

Rio is bracing for a surge of more than 400,000 visitors during the upcoming Summer Olympics, but you can expect most of them to clear out after the closing ceremonies on August 21. This is the place to really create your own adventure: face the thunderous Devil’s Throat (an impressive waterfall on the Argentina side), get soaked on a jet boat ride to the base of the falls or take a refreshing dip in the Salto Arrechea waterfall after a long hike. The Brazil side of the falls offers the best panoramic views, but you should definitely spend some time across the border in Argentina checking out the views from that side, too - no visa is needed. This fantastic display of gravity sits in a lush jungle of palm trees and monkeys instead a concrete jungle of casinos and magnet kiosks, making Iguazú a front-runner for the most impressive falls in the world.Įleanor Roosevelt’s reaction when seeing Iguazú: “Poor Niagara.” Image courtesy of Shutterstock.

With a network of more than 250 waterfalls, Iguazú is three times as wide as Niagara Falls and nearly twice as high.


Just make sure you wake up in time for a stroll with the locals down Avenida Paulista, which is closed to traffic on Sundays until 5:00pm. Image courtesy of Clash Club’s website.įor the perfect São Paulo weekend, start the night off at a boteco in bohemian neighborhood Vila Madalena, then hit a club in the early-morning hours in Barra Funda, Vila Olímpia or whichever neighborhood you’re staying in. This city stays up LATE! The weekend hours at Clash Club, for instance, are 11:00pm-8:00am. Here, you’re just as likely to find a local joint serving a feast of feijoada with its rice, beans and pig scraps, as you are to find a world-class sushi restaurant. The most populous city in South America at 20.9 million people, São Paulo has a restaurant scene to match its diversity and a nightlife scene that doesn’t stop when the night does. Also be aware of the “environmental tax” which starts at $10 per day and increases the longer you stay. It’s best to book flights ahead of time and have a flexible schedule, as the government only allows 460 people to arrive on the island every day. The scuba diving is unreal, with visibility up to 164 feet (50 meters) so you can view the area’s 200 species of fish and five species of sharks, as well as turtles and dolphins. The beaches of Leão, Sancho and Porcos are often listed among the most beautiful in the world, and with good reason. Grab a window seat on the front left side of the plane as incoming pilots often do a flyby and give you this amazing view of Porcos Bay. This piece of archipelago paradise feels as remote as any and even has its own time zone, FNT. This archipelago, located off Brazil’s northeast coast, has managed to fend off mainstream tourism and remain pristine. Here’s my go-to list of places to visit in Brazil if you decide to take advantage of this incredible opportunity. Best of all, the hefty $160 visa fee and often tedious and time-consuming process isn’t just waived for sports fans looking to cram into Rio during the 17-day event - through September 18, travel to all of Brazil can be done visa-free. To encourage attendance at the upcoming Summer Olympics in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil has temporarily lifted its visa requirements for citizens of the US, Canada, Australia and Japan. Visit Sykes Cottages and browse thousands of hand-picked holiday cottages across theUK and Ireland
