Rio de Janeiro

Currency

Exchange at casas de câmbio in Centro or Copacabana. Airport rates are poor. Cards are widely accepted, even at beach vendors (Pix is universal in Brazil).

ATMs & cards

Banco do Brasil and Bradesco ATMs in airports and malls are most reliable for foreign cards. Withdraw during banking hours in well-lit areas. Limit: R$1,000-1,500 per transaction.

Use machines inside bank branches, malls or the airport. Many Brazilian ATMs stop dispensing to foreign cards in the evening as an anti-fraud measure.

Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.

Safety

Don’t take expensive phones to the beach. Use Uber instead of walking in unfamiliar areas at night. Stay in Copacabana, Ipanema, or Leblon.

Our own assessment, not a sourced index.

Entry & visa

Health & emergencies

Required to enter

• Yellow fever certificate, but only if you are arriving from a country where yellow fever is present

Worth having

• Yellow fever — recommended for most of Brazil including the area around Rio
• Hepatitis A
• Typhoid
• Tetanus up to date

Getting treated

Public emergency care (SUS) is free to everyone including foreigners, but is crowded and slow. Private hospitals in Rio and São Paulo are excellent and expect insurance or payment up front.

Dengue, zika and chikungunya are all present and mosquito-borne — repellent matters. Yellow fever vaccination should be given at least 10 days before arrival.

Orientation, not medical advice. Entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history and where you have been — check with a travel clinic or your national health service four to six weeks before you go.

Food tip

Try açaí bowls (the real thing, not tourist smoothies), feijoada on Saturdays, and churrasco at a rodizio restaurant.

Getting around

• Metro — clean, safe, connects Copacabana/Ipanema to Centro. R$6.50 per ride
• Uber/99 — very cheap and widely used, safer than taxis
• Bus — extensive but confusing for visitors. Use Google Maps for routes
• Walking — great along the beach promenades (Copacabana, Ipanema)
• Airport: Uber from GIG to Copacabana ∼R$80-120 (40 min)

Must-see

Things to do

• Visit Christ the Redeemer
• Take the cable car to Sugarloaf
• Relax on Copacabana and Ipanema
• Hike Tijuca Forest
• Explore Santa Teresa neighborhood
• Watch sunset from Arpoador

Nearby day trips

Say a few words

Portuguese (Brazilian)

• HelloOi / Oláoy / o-LA
• PleasePor favorpor fa-VOR
• Thank youObrigado / Obrigadao-bree-GA-doo / -da
• Yes / NoSim / Nãoseeng / nowng
• Excuse meCom licençakong lee-SEN-sa
• How much is it?Quanto custa?KWAN-too KOOS-ta
• The bill, pleaseA conta, por favora KON-ta
• Cheers!Saúde!sa-OO-djee

Softer and more open than European Portuguese, and the de sounds like "dje".

Religion

Catholic and Evangelical

The largest Catholic population in the world, with a fast-growing Evangelical share and Afro-Brazilian traditions such as Candomblé and Umbanda practised alongside.

Do's and don'ts

Do

• Greet with a kiss on each cheek between women, or a woman and a man; a handshake between men
• Expect physical closeness in conversation — standing back reads as cold
• Arrive late to social invitations; on time is genuinely early
• Learn a few words of Portuguese, and never open in Spanish

Don't

• Do not make the OK sign with finger and thumb — it is obscene here
• Do not walk with a phone visible in the street
• Do not wear obvious jewellery or watches on the beach or in the city
• Do not call Brazilians Hispanic or assume they speak Spanish