Brazil – quick travel guide

Big exotic paradise of nature, friendly people, food and vibes.

Brazil…a huge and beautiful country in South America that is more relatively untouched by US influences than others. I love how exotic it is…the wide range of landscapes, food, culture, and people. Love that they mostly only speak Portuguese, no English or even lesser so Spanish. Very authentic local experience.

But there’s a lot you must know to experience it properly. You can easily spend a month or a year here.

General tips for traveling in Brasil:

• VISA – Brazil used to be VISA-free (provided on arrival) and then if you overstay your VISA time, the penalty is something like $5usd/day. As of right now, they may require VISAs before you arrive. To extend, you can go to the police station and file your extension. I suggest reading up online for more specifics.
• CPF – one of the first things you’ll notice many places asking you is if you have a CPF number. It’s a national identity number that you need to make many purchases or register for things. You can make do without it, but you’ll have fewer options to choose from. Foreigners can get it too…research online for details. I hear you need all sorts of residence documentation.
• Mobile carrier:
  • Claro – the largest network in Brazil, highest price, not always the best service but indeed best coverage in rural parts. However, they don’t sell to foreigners without CPF.
  • TIM – probably the fastest and most modern network, good pricing. Good option in the big cities. Since I need eSIM, I went with TIM. It was easy to purchase an eSIM from in the official store. Super cheap and good coverage everywhere I was. But I later found out, I was only able to buy an eSIM because store employee broke some rule for me or maybe put his own. So on a subsequent visit the next year, TIM told me I had to go to VIVO (because only VIVO sells eSIM without requiring CPF).
  • VIVO – widely known as the cheapest one. I went here because TIM wouldn’t sell me an eSIM without a CPF number. VIVO was functional, good pricing, and good speed in the biggest cities (like Sao Paulo). The issue was it sometimes slowed down or cut out in the other big cities…and then in rural areas, it has bad or no connection (whereas my friend with Claro was still connected).
• Transportation:
  • Metro – I never used but seems fine.
  • Bus – I almost never used local bus. For the regional buses to get from city to city, I recommend BrasilByBus because you can buy tickets without a CPF. Don’t use FlixBus, it’s way overpriced.
  • Rideshare – 99, Uber, and InDrive are the big 3. For busy cities, 99 and Uber are reliable and more preferred. In remote areas with less infrastructure, InDrive is far more helpful since you can negotiate prices with drivers. (Beware of them changing the price on you when they arrive.)
  • App rentals – there are bike rentals and scooter apps depending on the city.
  • Car – driving a car in Brazil can be super helpful to get around large areas where you need to drive long distances every day for different attractions (and there’s no reliable/economical taxi). But can also be a major in areas where the roads are really bad.
  • Boat – especially necessary when going around island areas. You can look up prices online but also know there are usually many companies available, some more official than others…with regular times and prices, while others are made up on the spot based on your timing and group size.
• Portuguese – it really helps to learn a little. If you already know Spanish, a month of DuoLingo practice everyday will be enough for you.
• Havaianas – popular Brazilian brand of flip-flops and other beach wear & accessories. I’d say it’s customary to wear a pair of Havaianas if you’re in Brazil. I also really liked the Kenner brand of flip-flops that I saw at Maresia store in Goania bus station (I think it’s a chain?).

Common activities:

• Nature – not only beaches and islands, but also rivers (and river resorts), waterfalls, dunes, and raw jungle living.
• Parties – wide mix of daytime and nighttime parties with wide range of music (samba, pagodi, forro, funk, etc).
• Carnaval – annual festival with big parade of samba dancers and many street parties all over the city called “blocos”. Here’s the carnval bloco schedule for the main cities.

Suggestion Itineraries:

• 7-14 days – Rio de Janeiro and nearby beach area like Buzios or Ilha Grande. Extra days are Sao Paulo and perhaps even Salvador (if you can enter and exit from different cities).
• 30-day north to south –
• 30-day south to north –

Customs:

• Cheers – after you do a cheers (and say “saude” [sah-oo-jee]), you take a sip before putting the cup back down on the table.
• Eye contact during clubs – kissing strangers. It’s also very common that strangers come up and almost immediately ask “do you want to kiss?” and they kiss each other. Some don’t even ask, they just do it.

Food to try:

• cheap/street food:
  • feijoada
  • acaraje
  • pastel
  • pamonha
  • arepa
  • tapioca
• fancy food:
  • picanha – nice steak (with fat on the edges) and usually accompanied with fries, beans, rice, and farofa (fine powder of mandioca). I recommend having it cooked “ponto para menos” as having it overcooked sucks!
  • frango frito
  • tambaqui – nice fish dish
  • moqueca** – really amazing. Options are usually peixe (fish), camarao (shrimp), mixed (fish & shrimp), or even lobster (not common).
  • pirau –
  • camarao do cocobongo** – really amazing. Thick seafood stew usually served out of a pumpkin.
  • churrasqueria
  • cafeteria/buffet – really nice way to choose from many dishes, and can also choose from fancier or cost-effective buffets.
• snacks & sweets – generally Brazilian food is very cheesy or very sweet.
  • pao de queijo – probably the very first thing a Brazilian will insist that you try. It’s like a cheesy puff bread shaped like a ball. Can be single large one (size of tennis ball), or many small ones in a cup.
  • acai – purple fruit served in a cup form like frozen yogurt, with added toppings like fruits and nuts and sweet syrups. I recommend the big stores where you can self-choose from many toppings.
  • brigadeiro / brisadeiro – brigadeiro is a classic little soft ball of super sweet chocolate. It’s way too sweet for me. The brisadeiro is the “edibles” version with marijuana added.
  • nata – egg custard that actually comes from Portugal. If you haven’t already tried it, some bakeries in Brazil make nice ones as well.

Safety tips:

Hate to say this but Brazil is definitely more dangerous than other countries I’ve been. More than Mexico, more than Argentina or Uruguay. While violent crime isn’t so much a big issue, petty theft definitely is. You should be on alert almost all the time, especially in big cities.

• Don’t flash (clothing, accessorities, or items)
• Beware of pickpockets or flash robberies
• Beware of people sitting near you at the beach
• Roll up windows when in taxi or Uber
• Don’t walk the street at night in places where you see nobody else out. Take a taxi, even if it’s just 5min walk away.
• Favela rules – don’t go without an approved guide, don’t bring cameras or take photos of what you see (without permission), don’t do illegal stuff (as police can kill you thinking you’re a criminal/gang-member).
• When they say “don’t go/walk alone”, they don’t mean like have a buddy and you’re safe. Your group should be bigger enough to deter a group of 5-10 criminals. I’m serious.
• Watch out for group of tan/dark skin teenage-age kids (and with blond-dyed hair)…anywhere from 13-19 year old is the sweet spot to watch out for.
• If you want to buy a money belt (aka slim hidden fanny pack), you can ask around for “porta-dolar” which translates to “cash door”, and is a small slim fanny pack usually worn by streetsellers or people who want to hide values under their shirt. It’s only like 80rs and sold at sporting stores like Decathlon or Centauro.
• How to spot favelas on a map – when you look on Google Maps, anytime you see many curved squiggly streets like the top view of a mountain neighborhood, that’s a good chance it might be a favela. Another possible sign is many alleys and little dead-end streets.

Safety links:

• https://www.worldbyisa.com/is-rio-de-janeiro-safe-how-to-stay-safe-in-rio/x

Robbery stories:

Sharing these not to scare you but to give you an idea of what things CAN and DO happen. Stay ready! These are all things that happened to me, or friend, or somebody staying in same hotel/hostel, or happened to friend of theirs.

• Beach swipe – somebody sitting nearby at the beach. They dig a hole in the sand, then working alone or with the help of an accomplice (to distract you), grab your bag and quickly search for valuables before discarding the rest in the hole and running off.
• Beach mob – 20 on 1. Like rabid wild dogs coming at you from every corner, grabbing at your bags and even dragging you until you let go.
• Bear hug – somebody hugs you from behind pinning your arms down, while his accomplices pick your pockets as you’re busy fighting off the hugger’s arms.
• Surprise attack – iron bar or bottle. Sometimes with knife. They just come up and attack you (hitting you in the face), then rob you as you’re in shock. This attack can also happen if they ask for money and you say you don’t have any.
• Guns drawn – they pull up on a motorcyle or walk up to you with a gun, demand your items and run away quickly.
• Bus mob – a gang enters the bus and jumps all over you.
• Window grab – they reach in through your car, uber, or taxi window and grab the phone as you were texting on the phone and not paying attention with your window down. For this reason, many drivers will insist on you keeping your window up. Even being on a bus can be risky if the window is open, a thief can run up the sides of the bus, jump and reach in through your window
• Street grab – they run by and grab your items and run away. This can happen even on streets with police on every corner. Just 10 meters away on the wrong small street, this can happen.
• Cop stop – corrupted cops can stop your car as you pass by popular tourist places. And search you, looking for drugs or anything, or making up a reason for you to pay their bribe. Pay them no more than $10 USD per person. Or insist to be taken to the station as paying bribes are illegal. (I also feel many Uber drivers might be in on this scam.)
• Hiking hostage – tied up, robbed, and told to stay for 2 hours (or be shot).

Brazilian cities (* = recommended, ** = must see):

• South – most common tourist area, lots of European influence and English-speaking.
  • Rio de Janeiro** – #1 tourist stop for foreigners. Fans of Rio say it’s the most beautiful city in the world, best place for carnival, most beautiful beaches, best nightlife. Detractors complain it’s expensive, dangerous, arrogant or superficial people, or overrated in other ways.
    • Cabo Frio – popular beach region about 2.5-3hrs drive from Rio (many buses avail) with many tiny stretches of land reaching out into the sea and around each other. Many beaches and micro-beach towns everywhere. Each beach town has its own vibe. Cabo Frio has cold water but more blue and transparent. Although only a few beaches and all of them very big.
      • Buzios – developed small beach city with nightlife and city conveniences. Many beaches of varying sizes, more green water color, but some of them very clear as well.
      • Arraial do Cabo* – more like a working class fishing town. More relaxed vibe and also plenty of bars and things to keep you occupied.
    • Angra dos Reis – more local city, I haven’t seen it but I heard nice things to explore.
      • Ilha Grande* – lovely beach island, with far less urban development and infrastructure…therefore giving a more raw nature feel, less crowded, and more laidback relaxing vibe. Many nice local restaurants and shops. It’s a perfect balance for my taste. (And yes, of course, many beautiful beaches.)
    • Paraty* – cute laidback town with a charming colorful historical center that makes people dress up…creating a vibe of fancy but relaxed. Beaches right by town are not swimmable, but since you already drove to get here…you can certainly drive a little more to see really beautiful beaches nearby. Historical center itself only needs 2 days, the beaches can take up 2 or 3 days. I’d recommend to stay 3 and then save a day of free time to explore Trindade and beaches there as well.
      • Trindade* – hippie beach town 35mins drive from Paraty. More local vibe, dirt roads, casual dressed hippies and rastafarian characters with tats and dreadlocks. You can stay in Paraty and make Trindade a day-trip, or vice versa. Depends on the vibe you want.
  • Sao Paolo** – kind of like the New York, Mexico City, Buenos Aires, Madrid, Milan of Brazil. Big concrete space far from the usual nature and beach image of Brazil. Tourist areas much safer than Rio with far more bars and restaurants, much better nightlife than Rio. Wider range of people and mentalities. And unique in that it’s not all other typical Brazil beach/nature destinations. I like SP for city comforts.
    • Sao Sebastiao – I don’t know much about it. It feels like everyone would take the ferry from here to Ilhabela, or drive past to Ubatuba. But seeing how bad the traffic is during high season (7-10hrs drive instead of 5), I can see Sao Sebastian being a more convenient beach break spot.
      • Ilhabela – very nicely developed beach island. Has all ranges of accommodations, many nice beaches & boardwalks, fancy restaurants & shops. Car-accessible paved roads between all the beaches on the northwest side, also e-scooters for rental. Very good option for families or those wanting beautiful beaches with city comforts. Downside is it’s not a vibey hippie beach town, can feel crowded, too many kids, and the god awful sandflies which leave very painful stinging bites that cause longterm or even permanent scarring!
    • Ubatuba – developed beach city with various neighborhoods of different vibes (crowded families, posh hippie, remote laidback).
  • Curitiba – smaller, cleaner version of Sao Paulo. Known for parks, eco-friendly, LGBT-friendly, very green, mild weather, and capybaras. Nice to live, perhaps a boring stop for tourists who are simply passing onto the Foz de Iguacu waterfalls.
  • Ilha do Mel
  • Morretes
  • Florianopolis* – aka “Floripa”. Beautiful beach city on the southeast coast of Brazil. Many neighborhoods with beaches, lagoons, rivers. Vibe is very posh and gringo-friendly, many Europeans and english-speakers everywhere (locals included).
    • Blumenau – German town
  • Porto Alegre
    • Rio Grande do Sul – far south region and coldest area of Brazil (especially in JUNE).
      • Cassino – longest stretch of beaches. The kind where you drive around to find an empty spot to yourself where there’s nobody around that you can even see. Go during day or night with your friends and throw a party right by the car.
    • Foz do Iguacu – Iguazu Falls, one of the largest waterfalls in the world.
• Central
  • Belo Horizonte – low in tourism value but nice place to be. Friendly people, good food (strong influence in Brazil’s overall food culture), vibrant Carnival (arguably best in Brazil). Their own accent which is similar to Goiania ppl.
    • Ouro Preto – small colonial town nearby (1h40min-2hr drive) with colorful buildings. Often recommended because it’s close and convenient. Recommended as daytrip or quick stop since you can see everything within 1-2hrs…then continue on to Tiradentes. Other issue is this town has a dark sad history so many locals feel it’s not a place of fun, whereas Tiradentes is a place of fun.
    • Tiradentes – much nicer and preferred small town outside BH.
  • Goania – low in tourism value, but friendly folks. All you can do is bars and restaurants. Nice to live. Similar vibe and accent to BH.
    • Jalapao (state park) – big park known for fervedouros (small natural pools with quicksand), dunes, interesting rock and canyon formations, also the Japanese lagoon. You’ll need a car and/or local guide to get around.
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    • Chapada Dos Veadeiros (park) – big park known for endless amounts of lovely waterfalls. You’ll need a car and/or local guide to get around.
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  • Brasilia – capital
• North
  • Salvador* – tourist-wise, it’s known for colorful charmy old-town area and vibrant Carnaval and Sao Joao annual festivals. Slightly similar to Cartagena (Colombia). But locals will warn you of many (real & frequent) dangers in the old town. Spend 2 days and move on to other destinations.
    • Morro de Sao Paulo** – the party beach town, most touristy, best food and nightlife. Lots of young and sexy people, foreigners, and native tourists running around everywhere. Many beaches giving a wide range of party to chill beach vibes.
      • Boipeba* – much quieter and smaller beach town. Not as pretty and touristic as Morro. It’s more if you want a very chill, quiet, local vibe. It’s not dead.
    • Itacare** –
    • Marau* – lesser visited peninsula due to terrible rocky road to reach its towns. Some nice beaches with fewer people, major attraction here are the natural pools with living coral (probably biggest coral barrier in Brazil?).
    • Chapada de Diamantina
  • Jericoacoara
    • Lencois
  • Fortaleza
  • Natal
  • Recife – no
    • Olinda – charming pretty town.
  • Amazonias
    • Manaus
    • Belem – I would say no.

joao pessoa & caraiva…and what else?

Nearby countries:

• Colombia – big country and cheap, not so developed in most parts.
• Argentina – big country and very cheap (much cheaper than Brazil), with many parts worth visiting. When Brazilians travel, Argentina and Colombia are typical places since it’s cheaper than Brazil.
• Uruguay – big country but most of it won’t be visited.
• Peru** – mountain country with lots of different foods and culture to explore. Developed, safe, and fun.

Unfiltered notes:

• How dangerous is Rio de Janeiro? – Quora
• Best weather cities in Brazil – Quora
• Places between Rio and America – Quora