What are the best neighborhoods to enjoy Brazil Carnival in Rio?

If you are traveling to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, to enjoy Carnival, there are a few districts and neighborhoods we recommend. Definitely try to stay at the “Zona Sul” or South Zone. We strongly advise visitors to stay at the following districts: Flamengo, Ipanema, Copacabana, Botafogo, Lagoa, Santa Teresa, Laranjeiras, Leblon, and Rio´s downtown Centro da Cidade (financial district). The main reason is that most of the carnival festivals activities are located only in these neighborhoods. Flamengo, Botafogo, Centro, and Santa Teresa are especially close to Rio´s Sambadrome, where the official Rio Carnival parade is held.

Below, a marvelous picture of Rio´s sunset in Flamengo District



Avoid staying at Barra or São Conrado. They are simply too far from the Parade and there are very few street carnival parties compared to these other Rio districts. In 2009, Rio´s 2009 Carnival will have more than 250 street groups or “blocos de rua” in Portuguese. They are really fun, authentic and free. The great majority of these amazing street groups are held in districts like Ipanema, (Banda de Ipanema), Laranjeiras (Volta Alice, Imprensa Que Eu Gamo), and Centro (Cordão do Bola Preta). For a full list of 2009 ´s Street Groups please check our Rio Carnival Street Parties cultural tab.

Below, the Hotel Monte Claro in at the Center of Rio - Lapa

Travelling to Brazil? Do you know if any vaccination procedure should be made? Belavista-Rio obtained an official document from the Brazilian Government stating in what conditions and locations vaccination requirements should be made. Please read below to fully understand vaccination requirements to Brazil.

For tourists who have been in transit over the past three months, or who are coming from certain countries - Angola, Benin, Bolivia, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Colombia, Ecuador, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, French Guiana, Liberia, Nigeria, Peru, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leon, Sudan, Venezuela and Zaire -, an International Certificate of Vaccination against yellow fever is required.

The yellow fever vaccine is also recommended for all national and international tourists who intend to visit the following Brazilian areas: North (Acre, Amazonas, Rondônia, Roraima, Amapá, Pará, Tocantins States) and Mid-west (Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Goiás e Distrito Federal States) Regions of Brazil, to all municipalities of Maranhão and Minas Gerais, to the municipalities located in the South of Piauí, West and South of Bahia, North of Espírito Santo, Northwest of São Paulo and West of the states of Paraná, Santa Catarina and Rio Grande do Sul.

The vaccine should be taken ten days before your trip 'that is how long it takes for you to be protected against the disease. The reason for this is that, in some forest areas of the country, there is the possibility of people not having taken the vaccination becoming contaminated and getting sick with yellow fever. The Brazilian coast is free from the disease in the strip that goes from Rio Grande do Sul to Piauí. The forests in the coastal strip ranging from the North of Espírito Santo to the South of Bahia have not registered the circulation of the wild yellow fever virus. It is important to remember that no cases of urban yellow fever have been seen in Brazilian cities since 1942.

Other questions and concerns regarding Vaccines:

Consult the Brazilian Consulate nearest you, or the Brazilian Embassy in your country, to explain any doubts and to obtain any other information concerning vaccinations in Brazil.

Again, we would like to confirm that major tourist's sites like Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Recife, Fortaleza and Natal are yellow fever free areas.

Although there are several tourist locations when travelling to Brazil, we strongly advise you to stop at the wonder city. Reasons for Rio de Janeiro? Consider best beaches like Ipanema, Copacabana and Leblon. Cultural Centers like Museum of Modern Art, Folcklore Museum and the Catete Palace. What about monuments like Christ the Redeemer and Sugar Loaf? How about the nightclubs at Lapa? Ok, now I understood you got the picture!


The purpose of Belavista-Rio Carnival Blog is to promote Rio de Janeiro and the Brazilian Carnival and it´s Culture and is safe for any family member. Belavista-Rio is strictly against pornography and/or any adult content. You will never see out of context nudity or adult material in this Blog. Please let us know if you have any questions or concerns regarding content on this blog.

One of the most common questions regarding carnival in Brazil, even amongst Brazilians is to know what are the official dates of the Brazilian Carnival. We know it’s not an easy task, since every year the carnival dates are different. In order to help your planning, we decided to supply you with all of the dates through 2030. We don’t want you to miss the Brazilian Carnival of your life:

As we know, Brazil Carnival is a four day event that changes dates every year. But when is this? As dates changes, what are exactly are the Carnival days in a specific year?? It may be sometime in the past - I know what you did last Carnival! But most times it's people trying to plan ahead, like, a decade ahead!

But to know exactly when are the Carnival Dates for any given year, you have to be very very smart. Well, believe it or not, it is not an easy question to answer. You have to be part astrologer, part mathematician, and part priest! Technically, this is the answer:

Carnival usually happen just before Lent, the 40-day period preceding the Easter holiday. The Catholic Easter date was established by the Niceia's Council in the year 325 A.D.

The key then to calculate the right time for it is the equinox, the day when the sun passes the Equator, up to the North, and the first spring day. It is also the first Sunday during or after the year's first full moon. Got it?



Ok, Ok enough of explanations...we have figured it all out for you!

Here are the Official >Brazil Carnival Dates from 2008 until 2030


Official Rio Carnival Dates 2010 through 2039

Carnival Date 2010: February 13th through February 16th
Carnival Date 2011: March 5th through March 8th
Carnival Date 2012: February 18th through February 21st
Carnival Date 2013: February 9th through February 12th
Carnival Date 2014: March 1st through March 4th
Carnival Date 2015: February 14th through February 17th

Carnival Date 2016: February 6th through February 9th
Brazil Carnival Date 2017: Feb 25th through Feb 28th
Carnival-Date 2018: February 10th through February 13th
Carnival- Date 2019: March 2nd through March 5th
Carnival- Date 2020: February 22nd through Feb.25

Brazil_Carnival Date for 2021: February 13th to Feb.16th
Brazil_Carnival Date for Date 2022:Feb. 26th to March 1st
Brazil_Carnival Date for 2023:Feb 18th through Feb 21st
Brazil_ Carnival Date for 2024:Feb 10th to Feb 13th
Brazil_ Carnival Date for 2025: March 1st to March 4th





Carnival Calendar Date for 2026: Feb.14th to February 17th
Carnival Calendar Date for 2027: Feb 6th to February 9th
Carnival Calendar Date for 2028: Feb 26th to Feb.29th
Carnival Calendar Date for 2029: February 10th to Feb 13th
Carnival Calendar Date 2030: March 2nd to March 5th


So, remember! Plan your Brazilian Carnival trip ahead of time. You will not regret the best Brazilian Carnival of your life!


See magnificent picture of Rocinha Samba School dancer in China by Alexandre Vidal:





Belavista Brazil Carnivall is a non-commercial blog devoted to wonders of Rio de Janeiro, with a focus to the Brazilian Carnival. Our sole objective is to describe how Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is magically created, its artists, dancers and musicians that make up the world’s largest show. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns

Rio-de-Janeiro Carnival is synonym to magic. Thousands of people from all over of the globe come to Rio to experiment this exotic energy for their vacations. Ok, we know Rio-de-Janeiro is about fantasies, dreams, celebrities and samba, but what are the real hot places to have fun during carnival? We decided to handpick the best spots to party and write about them.

Our first pick is the “desfile” (in Portuguese) or Samba Schools Parade, held at the Sambadrome which is considered the high point of Carnival. It takes place on a Sunday, February 3rd, and a Monday, February 4th, with seven schools parading each night.



The schools belonging to this group, affiliated to the Liga Independente das Escolas de Samba or Independent Samba Schools League of Rio-de-Janeiro are specially magnificent and sumptuous, each containing approximately five thousand participants plus celebrated Brazilian show-business and jet-set personalities. Some of the legendary Samba Schools are Salgueiro, Portela, Beija-flor and Mangueira, founded in 1928.

Location of the Sambadrome or “Sambódromo” How to get there:

Sambódromo is located at Rua Marquês de Sapucaí, Cidade Nova. That is, the parade begins at Presidente Vargas Avenue, near Praça Quinze, and ends in Rua Frei Caneca. In order to get to the “Sambódromo” and watch the Carnival parade, it is best to find out the exact location of the relevant sector, divided into two sub-groups: even and odd numbered sectors.


To Reach Even Numbered Sectors
If the relevant sector is 2, 4 or 6, there are the following options:

Taxi – pre-determined taxi companies serve the even sectors and there is plenty of information about them during carnival. There is a tariff to leave the Sambódromo and the taximeter or an agreement with the passenger settles the journey to the Sambódromo.


Below, the charm and grace of an anonymous samba dancer from Porto da Pedra Samba School:




Subway – The subway works uninterruptedly everyday to 11 pm of Tuesday, the last day of carnival, at 10 minute intervals during the night. The getting off stop is always “Praça Onze” station, no matter where from. Once outside the station, turn twice to your right and then walk straight ahead to Sector 2. For Sectors 4 and 6, turn on Rua Carmo Neto (Carmo Neto Street ) and walk on to Avenue Salvador de Sá. The Sambódromo can soon be seen and several signs show the entrance to the sectors.




Odd Numbered Sectors
As for sectors 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 11 and 13, the options are:

Taxi – Special companies serve the odd numbered sectors as well, with fixed tariff. In any case, ordinary taxicabs take passengers to the Sambódromo charging what the taximeter shows or what has been agreed upon. For those who come from South Zone, the best route is through Santa Bárbara tunnel, and for those from North Zone, via Itapiru Street. In both cases the taxicab must go over Viaduct São Sebastião, which runs parallel to the Sambódromo. Right away the signs to the entrances of the different sectors can be seen.

Subway – Easy! In Rio-de-Janeiro , either from north or south zone, the getting off stop is “Central”. From there, walk to the Rio Sambódromo, a long stretch of approximately 700 meters, going past the schools’ allegorical cars.

Bus – coming either from north or south zone, it is important to make sure that the bus is going over Viaduct São Sebastião, as many lines change the itinerary during carnival.

Samba Schools Parade Official Schedule

Below, we pasted the official schedule of the Samba schools parade in Rio-de-Janeiro so you can plan yourself ahead. Next post, we will be writing about what to wear, what to drink, how much money to take and other tips for avoiding last minute troubles at the samba parade.

Carnival 2008 – Rio-de-Janeiro Sambódromo - Schedule



Sunday - 02/03/2008

Estimated Time Samba School

Start at 21h00 São Clemente
Between en 22h05 e 22h20 Porto da Pedra
Between 23h10 e 23h40 Salgueiro
Between 0h15 e 1 h Portela
Between 1h20 e 2h20 Mangueira
Between 2h25 e 3h40 Viradouro

Sunday - 02/03/2008





Estimated Time Samba School

tart at 21h00 Mocidade
Between 22h05 e 22h20 Unidos da Tijuca
Between 23h10 e 23h40 Imperatriz
Between 0h15 e 1 h Vila Isabel
Between 1h20 e 2h20 Grande Rio
Between 2h25 e 3h40 Beija-flor


Have a great show and if you need to rent vacation apartments in Rio-de-Janeiro , please feel free to contact us! If you have other questions to, keep them coming!

Brazil; birthplace of Samba! Rio-de-Janeiro its present home!

This is a non-commercial blog devoted to wonders of Rio-de-Janeiro , with a focus in Brazilian Carnival. Our sole objective is to describe how Carnival in Brazil is magically created, its artists, dancers and musicians that make up the world’s largest show. Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions or concerns.