall in the centre with seafood, crafts and bars.

Great for Date Night

• Lagoa nightlife (Lagoa)
  Bars around the lagoon centre make for relaxed evenings with live music.

Fun for Everyone

• Ponte Hercílio Luz (Centro)
  The restored suspension bridge, lit at night, is the symbol of the city.

Great for Date Night

• Pousadas in Praia do Rosa (Imbituba)
  A hillside beach town of pousadas with sea views, a short trip south.