Hi everyone, My partner and I are planning a trip to Brazil in October for 15 to 20 days. I spent some time in Brazil years ago while collaborating with the University of Lavras (MG). Now, I’d love to introduce my partner to the country. My initial plan is Rio (4 days), Bahia—which I’ve never visited—(4 days), Belo Horizonte to catch up with old friends and explore the surrounding areas (Tiradentes and Ouro Preto), then... and back. I’m really counting on your advice to help shape this trip. We’re not backpackers anymore! Thanks in advance. Best regards, Serge Rambal - Montpellier

Hi everyone, We’re a group of 3 friends traveling from Salvador de Bahia to Belém in November for a month. To plan our route, I’d love some tips on the must-see spots. We’ll be traveling by bus and are mostly looking for nature, as well as pretty towns and villages. Your advice will help us avoid missing too many great places. Thanks in advance to all of you! Thierry

Bonjour à tous, Nous envisageons un voyage au Brésil fin novembre pour 15 jours environ sur place. Après 3 jours à Rio, nous souhaitons ( avec mon mari) visiter le Minas Gerais sur 4 jours . Nous n'avons pas l'habitude de louer une voiture dans les pays étrangers, nous faisons toujours appel à des chauffeurs locaux. Les bus sont trop longs pour parcourir le MG en 4 jours. Est-ce que quelqu’ un connaîtrait une personne fiable ou un chauffeur pour un prix raisonnable pour aller de Rio à Ouro Preto via Mariana, Cogonhas, Tiradentes etc...AR ? Ou doit-on zapper par peur de la fatigue , de la conduite sur des routes que nous ne connaissons pas? Nous avons l'intention de faire appel à Easy transfers pour aller de Rio à Paraty et de Paraty à Ilha Grande, savez vous s'il existe ce genre de prestation pour le MG?

Merci pour tous vos conseils .

Hi everyone,

We’re making a family dream come true: spending a month in Brazil from July 19 to August 20. We’ll land in Rio and spend 6 days there (we’ve finalized a home exchange for a lovely apartment in the Copacabana neighborhood). After that, we’re heading to Minas Gerais by rental car for 11 days (Tiradentes, Ouro Preto, and the Inhotim Institute), then the Costa Verde, and finally 2 days in São Paulo.

We’ll be traveling with our three kids, ages 17, 14, and 9, who are real travelers and good hikers. Goes hand in hand, right? 😄

For now, we’ve planned to visit Ilha Grande (4 days) and then Paraty and its surroundings (3 days). What do you think? Ilha Grande appealed to us for its hikes and beaches, but couldn’t we do that along Paraty’s coast? I’ve read mixed reviews about Ilha Grande...

Thanks for your tips, opinions, and anything else! !

Hi there, We’re spending 3 weeks in Brazil, arriving in São Paulo—a couple plus a teen—and we’ll have a rental car. We especially love nature: hiking, wildlife watching, birds, etc. We’re planning to wrap up with a week around Paraty and Ilha Grande. We’re not really into visiting big cities like São Paulo or Rio unless you think we’d be missing out big time.

So we’ve got 2 weeks to explore the south/southwest region of São Paulo. What do you recommend? National parks? Off-the-beaten-path nature spots? Iguazu Falls?

Thanks in advance for all your tips!

Hello,

We’re thinking about our next destination for June 2026, and northern Brazil seems like a great option for that time of year.

We were considering a 15-day trip from Fortaleza to São Luís (or the other way around), but I’m worried it might not offer enough variety in terms of sights and landscapes. We were thinking of doing a trek in Lençóis Park, visiting Jericoacoara, the Parnaíba Delta, etc.).

The other option would be to take a domestic flight and add the Salvador de Bahia region and Chapada Diamantina, but that would require about 3 weeks.

Do you think exploring the coast between Fortaleza and São Luís is enough for a trip if we don’t kitesurf? Or is it better to combine this part of the country with another region (Salvador? The Amazon?)?

Thanks in advance for your advice.

Have a great day

Hi, We’re considering a discovery trip to Brazil in summer 2025 for a maximum of 3 weeks, transport included. Since the must-see sites are very far apart, we’ve selected the ones that seemed the most spectacular and have little or no equivalent elsewhere in the world. Here’s what we’re thinking: Outbound: 1 day Paris → São Paulo Iguaçu: 2 days Transfer: 1 day via São Paulo or Rio and São Luís Lençóis National Park: 3 days Transfer: 1 day via São Luís Salvador de Bahia: 2 days Transfer: 1 day via Rio Rio: 4 days Return: 1 day What do you think? I was thinking of adding a stop that’s easily accessible without flying from one of the places above. Ilha Grande? Tinharé Island? Any other suggestions? Thanks in advance for your tips! Virginie

Bonjour tout le monde, Nous voila repartis pour une nouvelle aventure. Nous nous attaquons cette fois au continent sud américain. Une première pour madame, comme pour moi.

Les billets sont déjà achetés (prix canons sur Lufthansa). Du 24/05 au 11/06/20 soit 18 jours sur place. Arrivée RIO => départ Sao Paulo.

Les conseils sont les bienvenus, nous sommes un jeune couple dans la trentaine. Nous sommes intéressés par la nature, les découvertes mais sans pour autant mettre de côté les villes. Bref nous ne sommes pas trop difficiles.

Voici notre ébauche d'itinéraire :

Dimanche 24/05 : départ Bruxelles Lundi 25/05 : arrivée Rio 05.30 hrs / nuit Rio Mardi 26/05 : Rio / nuit Rio Mercredi 27/05 : Rio / nuit Rio Jeudi 28/05 : Rio / nuit Rio Vendredi 29/05 : route en bus + ferry => ilha grande / nuit Ihla grande Samedi 30/05 : Ihla grande / nuit Ihla grande Dimanche 31/05 : Ihla grande / nuit Ihla grande Lundi 01/06 : => ferry + bus paraty / nuit paraty Mardi 02/06 : Paraty / nuit paraty Mercredi 03/06 : => SP vol => Pantanal / nuit Pantanal Jeudi 04/06 : Pantanal / nuit Pantanal Vendredi 05/06 : Pantanal / nuit Pantanal Samedi 06/06 : vol => Salvador / nuit Salvador Dimanche 07/06 : Salvador / nuit Salvador Lundi 08/06 : Salvador / nuit Salvador Mardi 09/06 : Salvador / nuit Salvador Mercredi 10/06 : Sao Paulo / nuit SP Jeudi 11/06 : Sao Paulo => 18.10 hrs vol Bruxelles Vendredi 12/06 : retour Bruxelles

Seuls les billets internationaux sont achetés, ni les vols internes ni les logements ne sont réservés.

Merci à ceux qui me liront... et encore plus à ceux qui me conseilleront

Quentin

Bonjour,

Je pars pour 3 semaines en septembre et j'ai quelques questions. Dans un premier temps je vais rester sur Rio quelques jours puis ensuite direction Iguazu. Ensuite je compte aller dans le Minas Gerais Tiradentes Ouro Preto Mariana puis finir sur Paraty et ses alentours.

J'aimerai louer une voiture car je pense plus pratique pour se déplacer mais je lis que c'est dangereux de conduire au Brésil même dans le guide du lonely il déconseille. Est ce vraiment si dangereux certains ont ils testé la conduite dans ce secteur ?

Ensuite ma question concerne la sécurité j'ai lu pas mal de chose sur Rio peut on sortir quand même son téléphone pour prendre des photos car ça m'ennuie de ne pas avoir de souvenirs.

Et en dehors de Rio peut on se balader tranquille avec un sac a dos et faire des photos avec son appareil à Tiradentes Ouro

Merci

Hi everyone,

Next April, I’m planning a trip (the 1st) to Brazil. I’ll have 12 days there (not counting the 13th day for the return). I’ll arrive on 22/04 in the early evening in Rio de Janeiro. The return flight is from São Paulo on 04/05 in the afternoon. I know 12 days is very little for such a big country, which is why I’ll focus on a relatively small area: the southeast (though "small" is relative!). I’ve started mapping out the main stops for my trip, which would be: - Rio de Janeiro: 4 to 5 days? - Ilha Grande and maybe Paraty: 2 to 3 days - Iguazu Falls: Brazilian and Argentinian sides: 2 days - São Paulo: 1 to 2 days

What do you think? Is this reasonable? There are about 250/260 km between Rio and Paraty. I’d like to make the trip by rental car. What do you think? A car is definitely much more practical and faster than the bus. 12/13 days is short—I can’t afford to lose too much time in transit. To get to Ilha Grande, I understand there’s a ferry that shuttles between the mainland and the island. From which city can you take the ferry? Mangaratiba? Conceição de Jacareí? Angra dos Reis? If I arrive by rental car, where can I park it? I think cars are banned on the island, right? That’s where I’m at with my planning. So many questions! 😕 A big thank you to anyone who takes the time to read my post and shares their valuable tips! 🙂

Bonjour

Je vais arriver de la Paz à Iguaçu, côté brésilien, avent de partir pour Buenos Aires. Comment passer des chutes d'Iguaçu côté brésilien au côté argentin ?

Merci !

Good evening, We’d love to go in November to enjoy some beautiful beaches for about two weeks, preferably around Bahia, as November/December seems like a great time. We’ve already traveled to Brazil several times and know the south of Rio as well as the region between São Luís and Fortaleza, and Chapada Diamantina... What advice would you give us: the south with Itaparica, Morro de São Paulo, Boipeba, Barra Grande—or all four? Or maybe the north? Thanks in advance for your help

Hi there,

I’m planning a trip to Brazil in October and decided to go through an agency to organize our itinerary. I asked two agencies to put together a circuit with transfers, hotels, organized visits, and one domestic flight. I don’t speak Spanish or Portuguese. 6 nights in Rio 3 nights on Ilha Grande 3 nights in Paraty Domestic flight to Salvador for 3 nights 3 nights in Morro de São Paulo 1 night in Salvador before flying back to France. For this itinerary, I’m going with Tourlane, but I’m still waiting on the second quote from Comptoir des Voyages. I’d love to hear your thoughts on the itinerary and especially on these agencies—thanks for any feedback! 😊

Bonjour à tous..j'ai encore besoin d'infos pour boucler mon voyage et merci pour vos réponses. Nous arrivons à Puerto Iguazu le dimanche 03/11. Le lundi nous ferons la visite coté Brésil et le mardi coté Argentine. Pour le Brésil, les bus (et la vente de leurs tickets) partent-ils du même endroit que pour la visite coté Argentin ? Pour le Brésil faut-il se procurer des Reals ou prennent-ils les pesos voir les euros ? Certains préconisent de prendre les entrées sur internet pour éviter les files d'attentes ? Enfin j'ai entendu dire aussi que prendre un taxi pour nous véhiculer (le même) pour les 2 jours était bien pratique. Merci de vos avis. Tic tac tic tac...le départ est proche.

Tiens, voici un lien super intéressant pour les futurs voyageurs au Brésil, selon Adelaide : Top-15-des-lieux-a-voir-au-bresil-avant-de-mourir Et pour ceux qui sont déjà venus ? Quels était vos lieux préférés au Brésil ? Le bonjour tropical de Salvador da Bahia, Ivan Bahia Guide

Bonsoir à tous, Quel quartier de São Paulo privilégier pour un séjour de quelques jours (2 adultes) en janvier ou février 2020, Pinheiros, Alto de Boa vista ? Merci d'avance pour vos réponses.

Here’s what a lot of you are looking for: the full lineup for the Salvador da Bahia Carnival 2026:

Salvador Carnival 2026 Schedule

(turn on your Goggol auto-translate 😁)

Tropical greetings from Salvador,

@ivanbahiaguide

Loyal member of the French-Speaking Brazil Forums for over 15 years now 😆🇧🇷

Hi everyone. We’re heading to Brazil at the end of August for a month as a couple. Could anyone help us find accommodation and particularly interesting spots along this legendary route? We’ll be renting a car and plan to make 2 or 3 stops, but we prefer exploring on foot or by boat once we’re there. I know that lodging is particularly expensive there and that access to nature is usually on private properties, but our budget is limited and comfort isn’t our priority. Thanks for your replies. Fred

Hello, We’re planning our first trip to Brazil from October 10 to November 7, 2025. We’re a couple traveling with light backpacks using local transport. Here’s our planned route: Arrival in Rio de Janeiro, 5 days, Tiradentes, Ouro Preto, Belo Horizonte, 7 days, Flight from Belo Horizonte to Recife, Recife, Olinda, 4 days, Maceió, Penedo, 3 days, Aracaju, 3 days, Salvador de Bahia and surrounding areas, 5 days Departure from Salvador de Bahia to Paris

Thanks in advance for any feedback you can share!

Of course, everything is flexible except for our arrival in Rio and departure from Salvador de Bahia.

Could you also recommend a neighborhood to stay in Rio? Alod

Hi everyone, Our travel plans to Brazil in October are moving forward. Now we're looking for the best way to put it all together. Starting from Montpellier, probably connecting through CDG, arriving in Salvador de Bahia, stopping in Belo Horizonte, then a flight to Rio, and the return trip. How can we manage to finalize such a circular flight? Thanks in advance for your tips. Best, Serge

hi,

We’re planning a trip to Brazil in March 2026, just the two of us, for 10 days without using an agency. Rio, the falls, and Bahia too. How can we get around there? Train? Car rental? Plane? Are the roads easy to drive on? Is Rio safe to explore on our own? We’d love any travel journals with ideas for places to see, as well as books to help us plan the whole trip. Thanks in advance for all your tips! See you soon, cheers

Hi there, I’m not really into architecture, but I’ve always wanted to visit Brasília to see what a modern city built from scratch looks like, and I thought not many people lived there. After doing some research, I realize the city is actually quite crowded. As I’m planning my trip to Brazil, people keep telling me not to go, that I’ll be disappointed and it’s a waste of time.

For those of you who’ve been to Brasília, what do you think? Thanks for your replies. Anne

Hi everyone,

I’m planning my trip to Brazil in March 2025 (finally!) and I’d love to hear your thoughts on Ilha Grande and Paraty. We’ll be arriving from Rio and departing from Paraty (heading to São Paulo). How can we best organize these transfers—can we book the different transports on the spot? How much time is ideal to stay in these two places to enjoy them without doing long hikes? Do you have an estimated budget? Thanks for your feedback! Dominique

Good evening, We're leaving from January 26 to February 7 with our two kids, aged 23 and 27. I'm hoping to visit Iguazu, Rio, Ilha Grande, or Cabo Frio. I have a few questions. - Should we visit Rio with a guide, considering we want to explore favelas and hike to reach the main sites? And how many days should we plan for it? - How many days for Ilha Grande, and is the weather favorable during this period? Is it a must-see? - What do you think of Cabo Frio? In terms of organization, is it better to visit Iguazu at the beginning, middle, or end of our stay, departing from São Paulo or Rio? We haven’t bought our flight tickets yet, so I can arrange to arrive or depart from Rio/São Paulo. Thanks so much for sharing your experiences and opinions!

Bonjour à tous avec ma copine nous partons pour 1 mois au Brésil et nous souhaitons visiter le Pantanal. Nous avons contacté 3 agences avec 3 prix différents allant du simple au double. Nous voulons savoir si l’un d’entre vous est allé au Pantanal? Qu’en avez vous pensé et quelle agence avez vous pris. Ce que nous voulons vraiment pas c’est être trimballé dans un 4x4 toute la journée avec des activités sans grandes intérêts montées pour les touristes. Merci d’avance pour vos réponses.

Bonsoir, J'aimerai avoir un avis sur cet itinéraire prévu en février 2020 :

dimanche 9/02 arrivée 7H00 le matin visite RIO lundi10/02Visite de RIO mardi 11/02 Départ pour Salvador en avion 8 h 40 arrivée 10 h 45 mercredi 12/02 Visite de Salvador bus de nuit pour Lencois jeudi 3/02 Chapada Diamantina treck 3 jours vendredi 14/02 Chapada Diamantina samedi 15/02 Chapada Diamantina dimanche 16/02 Chapada Diamantina bus de nuit vers Salvador arrivée 4h30 lundi 17/02 retour à RIO en avion 6 h 20 Salvador arrivée + 2h00 à Rio ensuite bus pour Abraao +Ferry mardi 18/02 Ilha Grande mercredi 19/02 Ilha Grande jeudi 20/02 Paraty vendredi 21/02 Paraty samedi 22/02 Paraty dimanche 23/02 retour Paris à 16h30 de Rio (14h30 aéroport)

Je m'interroge le trajet qui commence le dimanche 16 /02 à 23h30 à Lencois et qui se termine le lendemain soir à Ilha Grande ; est il possible d'arriver par le bus le matin vers 4h30 et de prendre un avion à 6h30 ....à Salvador ?

Je vous remercie de votre aide et de vos remarques. Falbala

Bonjour, pour voir les chutes, mieux vaut-il prendre un logement à Foz de Iguaçu ou à Puerto Iguaçu ? j'ai réservé à Foz, pensant que c'était le plus simple, mais je me perds dans tout ça... Le plus simple et le plus près des chutes (brésiliennes le 1er jour, et le second je souhaite voir le côté argentin) ? Je pense prendre les bus ! Merci de vos réponses ! Chantal

Bonjour,

Je cherche un moyen de transport depuis le port de croisière de Santos où l'on arrive le 13 décembre jusqu'à l'aéroport international Viracopos (à Campinas) on a trouvé le site gettransfert mais on ne sait pas très bien quoi en penser après les avis qu'on a lu sur ce site... Merci d'avance à ceux qui me répondront!

Bonjour SVP je veux avoir des informations sur le trajet de Paz jusqu'au brésil j'aimerai le faire des les jours qui viennent mais je ne sais pas comment ça se passe et le prix aussi SVP aider moi avec toutes les informations je suis ouvert à toutes les informations Merci d'avance

Hello, How good it feels to be back on this forum!!!!

Today, we started looking into traveling in April 2026, either to Chile or Argentina. It’s our first trip to South America. I’ve only been to French Guiana once, about ten years ago, for the space center. In recent years, we’ve usually gone to Asia during the spring holidays.

Based on the flight tickets I’ve found, two arrival and departure options are available: - Arriving in Buenos Aires and departing from Salvador de Bahia. - Arriving in Santiago, Chile, and still departing from Salvador de Bahia.

We’re considering flying business class on the outbound flight so we arrive a bit more rested. The travel class might influence our choice between itinerary A or B.

We’d like to spend two days at Iguazu Falls (both the Argentine and Brazilian sides), which explains the departure from Brazil.

Initially, we thought about arriving in Buenos Aires and staying in Argentina before heading to Iguazu. However, the itinerary forces us to go back through Buenos Aires.

We love nature. The El Calafate region seems to offer beautiful, easily accessible landscapes. Maybe there’s another area we should prioritize.

Here are two itineraries—what do you think? I know it’s short, but we can’t add any more days. We’ll have to make it work.

Option A: D1(Sat): Flight from France to Buenos Aires – arrival at 9:55 PM. D2(Sun): Visit Buenos Aires D3(Mon): Visit Buenos Aires. D4(Tue): Flight from Buenos Aires to El Calafate – 3.5-hour flight – arrival around midday. D4(Tue) – until D11(Tue) – visit the El Calafate region: El Calafate / 121km / El Chaltén / 12km / Mount Fitz Roy / 4km / Cerro Torre Mountain / 132km / Perito Moreno Glacier / 57km / El Calafate. D11(Tue): Flight to Buenos Aires D12(Wed): Morning flight to Iguazu (Argentine side) – flight at 6:40 AM or 8:10 AM – 2-hour flight. D13(Thu): Half-day on the Brazilian side – flight around 7:00 PM to Salvador de Bahia. D14(Fri): Visit Salvador de Bahia (downtown) D15(Sat): Morning visit + midday departure for the airport – flight at 5:45 PM from Salvador de Bahia D16(Sun): Arrival in France.

This itinerary forces us to pass through Buenos Aires twice.

Option B: D0(Fri): Flight from France to Santiago, Chile – departure at 11:20 PM from CDG. D1(Sat): Arrival at 7:45 AM in Santiago, Chile – hotel + city visit. D2(Sun): Visit Santiago, Chile D3(Mon): Departure for Puerto Natales, Punta Arenas, or El Calafate – to be decided. There’s about a 3-hour flight. We need to check the drop-off fees if we pick up the car in Chile and return it in Argentina – see ADEL RENT A CAR. D3(Mon) – until D10(Mon) – visit the El Calafate region: El Calafate / 121km / El Chaltén / 12km / Mount Fitz Roy / 4km / Cerro Torre Mountain / 132km / Perito Moreno Glacier / 57km / El Calafate. D10(Mon): 3.5-hour flight + visit Buenos Aires. D11(Tue): Visit Buenos Aires D12(Wed): Morning flight to Iguazu (Argentine side) – flight at 6:40 AM or 8:10 AM – 2-hour flight. D13(Thu): Half-day on the Brazilian side – flight around 7:00 PM to Salvador de Bahia. D14(Fri): Visit Salvador de Bahia (downtown) D15(Sat): Morning visit + midday departure for the airport – flight at 5:45 PM from Salvador de Bahia D16(Sun): Arrival in France.

The end of the itinerary is the same. This option avoids passing through Buenos Aires twice. Thanks for your feedback.