Discover
Brazil
Breathtaking natural beauty meets a vibrant, colorful, and rhythmic culture.
Top Destinations
Explore our curated selection of landmarks and cities you must visit.
Christ the Redeemer
The iconic 38-metre Art Deco statue of Jesus Christ atop the 700-metre Corcovado mountain, overlooking Rio de Janeiro from its granite peak. Designated one of the New Seven Wonders of the World in 2007, it is the largest Art Deco statue on earth.
Best Time
May to September. Rio's dry season brings clear skies for the summit view. Arrive at opening time (8:00 AM) to avoid afternoon clouds and crowds.
Insider Tip
Take the rack railway (Trem...
Iguazu Falls
The world's largest waterfall system: 275 individual cataracts stretching 2.7 kilometres across the border of Brazil and Argentina, with the most dramatic section — Devil's Throat — plunging 82 metres and generating a perpetual rainbow-filled mist cloud.
Best Time
November to March (wet season) for maximum water volume. August to October for clear skies. The falls never run dry.
Insider Tip
Do the Brazilian side in...
Amazon Rainforest
The world's largest tropical rainforest covers 5.5 million square kilometres, containing 10% of all species on earth. The Amazon River discharges 20% of all fresh water entering the world's oceans, and the forest produces 20% of Earth's oxygen.
Best Time
June to September (low water season) for jungle treks and wildlife spotting. January to May (high water season) for canoe paddling through flooded forest.
Insider Tip
Stay at a jungle lodge...
Copacabana Beach
A 4-kilometre arc of white sand beach flanked by the famous black-and-white wave-patterned mosaic promenade (designed by Roberto Burle Marx), backed by a dense urban canyon of hotels and apartment buildings facing the South Atlantic Ocean.
Best Time
December to March (Brazilian summer) for beach weather. The climate is warm year-round — even July rarely drops below 20°C.
Insider Tip
Each section of the beach...
Pantanal
The world's largest tropical wetland, covering 150,000 square kilometres across Brazil, Bolivia, and Paraguay. The Pantanal floods seasonally, creating one of the most productive wildlife habitats on Earth with the densest jaguar population accessible to tourists anywhere.
Best Time
July to October (dry season). Jaguars concentrate along river banks as water recedes, making sightings almost guaranteed.
Insider Tip
Book a jaguar safari from...
Salvador Historic Centre (Pelourinho)
The UNESCO-listed colonial historic centre of Brazil's first capital (1549), a hilltop district of restored 17th and 18th-century Baroque churches and colourful Portuguese townhouses that formed the heart of the largest slave-trading port in the Americas.
Best Time
February for Carnaval (Salvador's is considered more authentic and exciting than Rio's). Year-round for culture, with July festivals also spectacular.
Insider Tip
Attend a free public capoeira...
Fernando de Noronha
An archipelago of 21 volcanic islands 354 kilometres off the northeast Brazilian coast, a UNESCO World Heritage Marine National Park with crystal-clear water of the highest visibility in the South Atlantic. Visitor numbers are strictly limited to 420 per day.
Best Time
August to March. Visibility reaches 40 metres underwater. The dolphin congregation in Baía dos Golfinhos is most reliable from August to October.
Insider Tip
The daily visitor limit and...
Rio de Janeiro Carnival
The world's largest carnival, held annually in the five days before Ash Wednesday, attracting over 2 million participants per day in street parties (blocos) and culminating in the Sambadrome parade — the most spectacular spectacle in global popular culture.
Best Time
Carnival is held in February/March (date changes annually based on Easter). Buy Sambadrome tickets 6+ months in advance — quality seats sell out immediately.
Insider Tip
For a more accessible experience,...
Chapada Diamantina
A spectacular plateau national park in the Bahian highlands containing deep canyons, crystal rivers, waterfalls plunging into sapphire-blue natural pools, and a vast network of caves — including the largest cave in South America, Gruta da Torrinha.
Best Time
June to September. The dry season keeps water levels stable in swimming holes. January to April rains increase waterfall volume but make some trails difficult.
Insider Tip
Hire a local guide from...
Sugarloaf Mountain
A 396-metre granite monolith rising from Guanabara Bay at the entrance to Rio de Janeiro harbour, accessible by two consecutive cable cars. The iconic shape — resembling a traditional loaf of sugar — has been a navigational landmark since Portuguese sailors arrived in 1502.
Best Time
Year-round. The cable car runs daily from 8 AM to 9 PM. The sunset view (between 5–7 PM depending on season) is the most spectacular time to visit.
Insider Tip
Arrive on the second (summit)...
Lençóis Maranhenses
A 1,550-square-kilometre national park of brilliant white sand dunes rising 40 metres high, interspersed between June and September with thousands of freshwater blue and emerald lagoons — a combination of dune and lake that exists nowhere else on Earth.
Best Time
July to September for the most lagoons (peak rainy season fills them). March to June is also beautiful with fewer visitors.
Insider Tip
Take a boat tour from...
Olinda
A UNESCO-listed Baroque colonial city of 20 churches, pastel-coloured townhouses, and art studios perched on a series of hills overlooking Recife and the Atlantic Ocean. Founded by the Portuguese in 1535, it is one of the best-preserved colonial urban centres in the Americas.
Best Time
February for Carnaval. Year-round for colonial architecture and craft culture.
Insider Tip
Hire a local guide from...
Bonito
A small town in the southern Pantanal region surrounded by rivers of extraordinary natural filtration. The Rio da Prata and Rio Sucuri have water so crystal-clear and mineral-filtered that 15-metre visibility is standard — making them among the finest freshwater snorkelling experiences on earth.
Best Time
July to October. The dry season brings the lowest water and highest clarity. Summer rains (December to March) reduce visibility significantly.
Insider Tip
All activities in Bonito require...
São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP)
The most important art museum in Latin America, suspended on four red concrete pillars above Paulista Avenue in a building designed by Lina Bo Bardi in 1968. Its collection includes works by Raphael, Botticelli, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, and the world's most comprehensive collection of Brazilian modern art.
Best Time
Year-round. Tuesdays are free. São Paulo's cultural scene peaks from March to November.
Insider Tip
The free antique market in...
Manaus Opera House (Teatro Amazonas)
A magnificent neoclassical opera house built during the Amazon rubber boom (1884–1896), whose dome is covered in 36,000 hand-painted ceramic tiles in the colours of the Brazilian flag. The building stands in the middle of the Amazon jungle, 1,400 km from the coast — one of the most incongruous architectural spectacles on earth.
Best Time
Year-round. The Amazon Festival of Opera (April–May) and the Amazonas Jazz Festival (April) both take place in the theatre.
Insider Tip
Book a guided interior tour...
Ilha Grande
A 193-square-kilometre island in the Baía da Ilha Grande, 2.5 hours from Rio de Janeiro, with no cars, 102 beaches, and dense Atlantic Forest covering 85% of the island. Former site of a leper colony and then a notorious political prison (closed 1994), now a State Park.
Best Time
November to March (Brazilian summer). The island is warm year-round but can be rainy in autumn.
Insider Tip
Hire a boat from the...
Ouro Preto
The finest surviving example of Portuguese colonial Baroque architecture in the world, a UNESCO World Heritage Site built during the 18th-century gold rush on the steep hillsides of the Serra do Espinhaço. The town's 13 churches are masterpieces of Brazilian Baroque — particularly the works of sculptor Aleijadinho.
Best Time
April to September (dry season). The annual Semana Santa (Holy Week) processions in Ouro Preto are among the most beautiful in Brazil.
Insider Tip
Take the Vale do Rio...
Recife Antigo & Noronha Gateway
The 'Venice of Brazil' — a historic port city on four islands connected by 49 bridges at the mouth of the Capibaribe and Beberibe rivers. Recife Antigo (Old Recife) preserves Brazil's oldest synagogue and churches alongside a vibrant art and nightlife scene in a crumbling Dutch colonial waterfront.
Best Time
August to January. Recife is warm year-round with temperatures around 28–32°C.
Insider Tip
Visit the Burle Marx water...
Jericoacoara
A remote fishing village-turned-world-famous kite-surfing and windsurfing destination, accessible only through sand dunes by 4x4 vehicle, with streets made of sand, no paved roads, and one of the most spectacular natural settings of any beach town in South America.
Best Time
July to January (trade wind season). The kite-surfing and windsurfing conditions during these months are world-class.
Insider Tip
Stay at a pousada within...
Trancoso & Quadrado
A perfectly preserved 16th-century Portuguese colonial village set on a 30-metre clifftop above unspoiled Atlantic beaches in southern Bahia. The central Quadrado — a vast grass-covered village square lined with brightly painted colonial cottages now converted into boutique hotels and restaurants — is one of the most beautiful public spaces in Brazil.
Best Time
November to March (dry season in southern Bahia). The Quadrado square fills with a Christmas and New Year's celebration that is Brazil's most elegant seasonal event.
Insider Tip
Walk or cycle the 14-kilometre...
Travel Tips for Brazil
- 1.
Learn basic Portuguese words
- 2.
Be mindful of personal belongings
- 3.
Use ridesharing apps