Seasons

Carnival in Rio de Janeiro

When February – March It falls 47 days before Easter Sunday, so it moves between February and March.

Typical duration 5 days

Book 8–12 months ahead

Groups & MICE Avoid for MICE

The week Rio runs on its own rules, with two distinct products that should never be confused in a quotation.

What it is

It is two things at once. The samba school parades take place in the Sambadrome, with numbered seating by sector and a night schedule that ends at dawn. The street carnival is the blocos, free and spread across the city over more than a week. A client who buys one expecting the other has been badly served.

What to offer

Five nights in Rio across the core window, with the decision made up front: a grandstand or sector seat in the Sambadrome for the client who wants to watch the parade seated, or the south zone and the blocos for the client who wants to take part. Pairing with Búzios or Paraty after Carnival eases the package price and moves the client on once the city has given what it has.

How it operates

Hotels along the beach corridor apply minimum stays, prepayment and stricter cancellation than the rest of the year, with rates at their highest point. Street closures lengthen transfers materially: an airport run that is forty minutes in a normal week stops being predictable, and arrivals should be scheduled with slack.

When to book

Eight to twelve months ahead. Inside six months the useful south-zone availability is already committed, and what remains tends to be far from where the client wants to be.

Groups & MICE

A window to avoid for congresses and incentives: the group competes for the same rooms as leisure demand at the year's highest pressure, and movement around the city is not dependable.