Rio de Janeiro – the city that stole our hearts. In recent years, holidaymakers have been flocking to the bustling Brazilian city despite rumours of safety concerns and rightfully so! We visited Rio in February 2023 and it was the trip of a lifetime.
We always make sure to do our research before visiting any country, however, finding key information regarding what to/not to do in Rio was arguably pretty difficult! So here are 10 important things to know before visiting Rio de Janeiro…
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1. Rio de Janeiro is a huge city, Plan Your Activities Accordingly
There are so many things to see and do in Rio de Janeiro, and sooner or later you will discover that as opposed to being concentrated in one district, the attractions are spread all across the city!
Whilst you may have the time and money to tick off everything on your to-do list – we highly recommend prioritising your must-visits especially if you are short on time. A prime example of this was Pedra do Telegrapho. We REALLY wanted to visit this spot. You must know it; that rock that everyone has a cool Instagrammable picture with making it look like they’re hanging off the rock on the edge of a cliff? Well if you don’t know it – spoiler alert – there is a big rock underneath it to catch you when you ‘fall’.
We too wanted to take this iconic picture, however, when we saw that it was over 50km away from where we were staying in Copacabana, we were instantly deterred. Though the journey was not impossible, we were short on time given that Air France made us miss 2 days of our trip (that’s a story for another day) so travelling that far just for a picture of us hanging from a rock didn’t seem like the smartest idea.
Moral of the story – plan your trip and excursions according to your duration!
2. Are you Vegetarians/Vegan? You’re In For A Tough Ride
Whether it’s Feijoada, Farofa, Bolinho de Bacalhau, or Picanha – Brazilians sure do love their meat. We are not saying this to deter any vegetarians or vegans from visiting, but it may be worth planning out your restaurant choices before visiting rather than walking the streets on a whim when visiting Rio.
That being said, you could just survive on açai for the whole trip – that wouldn’t be too bad would it?
3. SIM cards aren’t the cheapest
Buying a SIM card in Rio isn’t necessarily going to bankrupt you, however, they cost significantly more than we expected so just bear that in mind. When you are purchasing a SIM card from the local shop, please make sure to bring your passport! No passport, no SIM card. Then you will have to make the disappointing journey back home to get it, and nobody wants to do that now do they?
3. English Isn’t As Widely Spoken As We Would Have Thought
Though we do not expect any non-anglophone country to speak English, we just thought it was worth noting that you may need to brush up on your Portuguese skills. Coming across fluent English speakers in Rio was rare (which is not a problem at all), in fact, it finally gave us the opportunity to use our audio translation app!
When all else failed, I just spoke to them in Spanish (which they fully understood due to the similarities between the two languages) and they would reply in Portuguese #problemsolvingskills.
4. Uber and other taxi apps are super affordable!
Cabs were so affordable that we ended up NEVER taking the metro during our trip! We would always plan to travel by metro just to experience it for cultural benefits, but each time we planned to leave our apartment – we would just decide to take an Uber as it was just too affordable not to!
5. EVERYONE here is good-looking!
Men, women, the elderly – everyone! It really is true what they say about the Cidade Maravilhosa. So if you’re visiting Rio as a single person, you may not be once you leave ;).
6. Christ The Redeemer Is Not A Tourist Trap And It Is 100% A Must Visit
Yes, of course, there will be many tourists there. Unfortunately, there isn’t really a ‘beat the crowds’ tip. Nevertheless, Cristo Redentor truly is my favourite wonder of the world that I have visited so far! I was just in awe as to how amazing it was and it’s even bigger in person too!
7. Pedra do Sal Street Party takes Place every Monday and you MUST attend
Pedra do Sal in Lapa is a free street party that happens every Monday – yes EVERY Monday. Who says Mondays have to be glum?!
It does get crowded here and we have heard some complaints about tourists getting their phones stolen so do be extra vigilant. Apart from that, we had an amazing time here! There are street food vendors, good music and a great atmosphere – that makes it a 10/10 in my books!
8. Whether you’re a football fan or not, you have to watch a match at Maracanã
Trust me, we are not big football fans – but going to see a football game at Maracanã stadium was one of the best things we did!
The tickets are super affordable, so much so that we even opted for the VIP tickets which were only slightly pricier but included a seat right in front of the pitch and unlimited food and drinks!
The Brazilian fans are super patriotic about their football teams and the chants are very catchy which just adds to the incredible experience of the match – we cannot recommend enough!
9. We felt extremely safe In Rio, but keep your wits about you
Like all countries, you have to proceed with caution. As 3 young black girls, we experienced no safety troubles in the Brazillian capital and we had the best time!
10. Maybe Steer Clear of the favela tours
Some travellers visit Rio and one of the top activities on their bucket list is doing a favela tour. This entails visiting a favela which are particularly challenging housing environments that are often known for being dangerous. The tour guide is usually a Brazillian national who is amicable with residents in the favela. It’s up to you of course, but we wanted to remain as safe as we could and this meant not partaking in this activity.
That’s All 23 Travellers! We hope you enjoyed reading about our top 10 tips for visiting Rio de Janeiro.
23 Travels are Personal Travel Planners who have been creating bespoke travel itineraries for many years. If you would like us to plan your trip to London, or any other worldwide destination for you, please visit 23 Travels Itinerary Services.
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