Your Destination

Since Rio de Janeiro is located between a rainforest and beaches, it presents a unique variety of products within the same tourist destination. Rio is a city of contrasts: the colonial architecture recalls the past, while modern and imposing buildings convey a vision of the future. Two spots are worldwide known: the Pão de Açúcar (Sugar Loaf) and the Statue of Christ the Redeemer. Visitors soon find out a fact known to every resident in this city, and which makes them proud: there is always something going on in Rio - exhibitions, dance and music shows, sport events; this is the city that never sleeps.

The Rio relief is connected by the Serra do Mar mountains, covered by the Atlantic Forest vegetation. It is characterized by striking contrasts: mountains and sea, forests and beaches, rocky cliffs face rising sharply from extensive lowlands, thus forming a landscape picture of a rare beauty, which has led Rio to be worldwide known.

Rio de Janeiro has three major mountain ranges, some smaller mountains and separated hills among the plains. Not far from Rio de Janeiro, there are three cities with mountain climate, which is a little bit colder in winter: Petropolis, Teresopolis and Nova Friburgo, located at the Serra dos Órgãos mountain area.
In the boundaries of the Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Minas Gerais States, there are two other mountainous cities: Itatiaia y Penedo. These cities serve as shelter for the Cariocas (residents of Rio de Janeiro) when they want to enjoy a pleasanter climate not too far from the capital of the State.


Rio de Janeiro presents a tropical climate. It enjoys high temperatures most part of the year. Summer in Rio (December- March) is hot, with temperatures ranging from 25°C (88º F) and 40°C (104 ºF); winter presents temperatures between 20°C (68 ºF) and 30°C (86 ºF). Therefore, there are many days to enjoy the beaches. Humidity levels may be high. Summer is rainier than winter; however, rainfalls do not last much. 

Rio enjoys a purely tropical climate. Therefore, it presents pleasant temperatures almost the entire year. If you want to enjoy warm temperatures, it is recommended to visit the region in winter; otherwise, you can enjoy higher temperatures during summer.


The Carnival –the most exciting and biggest party in the world- captivates the city and its visitors during five days of constant frenzy. It begins at midnight on the Friday previous to the Ash Wednesday, i.e. by the end of February and begging of March. One of the folkloric feasts most important in Brazil is the Juninas festivities, celebrated in June. In Rio, this feast is celebrated in different public squares throughout the month. The Feast of Our Lady of Glória do Outeiro (on August 15th) is typical for the music, the colorful stalls and a procession on the streets.
Every Sunday in October, the Penha Feast takes place; this is one of the most important and popular religious feasts of the city. In addition, one of world's largest New Year's Eve festivals takes place in Rio. Each year ends with a remarkable New Year’s Eve and Yemanjá Festival. In Rio, celebrating the New Year involves the entire city. New Year in Copacabana is a beautiful collective party, where residents and visitors join to celebrate sharing the same euphoria.


History records a curious detail regarding the origin of the city name. It is stated that on January 1st, 1502, a Portuguese sailor –probably Gonzalo Coelho- disembarked in the Guanabara Bay and confused it with a river mouth; he named the place Rio de Janeiro (River of January, in English). During the first decades, the Portuguese colonized only the northeast of Brazil, establishing sugar plantations and extracting valuable wood from the forests.

European residents only inhabited the Guanabara Bay when a French expedition settled there in 1555. A few years later, a Portuguese force destroyed the French colony. In 1567, the Portuguese founded the city of Sao Sebastiao do Rio de Janeiro. Such name was then simplified. It was the capital and main city of Brazil since 1763 until 1960. In that last decade, it lost its major role: Brasilia became the national administrative center and Sao Paulo became the economic center. Although Rio is a cosmopolitan city, it maintains many of its history features, for instance the Baroque monasteries and churches, the quite preserved façades in Art deco style and the modernist architectonic style of the 1950’s.


Black, Indian and Portuguese people have influenced the local cuisine. Among the peculiarities of the Rio de Janeiro cuisine, the habit of naming dishes after ambassadors certainly prevails. The two most remarkable examples are the Osvaldo Aranha steak and Leão Veloso soup. On Saturdays, everybody eats "Feijoada" (black beans) when returning from the beach. This is one of the most typical Carioca dishes and is constituted by the two bases of the Brazilian food: rice and black beans (feijão). They are mixed with different types of sausages and pork stew, orange and green cauliflower. It is served with the classical and always present farofa, which is cassava flour toasted and seasoned in different ways.

Basic Dictionary
YES: Si ; NO: Não ; HELLO: Olá, ; GOOD BYE: Adeus ; GOOD MORNING: Bons dias ; GOOD AFTERNOON: Boas tardes ; GOOD EVENING: Boas noites ; PLEASE: por favor ; I'M SORRY: lo siento ; THANK YOU: Brigado ; DOCTOR: Médico ; PHARMACY: Farmacia. NUMBERS: 1: Um, 2: Dois, 3: Trés, 4: Quatro, 5: Cinco, 6: Seis, 7: Sete, 8: Oito, 9: Nove, 10: Dez, 11: Once, 12: Doze, 13: Treze, 14: Catorze, 15: Quinze, 16: Dezasseis, 17: Dezassete, 18: Dezoito, 19: Dezanove, 20: Vinte, 21: Vinte a um, 22: Vinte e dois. , 30: Trinta, 40: Quarenta, 50: Cinquenta, 60: Sessenta, 70: Setenta, 80: Oitenta, 90: Noventa, 100: Cem, 1000: Mil. DAYS OF THE WEEK: MONDAY: Segunda-feira, TUESDAY: Terça-feira, WEDNESDAY: Quarta-feira, THURSDAY: Quinta-feira, FRIDAY: Sexta-feira, SATURDAY: Sábado, SUNDAY: Domingo. USEFUL WORDS: SMALL: Pequeno / BIG : Grande; HOT: Quente / COLD: Frio; OPEN: Aberto / CLOSED: Fechado; GOOD: Bom / BAD: Mau; NEW: Novo / OLD: Antigo; PUSH: Empurrar / PULL: Atirar; ENTRANCE: Entrada / EXIT: Saída; LADIES: Senhoras / GENTLEMEN: Cavaleiro; FAR: Longe / NEAR: Cera; LEFT: Esquerda / RIGHT: Direita; TAXI: Taxi; BUS: Autocarro. MEALS: BREAKFAST: Desjejum or Café da manha; LUNCH: Almoço; DINNER: Ceia; WINE: Vinho; DESSERT: Postre; MENU: Menu or la lista; BILL: Conta. USEFUL SENTENCES: DO YOU SPEAK ENGLISH: ¿Fala inglês?; I DON'T UNDERSTAND: Não compreendo; WHERE IS IT: ¿Onde fica?; HOW MUCH IS IT: ¿Quanto custa?; WHAT TIME IS IT: ¿Qué horas são?; COULD YOU HELP ME: ¿Pode ajudar-me?