My Rio Carnival Experience as a Solo Traveler

The biggest carnival in the world happens right in the heart of Brazil. Rio de Janeiro opens its arms to welcome an average of one million tourists from all around the globe to experience the extravaganza.  This was my Rio Carnival Experience as a solo traveler.

Rio Carnival Experience As A Solo Traveler

Arriving in Rio De Janeiro

I arrived the day before Carnival kicked off flying in from São Paulo. My Portuguese is non-existent, but my tiny bit of Spanish allowed for a basic conversation with the taxi driver. Upon the arrival at my hostel the taxi driver handed me a condom, at least they’re being safe. The government handed out 800,000 condoms during carnival! That’s a lot of love.

My hostel Pura Vida Hostel located in Copacabana was fabulous. It included free breakfast, great rooms, friendly atmosphere, only a few minutes walk to the beach and of course, a bar. The hostel is located just inside a favela, they are okay to stay in but be careful. These places aren’t as bad as you may think. (Keep an eye out for my soon to be post what are Favelas for the history and stories of the Rio favelas).

Accommodation is expensive when the Carnival is on. If I were to book right now, it would be six times cheaper!

Carnival Starts, Friday night

Fireworks exploded into the night’s sky triggering the start of carnival, even though suburbs like Lapa and Santa Teresa had already started hours earlier. People were everywhere, music was blaring, food & drink carts flooded the streets. Make you sure you try Brazil’s caipirinhas – alcoholic beverage.

Blocos

Blocos are moving or stationery street parties and they are everywhere but if you are unsure check the internet as they list where they currently are. They start at 9am in the morning and go into the following morning. So pretty much 24/7 partying for the four days. The locals love it and visitors are treated to an unreal scenery. These parties are full of love, seriously, randoms will come up and kiss you, people will be hugging you and you’ll make friends. I attended a few of these parties and they were amazing. Keep an eye out soon for another post on Safety Advice in Rio as these scenes are full of thieves! 

Sambadrome For The Parades

Buying tickets in advance is highly recommended for the purposely built stadium for the parades. The sections fill up real quick and the leftover tickets become more pricey. Also, book your accommodation and flights well in advance! If you plan on going solo, check with your hostel (if you choose to stay at one, which you should) if they sell tickets at their place. This is a great option as other backpackers will buy them and you can generally sit in the same section together. The sambadrome is 700m/.43mi, with tight security and you won’t be able to get into another section. Arrive early, 8pm or before, as spots on the grandstand disappear fast. Take a poncho with you. Make sure you dress and glitter up!

Source: ecns.cn
Source: ecns.cn

Which Carnival Parade Should I Watch?

There are parade’s every night but the main parade is on the Sunday night. It will kick off about 10pm and go through until about 6-7am. Yes, you can read it again. Food is allowed to be taken in and some will sneak alcohol too. Lost in translation will exist with the parade as it is all in Portuguese, but at the start, you’ll stand up for the national anthem. They actually also let you know days/weeks before the carnival some of the songs that will play at the parade. So if you’re wanting to belt out a Brazilian song look them up! This night involves standing most of the time (and long toilet lines as a heads up girls), so wear comfy shoes.

What Happens At The Sambadrome?

You’ll watch approx 13 schools and they each have 70-85 minutes to make their way down the stadium. On average tourists stay for 3 or 4 schools, this would take you to about 1-2am. However, the schools get better as the night goes on. I stayed until 5am with one or two schools to go. It was safe and fine to catch a train back to Copacabana. I didn’t carry my phone with me during party times in Rio. Remember to read my safety blog link when it comes out.

Next day most people are passed out but if you still have energy get out for the last day of the blocos. Being in a hostel is a great environment, as you’ll find at least one other travelers with energy too, so you’ll always have someone to go with.

The parade comes to an end on the Monday night/Tuesday morning. Although the winning school and parade is announced the following Saturday. But by then tourists have dispersed and the city returns to normal.

my rio carnival experience as a solo traveler
Shout to my friend Stacey for these photos

I tried to keep this short, so let me know if you have any questions and keep an eye out for my other Brazil posts. Head to my blog page here.

Pint it for later!

Rio Carnival Solo Experience

34 thoughts on “My Rio Carnival Experience as a Solo Traveler”

  1. I’ve been to Rio but sadly not during carnival time so it was great to hear how it works. Funny that they handed you a condom but I guess it makes sense for the number of visitors attending. The bloco partys sound very entertaining

    1. It can be/is dangerous, but it’s such an amazing experience that you should still go! Lol. A lot of thieves there.

  2. This sounds so awesome. I am planning to travel to carnival solo, as well. I wanted to wear a beautiful sparkly bikini samba costume to the street parade, is this appropriate? What do you recommend for attire? Also, I plan to arrive a few days before carnival. Were you able to visit other tourist attractions?

  3. Hello. Just wanted to share with you the best of Europes festivals over the past year. I have visited most of these in the past and I can assure you that they are brilliant. Find time to enjoy life and attend one of these this year. Looking forward to some more interesting posts on the Marina de Bolnuevo blog (www.marinedebolnuevo.co.uk). Have a great day.

  4. Hi Tracey! What a great post, very informative! Rio de Janeiro is an amazing city and must be even better for Carnival. A tip not to pay too much in these special dates (also for Brazilian holidays) is to book the hotel in advance. For transportation, it also works taking a bus, specially when you can’t buy much earlier. Here you can find bus tickets from Sao Paulo pretty easily and online: https://brazilbustravel.com/sao-paulo-tiete-sp-x-rio-de-janeiro-rj, for example

  5. This is super handy! I’m planning to go 2019 and have been searching for tips like this! Thanks so much, cannot wait! Booking my hostel NOW 🙂

  6. Hi Tracey! Thanks for your post! I’m going to Carnival this year and am looking to buy the tickets for the main parade in advance – any suggestions on secure sites to purchase from?

    1. Hi Claire, how exciting! It’ll be so much fun! Yes, make sure you use the official website rio-carnival.net to buy your tickets, you can then collect them yourself or have them delivered. Or if you could always check with your accommodation and see if they have tickets as well. Let me know if you have any other questions! 🙂

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