Welcome!

The main goal of this site is to give tourists and visitors an inside scoop about cool places to go and things to see in Rio de Janeiro, aside the mainstream places and ordinary stuff. So don´t expect to see any information about Sugar Loaf, Corcovado and so on…for those typical tourist spots, I´m sure there are hundreds of sites out there about it.

In my view, people between the age of 25 and 45 are gonna enjoy these tips better. Or anyone looking for great party/cultural programs.

As everyone knows, Brazil, and specially Rio, had it's prices gone up the roof for just about everything. So, another objective in this portal is to let you know about great inexpensive options, and tons of local tips.

I´ve organized the suggestions into categories, focused on the king of event you might be looking for:

- Samba Events and Parties

- Unusual Parties

- Nightlife and Nightclubs

- Hangout Street Spots and Points – Free

- Daytime Activities

- Bars and Drinks

- Food

- Late Snacks

I´ve also created a Party/Events this All-Week Schedule to help you decide which places to go at each day of your visit in Rio! Hope this becomes very useful on your decisions.

It should be good for almost any week of the year. Most of them are inexpensive. I tried to organize it according to the best day of each event. Some of the hours I suggest by each event overlap or are too close to one another. In these cases, it´s an “either/or” situation, so you must choose according to what you´re looking for. When this doesn´t happen, it means that you can go to the events one after the other, if you re in good shape!

If I had just a week to spend in Rio, this is how I would do it:

Monday:

- Pedra do Sal – Free Street Samba Party (19h)

- Samba do Trabalhador – Samba Party (18h)

- Stalos – Late Snacks and Food (2h)

Tuesday:

- Saara / Uruguaiana – Popular Shopping (14h)

- Ovelha Negra – Champaign Bar (18h)

- Cervantes – Late Snacks and Drinks (23h)

- Empório – Free Rock Bar (1h)

Wednesday:

- Gargalo – Dinner and Drinks (20h)

- Democráticos – Nightlife – Forró - Dancing (23h)

- Casa da Cachaça – After Party Drinks and Hangout (4h)

Thursday:

- Baixo Gávea – Free Hangout Spot (21h)

- Belmont Leblon – Bar and Free Hangout Spot (23h)

- Empório – Free Rock Bar (0h)

Friday:

- Aprazível – Early Dinner (18h)

- Samba Luzia – Samba Party (21h)

- Circo Voador (23h) – There´s always a cool party goin´ on, but check it out first.

- Zozô - Nightclub (23h)

Saturday:

- Feira do Lavradio – Free Street Antique´s Fair, first Saturday of each month – it´s a must! (14h)

- Cardosão – Feijoada and Food (15h)

- Samba do Ouvidor – Free Street Samba Party (18h) – Check if it´s going to happen at date you´re in town, first.

- Rio Scenarium - Nightclub (22h)

- Unusual Parties (22h) – Check which of them are happening in the dates you´re in town.

- Pizzaria Guanabara – After After Party Drinks (5h)

Sunday

- Bar do Mineiro - Food (14h)

- Mureta da Urca – Free Hangout Spot (16h)

- Pavão Azul – Bar and Free Hangout Spot (16h)

- Casa Rosa – Feijoada and Samba Party (19h)

- Salvação – Bar and Samba Party  (18h)

- Empório - Free Rock Bar (0h or 2h, if you went to Casa Rosa before)

Who ever completes 80% of this schedule, send me a message! I´ll try to complement you personally! And you can consider yourself an expert on Rio´s social, bohemian, party customs. Have fun!


In case you’re looking for some extra literature about Rio, here are a few suggestions:
- Lonely Planet Rio de Janeiro (Travel Guide) (Regis St Louis)

- Lonely Planet Accessible Rio Kindle Edition (Lonely Planet)

- Rio de Janeiro: Extreme City Kindle Edition (Luiz Eduardo Soares)

- The Rio de Janeiro Reader: History, Culture, Politics (Daryle Williams)

- Hard Times in the Marvelous City: From Dictatorship to Democracy in the Favelas of Rio de Janeiro (Bryan McCann)

- Rio de Janeiro Travel Guide - 100 Must-Do: Outdoor Adventures, TOP 5 Beaches in Rio (Copacabana), Historical and Cultural Sights, Eat Drink, Cool Cafes, ... tourist places, Unusual Hostels, Souvenirs! (Kevin Hampton)

- Drugs and Democracy in Rio de Janeiro: Trafficking, Social Networks, and Public Security (Enrique Desmond Arias)

- My Rio de Janeiro: A Cookbook Hardcover (Leticia Moreinos Schwartz)

- Favela: Four Decades of Living on the Edge in Rio de Janeiro Reprint Edition (Janice Perlman)

- Living with Insecurity in a Brazilian Favela: Urban Violence and Daily Life Hardcover (R. Ben Penglase )

Pedra do Sal - Street Party – Free - Centro

This is a great way to start off your party night, especially if you're looking for a low budget option. The party happens on the street and it´s for free. So it's not a good option on rainy days. It plays samba de raiz (root samba) live, all the classical songs. You'll get a good sense of popular street parties in Rio. Great heavy drinks and special beer sold by local vendors or you can get beer and other stuff of the street sellers at reasonable prices.

On Mondays, it´s a bit less crowded, but still vey good. Some people even prefer it on a Monday because of that. And with so few party options at the beginning of the week, this is sure on of the best.

Technical Info:
Type: Samba de Raiz (Root Samba) Street Party.
Price: Free.
Frequency: Every Monday and Friday.
Hour: 18h till 00h
Good Time to Arrive: 19h.
Kind of People Expected: Very mixed, about 15% foreign.
Address: Pedra do Sal, Largo João da Baiana – Centro/Gamboa.

How to get there:
- Subway: Stop at the station Uruguaiana (see on map) and take a cab (about R$ 10,00 fair).
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Sacadura Cabral, close to the number 89, Centro/Gamboa. From there on, you should be able to see here it is.
- Walking: Not advised, unless you are with a bunch of people, including locals.

Map:

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Samba do Trabalhador – Samba de Raiz - Nightlife

The name of this event translates to “Worker´s Samba”. The story behind it is that it was created for the people who worked the full weekend, including Sundays, and had the Monday off.

It´s been around for a long time and it became very a traditional party in Rio´s Samba Scene. For starters, it´s located in a neighborhood known for samba, called Villa Isabel. And musically, people that understand about samba say it´s the best quality music in samba parties around. Plays mostly samba de raiz (root samba), that classical samba style.

Happens every Monday and starts at about 17h. So you can check this out as there´s not so many options on a Monday, and specially at this hour. Very low admission and drink´s/food are very cheap too. You could still plan on doing something later on, as it finishes at around 23h.

Technical Info:
Type: Samba de Raiz (Root Samba) Party, Nightlife.
Price: Below Average.
Frequency: Every Monday.
Hour: 17h till 23h.
Good Time to Arrive: 17h.
Kind of People Expected: Mixed, middle class, about 2% foreign.
Address: Renascença Clube - Rua Barão de São Francisco, 54 - Andaraí.

How to get there:
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Renascença Clube or give him the address. I wouldn´t advise to go any other way, unless you´re with a local.

Map:

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Samba Luzia - Clube Santa Luzia – Samba Party – Nightlife

Nice samba party in Centro. It happens in a club, located close by the city´s airport. Every Friday and Sunday, basically the same event. They just vary on the starting hours. The Friday event starts at 20h and the Sunday event is more as an afternoon party – around 16h. There´s always a famous samba de raiz (root samba) band in Rio´s samba scene playing all the classics.

Mixed people, easy hook ups, reasonable prices on drinks and snacks, and a low admission fee (around R$ 30,00 / $ 15.00) makes this a good option if you´re curious to get to know a good samba party. It´s it´s raining, forget about is, as it´s mostly an outdoors event.

Technical Info:
Type: Samba de Raiz (Root Samba) Party, Nighlife.
Price: Average.
Frequency: Every Friday and Sunday.
Hour: 8h till 3h (Fridays) , 17h till 23h (Sundays)
Good Time to Arrive: 21h (Fridays), 18h (Sundays).
Kind of People Expected: Mixed, middle class, about 5% foreign.
Address: Avenida Almirante Silvio de Noronha, 300 - Centro.

How to get there:
- Subway: Stop at the station Cinelândia and then walk toward it (about 10 minutos walking).
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Clube Santa Luzia by the airport - Centro.
- Walking: If you´re in Centro, there shouldn´t be any problem going by foot here.

Map:
 
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Semente – Samba – Nightlife

Great way to end up your Sunday! Be ready for it, as the party here goes to late at night. It´s located in Lapa, a small place, but packed most of the time and plays samba de raiz (root samba).

Drinks are sold at reasonable price and the admission fee (for the show) is low too. Lots of locals and a few tourists, but it´s still an authentic samba party in Rio´s samba scene. Even if you don´t feel like going in the place, you can hang outside and listen to the samba, while having some drinks on the street. Although, on Sundays, Lapa is not as full as it usually is on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays. And be careful with personal belongings, as always, when going to Lapa.

Technical Info:
Type: Samba Party, Nightlife.
Price: Below Average.
Frequency: Every Sunday.
Hour: 22h till 4h
Good Time to Arrive: 23h / 00h.
Kind of People Expected: Middle class, locals, mixed, about 15% foreign.
Address: Rua Joaquim Silva, 138 - Lapa.

How to get there:
- Subway: Stop at the Cinelândia Station (see map) and walk towards Lapa.
- Bus: Lots of buses come here. Ask locals which ones to take from where you´re staying at. Some of the lines are: 158, 161, 162, 178, 180, 238, 247, 351 and 362 (see map).
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Arcos da Lapa. Everyone knows about it.
- Walking: If you´re in Glória, Centro or Santa Teresa, you could go by foot too.

Map:

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Salvação – Bars – Samba – Nightlife

There´s a kind o party very popular in Rio with Samba de Raiz, called “Roda de Samba” (Samba Gathering, roughly translating). On Sundays this place has this kind of party. And it´s very good too. It starts out very early and ends early too. So, if you go to this place, be sure to get there on time. You´ll get a chance to see up close a very traditional type of party in Rio, with lots of locals. Not everyone knows about this party. If you´re staying in Botafogo, better yet. You can come for a after beach event or to start out your party night on a Sunday.

 

Good service a low admission fee for the live band – around R$ 15,00 ($ 7.00). It´s not a very good place for hooking up, but you´ll definitely have fun with the live music and it´s easy to meet people here. They can even give you a scoop on anything good happening on the week to begin.

Technical Info:
Type: Bars, Samba Party, Nightlife.
Price: Below Average.
Frequency: From Thursday to Sunday, best day on a Sunday.
Hour: 17h till 22h
Good Time to Arrive: 18h.
Kind of People Expected: Mainstream and middle class, about 5% foreign.
Address: Rua Henrique de Novaes, 69 - Botafogo.

How to get there:
- Subway: Stop at Botafogo Station (https://www.google.com.br/maps?saddr=Botafogo+%40-22.950233,-43.184359&daddr=Rua+Henrique+de+Novaes&hl=en&sll=-22.952674,-43.187804&sspn=0.01061,0.013218&geocode=FafOof4dGQ9t_Q%3BFY27of4dVPNs_Q&dirflg=w&mra=prev&t=m&z=16) and walk to the street on the address – about 10 minutes walk.
- Bus: Lots of buses come here. Ask locals which ones to take from where you´re staying at. Some of them are: 157, 158, 162, 170, 172, 173, 176, 186, and 2014.
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at the address or Casa da Matriz – Botafogo, which is very near and everyon knows about it.
- Walking: If you´re in Botafogo or Humaitá, you could go by foot too without any problems.

Map:

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Salgueiro – Samba School - Nightlife

If you are curious to get to know a samba school from up close, I would suggest this place. It´s located in Tijuca, a middle class neighborhood in Rio. In My opinion, it has the best infra-structure among these type of places. The service is good and has air conditioning all over, which is essential for these kind of places in Rio.

 

The music is very loud and at some point in the night, there are going to be samba dancers making a presentation, which is fun to look at. If you are on a budget limit, take the subway to Tijuca, then grab a taxi. But be sure to go home by cab afterwards.

Technical Info:
Type: Samba, Nighlife.
Price: Below Average.
Frequency: Thursday through Saturday, best day on a Saturday.
Hour: 22h till 4h
Good Time to Arrive: 0h.
Kind of People Expected: Lower and Middle class, mixed, about 10% foreign.
Address: Rua Silva Teles, close to 79 - Tijuca.

How to get there:
- Subway: Stop at the Sans Peña Station (see map) and then take a cab to Salgueiro.
- Bus: Lots of buses come here. Ask locals which ones to take from where you´re staying at. But I wouldn´t suggest it.
- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Salgueiro. Everyone knows about it.
- Walking: If you´re in Tijuca, you could go by foot too.

Map:

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Samba do Ouvidor - Street Party - Samba de Raiz - Free

One of those parties that happens every other week. Good musicians playing classical Samba de Raiz (root samba) and nice middle class people on the street. You can get drinks from street sellers or from places around the party. And since it happens in Centro, it's a good idea to go to Lapa afterwards to check what's going on.

You can check on this site if the Saturday you´re planning to go, will happen the party:
http://www.todorio.com/rio/search/event/
 

Technical Info:
Type: Samba de Raiz (Root Samba) Street Party.
Price: Free.
Frequency: Saturday, Every Other Week.
Hour: 17h till 23h
Good Time to Arrive: 18h.
Kind of People Expected: Mixed, middle class, about 5% foreign.
Address: Rua do Ouvidor, 669 (close) – Centro.

 

How to get there:

- Subway: Stop at the station Carioca (see map) and then walk toward it (about 5 minutos walking).

- Taxi: Ask the driver to leave you at Rua do Ouvidor with Rua do Mercado - Centro.

- Walking: If you´re in Centro, there shouldn´t be any problem going by foot here.

 

Map:

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