When people think of Brazil, the Rio carnival is often one of the first things that springs to mind. It is 4 days of dazzling costumes, Samba (the famous Brazilian dance) and parties before Lent begins.
The heart of the party is the Sambadrome stadium where the fantastic parades take place. However, during the day the party spills out to the local neighbourhoods as smaller parades (known as blocos) take place.
The whole city comes to life during this time of year and is a great time to visit. Please note that the hotels often have a 4 or 5 night mandatory stay during Carnival week. Hotels and flights need to be booked well in advance to avoid availability problems.
The 2009 Carnival will take place between Saturday 21st February and Tuesday 24th February 2009. The parade of the Samba Schools takes place on the Sunday and Monday evenings. Don’t forget the carnivals in Salvador and Recife which are equally spectacular.
The Sambadrome
The Sambadrome is the best place to watch the parades. It is 700 m of paved street especially built for the carnival parades. It has a 65,000 capacity. Each samba school has 80 minutes on the parade ground during this time the thousands of dancers, percussion section and floats will delight the audience with their creativity and dancing skills.
The parade is taken very seriously by the samba schools who spend the year leading up to the event choosing their theme and creating their floats. The samba schools are ranked in leagues much like football, with the ‘Premier League’ schools performing on the Sunday and Monday evening during carnival.
Tickets can be pre-booked for the Sambadrome and is highly recommended. There is a special section in the stadium for tourists (Sector 9). Local vendors sell small cushions as the seats are concrete and the parade can go on from 8pm until the early morning! The Sambadrome is very well organized and safe. There are fast food stands and information points.
For more information on the Rio Carnival please call us on 020 8758 4774 to speak to one of our travel experts or email us with details of your travel requirements.
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