Brazil

On this page, photo, travel diary and lush information, great Brazil!

Travel information and recommendations for Brazil

Why go? There are many reasons to visit Brazil which is difficult to list them all: luxuriant nature, the spectacular city of Rio, the cheerfulness of the inhabitants, the sea and the beaches, the numerous practicable activities ... L & # 39; High crime rate can be a concern, but if you use a little common sense (do not enter the favelas waving gold watches, for example) Rio is not much more dangerous than Paris or Los Angeles.

When to go? Brazil is enormous, so much depends on the travel itinerary. If you are not interested in participating in New Year's and Carnival celebrations, better to avoid high season and travel between April to November. In this period (around their winter) the climate is still warm and in general less rainy and less sultry: only south of St. Paul can be too cold to go to the sea.
How to move? Buses and internal flights are indicated to move between the desired destinations, from which it is easy to organize trips. The rental car is generally not recommended, even if there are areas (for example between Rio and San Paolo) where it can be comfortable.
To rent a car here at the best prices for your travel itinerary I absolutely recommend by Search And book this link .
How much does it cost? Brazil is a growing nation and so its prices, however cheaper than in Europe or North America. We spent 700 euros of intercontinental flight from the Europe and 150 euros throughout for the internal flights San Paolo-Iguacu and Iguacu-Rio. For the rest (accommodation, transport, food, trips, etc.), sleeping in the hostel or in cheap hotels, we spent about 600 euros each for 10 days.
Keep in mind that in what it costs I take into account all the Travel ... From the middle for the airport of departure to the drink passing to meals and souvenirs.
For an idea on hotel prices in Brazil Click here to compare the hotels and find the most convenient accommodation.

Where to go? A travel itinerary in Brazil should include Rio de Janeiro and the coast between Rio and San Paolo, as well as Iguacu waterfalls, classic and unmissable destinations. Along this coast is the great, one & # 39; tropical island where beaches and forest offer spectacular views.
Other destinations? There are infinite other possible destinations, from the lively Northern beaches (Fortaleza, San Salvador) to the beautiful tropical island of Fernando de Noronha, from the nature of the Pantanal to that of the Amazon & # 39;. Obviously combine different destinations, it takes several internal flights and therefore more costs. For a travel itinerary that includes the whole country I recommend at least six months of vacation!

Travel Diary in Brazil

In mid-August, ideal period to visit the south of Brazil, we landed punctual in Rio de Janeiro, where our travel itinerary in this country of South America began. An economic bus took us to the city, between Chaos and Favelas. We arrived at our hostel, the Ipanema Beach Hostel, which I recommend, early in the morning. In # 39; Rio's enormity, Ipanema is a nice neighborhood to stay, well connected by means of transport, safe enough and convenient for beaches.

Ipanema is super attractive, with the beautiful sea walk with Brazilians engaged in all beach sports and views of the fascinating and peculiar green mountains known as & quot; panettoni & quot; Scattered here and there for the city. They also saw the fabelas aroused. A typical tourist itinerary in Rio de Janeiro includes a walk along the sea and from Ipanema I arrived up to Copacabana with its spectacular beach arch along almost 5 km. To face the waves of the Atlantic Ocean there were only surfers.

On the beach you could admire the palm groves, street vendors, bars, sand castles, beach volleyball players and thousands of people committed to walking, running or tan. C & # 39; were 28 degrees - a winter Really rigid, that of Rio .

From the end of the beach of Copacabana, a taxi took us to the Pao de Acucar ), the famous pan of sugar on which a cable car rises, another must in every travel itinerary in Brazil and Rio de Janeiro in Detail.

Under the sugar pan there is the beautiful Playa Vermelha , on which some photos clicked. From here we saw mountaineers climb the panettone. We returned to Ipanema. In the hostel he was fine with the possibility & # 39; to meet people, ask for information and advice and organize trips. We booked so & # 39; for the next day, a transport in a bus and boat to the tropical island of Ilha Grande. Rio is sadly famous for crime, but in that first evening Carioca we didn't feel minimally threatened, while we turned at night; Even on night buses there were unaccompanied women playing with the iPhone, while we had left almost everyone to have at the hotel. Obviously, more time to go to Rio plus the risk of being robbed increases, and the wealthy live in expensive neighborhoods with guarding and railing at the door.

The next morning we walked along the Lagoa (a lagoon behind Ipanema and Leblon). Here too - in a particularly rich area of Rio de Janeiro - the Brazilians practiced every kind of sport. At 11am we left for Ilha Grande. After the dirty cement crossing of the periphery of Rio, we reached the green coast along which the panoramic road that from Rio Porta to San Paolo winds. Lunch in a service area with a pound buffet: the dish of io & # 39 was filled; You wanted, and then weighed the content. For 8 Etti (I was hungry) of meats, fowls, salads, mysterious and tasty tasty appetizers, spent 4 euros. We arrived at mangaritiba , a sea village with a beautiful beach.

In Mangaritiba we took a breakdown for Ilha Grande . We arrived on the island, in Vila Abrao, and we looked for accommodation. We still found a quiet guesthouse on the beach at a good price. The beautiful thing was that Vila Abrao, the only modest town of Ilha Grande, was no car: the walk to the sea, on which they overlooked hotels and restaurants, was simply the beach. For long stretches not c & # 39; it was not even the sidewalk: S & # 39; came out of the house and put his feet on the sand. Outside the country c & # 39; they were paths, and not roads: walking, a beautiful route took the dell of the island in a week. In short, every second we were remembered that we were on vacation and that Brazil was cool.

The bars on the beach were spectacular, but the evening nightlife was still quiet. The next morning we participated in a motorboat trip that took us to several beaches of Ilha Grande: being a tropical island practically uninhabited, with light sand, palm trees and mountains covered with rainforest , was splendid, like You see in the photos. Snorkeling, we noticed a myriad of colorful fish, starfish and other wonders.

We stopped to have lunch in a village, where we, refusing the restaurant & quot; tourism & quot;, we bought the chips in a small shop (alive the originality, characteristic on which in fact we tried to base our travel itinerary, with alternating fortunes) .

The next day we faced the paths of Ilha Grande, admiring panoramas and inlets. We got up in monkeys and in a yellow and black snake, a view of which we would do without!

After admiring several beautiful bays, we reached the beach of Lopes Mendes , which has the fame of being one of the most beautiful beaches in Brazil. In fact, it is spectacular, a forced destination in a travel itinerary between Rio de Janeiro and San Paolo.

The next morning, on early, for a scandalously low price we took the public boat for Angra Dos Reis, a city of the continent far from Mangaritiba. From there, we mounted on a bus that went towards San Paolo to get to paraty, a cultural stage of our travel itinerary in Brazil .
The stretch of coast between Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo would deserve Many breaks between hundreds of bays, beaches and islets. The peculiarity of Paraty is that this is a colonial town with a beautiful historic center made of stone streets and white houses with colored doors .

Let the luggage at the hostel that Lagarto (booked when we were in Ilha big) and discovered the attractive town, with the characteristic roads of downtown brought us to the ocean, which seemed almost a lagoon in Paraty, Enclosed com & # 39; it was between islands and headlands.

The next day with a guide and a jeep we visited the hinterland of Paraty, between cultivations, jungle stains and waterfalls. Between the Cachaca distillery (the alcoholic base ingredient of the Caipirinha) and a pound lunch the most fun part of the trip was to play in the waterfalls in the forest.

We did ice cream showers, we threw us down for natural rock slides and we plunged into the ponds of the streams using the Lianes to launch us (all activities I recommend).

In the evening c & # 39; it was the holiday of Cachaca (pronounced & quot; Cachassa & quot;), a sort of festival, partly open and partly under a tent, with live music (which seemed noise). >

The next day, we concluded the visit to Paraty, and from there a guy gave us a passage to San Paolo, from where we flyed to Foz de Iguazu . Here, at the airport, a bus flyer with a driver sent by our Rouver Hotel took to the hotel. The next morning we took the bus to reach Puerto Iguazu (in Argentina) and from here the famous waterfalls.

On the Argentine side of this natural wonder you can spend a whole day walking along the many paths to admire the river and the power of the water from different points of view. Even the fauna in the park had its charm: we noticed turtles, catfish, coati, parrots and colored butterflies that fluttered into gigantic swarms. The only flaw of the day, the expensive sandwiches sold by the bars in the park.

Late afternoon we returned to the hotel bus. Cenemmo in a restaurant near the hotel with a Churrasco Mixed for three people: meat, bean and varied sauces sufficient for 79 people.
Upon awakening, always by bus, we went to the Brazilian side of the waterfalls of Iguazu. Let the luggage inside a of the padlock wardrobes, so we could turn freely for the park.

The visit to the Brazilian side is much shorter since a single path travels the canyon hem in which the waterfalls fall. However, it must absolutely be part of a travel itinerary in Brazil and is worth all 20 euros. Something unique in the world. Surrounded by an incredible bow of waterfalls with a rainbow (/b>, we were completely soaked with splashes.

We soon ended the visit, so we found ourselves deciding whether to go around the feet of the falls, or a flight in helicopter . We opted for the latter, for the price of 90 euros each. After a half & # 39; waiting for the flight. The flight stands out. We admired the jungle and the river go-wing high, and then observe the horseshoe-shaped canyon in which the most beautiful waterfalls fall into the world. It was a memorable experience!

After the helicopter flight we took the bus to the airport, really close to the waterfalls. We landed at Rio de Janeiro at sunset. We took a taxi with a taximeter, avoiding those who offered us still inflated fixed prices, and returned to the Ipanema Beach Hostel.
The next day we visited the Corcovado , the mountain high 710 meters in the middle of Rio on whose top stands the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer. The waiting for the rack for the climb was quite long, but it was worth it because the panorama was impressive ... I advise you in every travel itinerary in Brazil (as it is obvious).
Once I went down, a taxi brought us back to the hostel. After an afternoon at the beach playing beach tennis, in the evening we took a bus to the center and, in particular, towards the neighborhood of lapa , famous for the bars and schools of samba . On the street C & # 39; it was a quantity of impressive people. In some bars C & # 39; it was live music, while outside the street artists gave show.
after the aperitif and dinner we entered a nightclub on several floors, with modern live music on one side and samba from the other. It was a very fun evening, even if I generally don't like the discos.
was the last day of vacation. The next day we walked to Botafogo and went to Rio de Janeiro airport. A pity, because the wonderful Brazil would deserve a much longer holiday!

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