Rio de Janeiro trip/tips

[PigBellmont]

Heading to Rio in a few weeks for business, but I expect to have at least one day to see the sights. I'm staying at the Marriott in the Copacobana district. If you've been - what should I see and how should I get around? I did see that Brazil threatened to sue Fox for the Simpsons portrayal of Rio - good to know they didn't consider the episode (Homer kidnapped) representative of their city...

 

[Bernard]

My girlfriend took me to Rio for my 30th birthday in 2000. We stayed at the Rio Palace Hotel on Copacabana Beach. Rio is a fantastic city.

Getting around in no problem. Taxis are plentiful. The city is very dense making most cab rides short and inexpensive.

The beaches are legendary. Lots of girls wearing next to nothing. Cool, clean water. I was blown away to see guys on the beach playing volleyball using only their FEET. Two on two with a full size volleyball net. They were passing and kicking the ball like nobody's business. Their skills were amazing.

Check the futbol schedule. Rio has nine pro teams. I went to a soccer game at the 200,000 seat Maracana Stadium. It was quite a sight to behold.

If you do one thing and one thing only, make the trek to the top of the Corcovado to see the Jesus statue. There are plenty of organized trips on buses. There's a train that will take you to the top of the mountain. If you are short on time, like me, just take a taxi all the way to the top. When the road ends, it's still a hike up a bunch of stairs to the top. The view alone is worth the trip. I was impressed that anything so big could be built on such a peak.

Have fun.

Bernard

 

[longhrnfan]

Dont stay in rio palace. Stay in an American hotel chain on a major beach.

Go do the major stuff, its pretty cool. Go to sugar loaf, go see big Jesus, etc.

If you want a BAD *** restaurant go to
Antiquarius.
Great food, great service, an amazing amount of food, for a pretty affordable price for a nice restaurant.

If you had an extended stay, you should go down to Paraty, a bad *** portuguese style city with great food.

 

[PigBellmont]

Thanks for the tips!