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ipanema
barra
night
stay
leblon
tijuca
beach
learn
beaches
food
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nice
speak
english
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It's the best city to be in South America, from the culture, the beaches, the happiness, the food... Paradise.
Stay in Ipanema, Leblon or Barra da Tijuca and be happy.
3 months ago
“Don’t take your phone out” is some outdated advice… there are several people on the streets and in the metro using phones and taking pictures. Remember that nothing stays the same forever. Rio is safer than many people describe. Use your common sense.
12 months ago
Love it! The sun, the weather, the beach, the relaxing vibe! People are friendly, acommodations and food are affordable! And living here, for 1 year, as a woman, I never felt unsafe! It is crowed but I like frenetic cities!
1 year ago
Very nice if you stay in Leblon. It's relatively safe and on the beach. But you still can't take your iPhone out a lot, which is annoying if you're used to taking photos and using it on the street. People not as nice as rest of Brazil but still very nice to me. As most of Brazil people hardly speak English, so try learn some Portuguese! Barra is a nice new modern developed area, which kinda looks like the new development projects in Asia to me. If you go solo to Rio, def ask locals if it's safe where you are or where you will go. THEY will know and YOU will not.
1 year ago
What an amazing city, the vibe of the city will pull you into the present moment. And I found it hard to be very productive as there was always cool things going on everywhere. Safety is a concern. For longer stays I think Barra de tijuca is good, but for a month or shorter it's best to stay in copacabana, ipanema and leblon. My favorite place would be in the middle of copacabana and ipanema. But please learn how to be safe in the city, ask local people or fellow travellers. I will defintly come back to this city :)
2 years ago
Been to 29 cities in 6 months and I can say Rio is AMAZING. However not safe at all, by my first week I knew a total of 10 people that got robbed (3 groups). I've been living here for almost 1 month recharging from fast traveling and haven't been robbed.
3 years ago
I was here for a month. Rio is a beautiful and vibrant city. There's a lot of icons to see. There's great food and the beach is right there. In my, experience the pandemic hasn't impacted the city much. Bars and clubs are still open. I usually go out to Leblon, Ipanema, Lapa, and Barra da Tijuca.
However, it can definitely be a dangerous city if you're being careless. About 10% of the people I've met had an incident there. I was mugged once walking home one night after the clubs in Ipanema, an affluent area. During the daytime, it's fine, but it's not a city where you can walk alone at night even in the affluent areas or at the beach for 5 - 10 minutes. It's one of the most fun places in the world with the warmest people, but just be careful.
As far as coworking, I just used Regus's lounge membership. It's not social, but it was quiet with fast enough for leading meetings.
If I had to do it again, I would stay in Rio for a couple of weeks to see everything and move to Barra da Tijuca for a long-term stay.
4 years ago
Stunning city! The beach + mountains + buildings combination is extremely unique. The most beautiful big city I have ever visited! Brazilians are also very friendly, and Brazil's culture is one of a kind. I loved everything about the trip and even learned some potuguese, which is a beautiful language
4 years ago
I lived in Rio de Janeiro for 6 months and it's my favourite city in the world. I fell in love with the energy, the people, the beaches and of course... the women. Dying to get back there as soon as the lockdown is over. Everybody told me not to go because it's too dangerous. It's definitely not as safe as in Europe (like Portugal for example), but it's nowhere near as dangerous as the media likes to portray. Most of the violence happens in the favelas which skews the stats. If you feel tempted to go but are worried about the safety, just book a flight and see for yourself. You won't regret it. My advice is to 1. Stay in "richer" areas so Ipanema, Copacabana, Leblon and even Barra da Tijuca. Avoid staying next to favelas. 2. Wear non flashy clothes. If you wear bracelets, ear rings or watches, you are increasing the chances of getting robbed. The whole time there I was just wearing a tank top and shorts. 3. Avoid going outside alone at night and also avoid the beaches at night. 4. Use uber. Cheaper and safer. 5. Learn some basic portuguese. It will go a long way! I hope you have fun :)
5 years ago
Rio and Buenos Aires are my favorite cities in Latin America so far, although I haven't yet visited Mexico City, Santiago de Chile and a few others of interest. Rio has beautiful beaches, weather, people, architecture, neighborhoods and green spaces. Great food and a diverse and international population - a Latin American Los Angeles with better public transit and more green space. It's one of the few Latin American cities where most people won't look twice at you for being a white westerner, and are generally friendly. I felt quite safe day and night in Ipanema, Santa Teresa, Leblon and Barra da Tijuca. Other areas can be more dangerous. It's definitely best to learn Portuguese or Spanish, since few here speak English.
5 years ago
Rio is a fantastic city, if u love the outdoors. it is great to be a nomad but u need to be streetsmart and learn the language basics at least to enrich ur ex.
5 years ago
I live in Rio and unfortunately it's not a good place to be a nomad. Most people don't speak English. Most places don't have WiFi. We can't depend on WiFi and 4g anywhere. They don't work well. It's not safe to walk at night. It's not safe to work in public spaces. The city is very big and transportation is terrible. Besides it's too hot most of the year and its polluted.
6 years ago
I live in Rio and unfortunately it's not a good place to be a nomad. Most people don't speak English. Most places don't have WiFi. We can't depend on WiFi and 4g anywhere. They don't work well. It's not safe to walk at night. It's not safe to work in public spaces. The city is very big and transportation is terrible. Besides it's too hot most of the year and its polluted.
6 years ago