Brazil

Understand

Brazil is the largest country in South America. The country has a soul of history and culture and includes nightlife, scenic beauty, white sandy beaches, inland waterways and lush green forests that are among the largest in the world.

Get in

thumb|375px|A map showing the visa requirements of Brazil, with countries in green and light blue having visa-free access

Get around

Travelling between major cities in Brazil can take a lot of time.

Sleep

thumb|Night in [[Campinas]] High season in Brazil follows the school holidays calendar, December and January (summer) being the busiest months. New Year, Carnival (movable between February and March, see Understand above) and Holy week are the peak periods, and prices can skyrocket, especially in coastal cities like Rio and Salvador. Also, during those holidays, many hotels restrict bookings to a 3 or 4-day minimum and charge in advance.

Hotels are plentiful in just about all areas of Brazil and can range from luxury beach resorts to very modest and inexpensive choices. The Brazilian tourism regulation board imposes specific minimum attributes for each type of facility, but as the 1-5 star rating is no longer enforced, check in advance if your hotel provides the kind of services you expect.

Pousada means guesthouse (the local equivalent of a French auberge or a British boarding house), and are usually simpler than hotels, and will offer fewer services (room service, laundry etc.). Pousadas are even more widespread than hotels.

In wilderness areas like the Pantanal, travelers usually stay in fazendas, which are ranches with guest facilities. In small towns of Minas Gerais people are fond of hotéis-fazenda (farm hotels) where you can swim, ride, walk, play football, and camp as well as sleep in picturesque barracks.

Also there is great fun in going on a boat hotel which will take you to inaccessible places on the rivers and lakes for great fishing trips or for simply relaxi…

Stay healthy

When visiting the Midwestern states of Brazil, the relative humidity can be below 30% during the dry season from June to September. It is important to drink plenty of water to avoid the unpleasant effects of dehydration.

Food from street and beach vendors has a bad hygienic reputation in Brazil. The later in the day, the worse it gets. Bottled and canned drinks are safe, although some people will insist on using a straw to avoid contact with the exterior of the container. Bear in mind the heat and humidity when storing perishable foods.

Tap water varies from place to place, (from contaminated, saline or soaked with chlorine to plain drinkable) and Brazilians themselves usually prefer to have it filtered.

In airports, bus stations, as well as many of the cheaper hotels and malls, it is common to find drinking fountains (bebedouro), although not always safe. In hostel kitchens, look for the tap with the cylindrical filter attached. In more expensive hotels, there is often no publicly accessible fountain, and bedrooms contain minibars, selling you mineral water at extremely inflated prices — buying bottled water from the store is always the best alternative. thumb|View of the Amazon rainforest Vaccination against yellow fever and taking anti-malaria medication may be necessary if you are travelling to the Midwestern state of Mato Grosso or the northern (Amazon) regions. If you're arriving from Peru, Colombia or Bolivia, proof of yellow fever vaccination is required befo…

Stay safe

By law, everyone must carry a photo ID at all times. For a foreigner, this means your passport. However, the police will mostly be pragmatic and accept a plastified color photocopy. Not carrying a photo ID can lead to problems and delays if stopped by police or in case of a medical emergency.

Respect

Generally speaking, Brazilians are passionate, curious, welcoming conversationalists.

Go next

Crossing the land border is possible to Uruguay, Argentina, Colombia, French Guiana, Paraguay, Bolivia, Peru, Guyana and Venezuela. There is no road to Suriname.

Argentina and Paraguay: Directly at the border crossing to both countries is the Brazilian airport of Foz do Iguaçu. The airport has flights from several Brazilian destinations. Bolivia: The bigger Brazilian airports nearby are in Campo Grande, Cuiabá and Porto Velho. Directly at a border crossing is the airport of Corumba with flights for example from São Paulo. Uruguay: Fly to nearby Pelotas or Porto Alegre. Colombia and Peru: Take a flight or a boat on the Amazon to Tabatinga. To the Peruvian border you could also fly to Rio Branco or Porto Velho. French Guyana: Take a flight to Macapa or Belém. Guyana and Venezuela: Fly to Boa Vista or Manaus.