Rio de Janeiro
Population: 6’300’000
Date of visit: February 2015
Attractions & sights: 3/5
Nightlife: 4/5
Safety: 3/5
Infrastructure: 3/5
Low budget factor: 2/5
Total: 👍👍👍/5
The city in a nutshell:
Copacabana, Caipirinhas and Crime.
Where to stay:
Ipanema or Copacabana. I stayed at both beaches and preferred Ipanema.
The Good:
The weather, the vibe and beautiful people. Rio has some good assets! There are some great spots in the city and nightlife (on weekends) is awesome. Rio de Janeiro is like Cape Town a very special and beautiful city build around hills. The beaches are nice, but beware: muggings do happen even during daytime. A highlight is seeing the city from above, either from Sugarloaf Mountain or from Corcovado (which offers a better panorama than Sugarloaf).
Bonus: Carnaval is a unique experience. Go during the festival.
The Bad & The Ugly:
The worst thing is the high crime-rate. Rio is one of the most dangerous cities in the world. At night, moving by car is essential, as walking on the streets is not safe. Certain neighbourhoods should be avoided at all cost (day and night).
The second worst is the food. I got bashed for that a lot, but I never had worse food than in Rio. Local cuisine has some dishes that are alright, international dishes are disastrous, even easy dishes like Pizza or Pasta.
In addition, Rio is rather an expensive city. As you will use taxis a lot, especially after dusk, your expenses will rise. Hotel prices aren’t cheap either.
Another slight disappointment was the nightlife. Nightlife was actually amazing on weekends, but the city is pretty dead on weekdays, which is a bit a shame for a city like Rio de Janeiro with its reputation.
Find other City Ratings here.
