What becomes apparent when planning a trip to Brazil is the incredibly vast distances and the sheer size of the country. So after much contemplation we decided to stick to just a few well-chosen places in order to be able to explore and capture the essence of Brazil we had heard so much about. After much deliberation we decided on Rio, the Iguacu Falls and the Emerald Coast.
First stop and a real must for everyone heading over, is one of the world’s great iconic cities, Rio de Janiero; from the moment you arrive it is captivating. romantic and laid back but oozing energy and life travels at a million miles an hour. It really needs a few days to explore and time to sit back and take it all in.
After exploring Rio and visiting the statue of Christ on Corcovado Mountain, we flew up to the Iguacu Falls about 2 hours from Rio and probably one of the planet’s most awe-inspiring sights; the Iguacu Falls are simply astounding. The falls are easily reached from either side of the Argentine–Brazilian border and you will need a couple of days to do both sides justice.
A short hop back to Rio and then we journeyed southwest past the rain-forested hills of the Mata Atlantica rainforest and cliffs of the emerald coast to the bay-side colonial port of Paratí where we spent a couple of days exploring the cobblestone streets and taking in its lively nightlife and vowed we would return! For the final leg of the 10 day trip and from the small harbour in Parati we took a boat trip round nearby islands of which there a literally hundreds. We opted to stay on one of the larger islands, the laid back tropical island Ilha Grande. The only transport on the island is by foot or boat so it really is a true paradise and a perfect ending to what will not be the last trip to Brazil!