I will be visiting Rio de Janeiro this August with my husband. I am going there for a conference, and I will have some opportunities to explore the city during that time. Afterwards, though, we’d like to take a few days after as a vacation, and what we’d really like to do is some kind of “eco-tourism.” We want to be out in nature, hiking, canoeing, etc., and we want to see the amazing biodiversity of Brazil. The problem is, Rio is a very urban area (excepting its urban rainforest of course) and it seems that the main attractions such as the Amazon rainforest and the Iguazu falls are all a plane flight away.
So help us out: are there any day trips to “real nature” that we could take? Or are we better off doing an in-country flight to some of the real attractions? (Iguazu Falls does seem to be only a short plane flight away, Amazon rainforest seems quite a bit further.) Also, if anybody has taken any guided tours, are there any you would recommend?
Also, any general recommendations about Rio or Brazil are welcome :).
Yes, there is plenty of urban wilderness close by to Rio. For example, the Tijuca Forest is a shot ride, and you can spend all day hiking through it-hire a guide, and take a cab. A good guide will charge you about $40.00/day.You can also take a tour to Angra do Reyes (3 hours south of Rio by bus); awesome scenery and beatiful people.
You will also take in the Jardim Botanico (in Rio)-you can see all the tropical plants right in the city.
Stay at the beach (either Copacabana or Ipanema)-if you are on a budget, stay in a hotel a few blocks from the beac. Bring LOTS of sunblock, and WEAR a hat!
I second the Jardim and Tijuca. The garden is at the former residence of the king Portugaul and quite exrtaordinary. There are blue morpho butterflies throughout the Tijuca forest and great waterfalls to swim and play in. A short car trip can take you to to great climbing options, Pedra de Gavea and Pedra Bonita. The views from both are spectacular but Pedra de Gavea is quite scary at times. There is also a preserve about an hour to the south whose name I will remember later with an incredible beach and no development.
Do not step outside without suntan lotion, and the blue 2 real bill will get you a Antarctica Pilsen
The most important step is bring me along. This is key for reasons I’ll explain later. I’ll be hard to convince so you should probably offer to pay all my expenses.
That’s pretty much the only time I ever go to Rio, since the kids have our summer off. The weather is strange: it can easily reach the 90s, but then the sun sets every day at 5, giving you a very strange mix of summer and winter. August isn’t really true beach weather to a Brazilian, but there will still be plenty of folks there.
Sunblock and hats are not as urgently needed at that time of year. January is a different story altogether. I received the worst sunburn of my life one January in Rio—had a tattoo of my bathing suit for two years after that.
You should pack a light jacket as well. Temps don’t go too low, but the last time we went it went into the upper 50s for a couple of days (rare).
Ooops, I forgot about the seasonal shift. We made one of our trips during the Rio ‘winter.’ The worst part was that everyone there thought the weather was crappy and did not want to do as much. I still received a remarkable sunburn on a cloudy day. The red lines between where my fingers had dragged suntan lotion inadequately across my back were radiant.
Here is how my trip went. Landed in Sao Paulo, saw the sights for a day (not many) then took a bus up to Rio. The bus was comfortable and not very expensive. In Rio i saw a soccer match, i’m not much of a soccer fan but the excitement in the crowd was cool and enough to keep you entertained. Relaxed on the popular beaches already mentioned, Ipanema and Copacabana. As Snnipe said you might want to check out Sugar Loaf or the christ statue. I opted for the christ statue and was told that the Sugar Loaf view was similar just from a different side of the city so you might want to pick one. Hang gliding over the beach was cool, the operators came and picked me up where i was staying and dropped me back off. The botanical gardens are def worth checking out if your looking for some exposure to nature. Skip the Museum of Contemporary art, the building is way cooler than the limited art collection they have inside. I didn’t go on one, but was told the tours of the favelas (slums) were an interesting experience. I finished the trip off with a flight to the Amazon. Flew from Rio to Manaus, took two cars and two boats to get to the jungle where i slept in a hammock along the river. Did the usual amazon things, jungle trek, nighttime caiman hunting (the tour guide did the actual hunting we just got to hold it), piranha fishing, boat ride through the flooded forest. If i had more time i would’ve liked to have checked out Ilha Grande. It’s an island off the coast that you can take a ferry back and fourth to. If your looking for a rain forest experience in a day trip i’d highly recommend you check that out. Pick up the Lonely Planet Brazil. My whole trip was planned from that book and word of mouth.
I had the good fortune to finish my Masters degree in a study abroad program in Rio. One of the highlights for me was the trip I took to Petropolis.
To quote from the wikipedia page referenced above…
Hopefully when you go to the beaches you’ll get to see foot volley. (There’s probably a more official sounding name than that.) It’s indescribable watching 2 on 2 volleyball being played with soccer rules. Incredible athleticism. I vote that would be an AWESOME Olympic event.
