Sugarloaf Mountain, samba and 7,000 kilometres of beach – Brazil is a continent in itself, and Rio is only the beginning.
Photo: Valerie (Unsplash)
Full disclosure: I haven't seen Brazil yet, but friends have been telling me about it for years – and about Rio first of all: the cable car up Sugarloaf Mountain, the rack railway to Christ the Redeemer on Corcovado, evenings on Copacabana or in Ipanema, caipirinha in hand.
After that it gets big: the Iguazú Falls in the south (the Brazilian side has the panorama), Salvador da Bahia with its Afro-Brazilian old town, the Amazon from Manaus with a lodge in the rainforest, and the beaches in the north-east – Jericoacoara, Praia do Forte, Fernando de Noronha for divers.
Brazil calls for a bit of caution in the cities, but nothing that can't be handled with common sense – in Rio, friends recommend a hotel in Ipanema or Leblon and a taxi rather than a walk in the evening. Three weeks and two domestic flights are enough for Rio, Iguazú and one beach region.
Rio: Ipanema or Leblon. Salvador: Pelourinho (old town) or Barra by the beach. Amazon: a lodge outside Manaus.
I almost always compare hotels, apartments and guesthouses on Booking.com – with genuine reviews and usually free cancellation.
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