Rio de Janeiro Carnival is the most important, most colorful and most awaited event in all of Brazil. It is celebrated every year for four days in February, with a peak of the festivities on Shrove Thursday and Tuesday. Although the Carnival is celebrated with various differences in all regions of the country, Rio's is the most famous and the most beautiful.
Are you planning a trip to Brazil in February? Make sure you do not miss it!
The history of Rio Carnival
The origins of Rio Carnival lie in the 1930s, when the Brazilian bourgeoisie brought from Europe the fashion of fancy dress parties in the style of Paris.
The custom of organizing the cordões ("ropes" in Portuguese, translatable in this case as "parades") began, with people marching in a row dancing and singing in the city's neighborhoods. Each parade, in costume and with dancers, was linked to a specific district.
Even today the Carnival maintains a differentiation for "blocos" (neighborhoods): each celebrates with its own colors and typical disguises. The most characteristic dance of Rio Carnival is the samba, with parades that take place in the Sambadrome. During the Carnival the main dance schools perform at the Sambadrome, after training all year round to prepare the Carnival shows, a period in which there is an official competition at the end of which a school is named winner of the year.
Celebrations and photo gallery
Rio de Janeiro Carnival is celebrated everywhere: in the streets, in the clubs and on the beaches, but especially at the Sambadrome. Here the samba schools compete with each other to gain the title of winners.
Rio Carnival is famous for its beautiful women, colorful costumes, spectacular choreography and music. The celebration lasts four days before Ash Wednesday, from Shrove Thursday to Shrove Tuesday. During this time, the festivities continue uninterrupted by day and by night. Indeed, already since January someone begins to celebrate.
The bands that perform on the streets are associated with the different neighborhoods of Rio de Janeiro, for example there is the Banda de Ipanema or the Bloco dos Barbas of Botafago, which perform with great deployment of colors and means. Do not miss the barbecues of Santa Teresa, Lapa and Jardim Botânico districts.
The institutional party takes place however at the Sambadrome with the competition of the samba schools on Carnival nights. The competition consists of seven divisions with the final winner decree.
See the gallery below:
How to participate in Rio Carnival
There are four types of tickets to attend the most famous Carnival in the world. Obviously they are very popular and are sold out very quickly, even if physical tickets are issued only a week before the start of the event. Depending on the different type of ticket purchased you have the right to access a different sector of the Sambadrome.
Here are the four types of tickets per sector:
- Arquibancadas: They allow to attend the Samba Patade from the steps. They are the least expensive and generally do not have assigned seats.
- Camarotes: They allow to attend the event from private boxes. They offer a privileged point of view, they are ideal for groups and also include a buffet dinner. Of course they also have a high cost.
- Frisas: With the "frisas" tickets you can reach the parterre. You spend less than for the camarotes and you are not entitled to VIP treatments, but the view is still better than the steps.
- Cadeiras avulsas: These are the tickets for the seats assigned, in parterre, in sectors 12 and 13. The price is limited and from this position you have a good view.
The other Carnivals in Brazil
The Carnival in Brazil is a very heartfelt event and is not celebrated only in Rio de Janeiro. The celebration, the most important of the Brazilian year, derives from the Portuguese Entrudo and, today, enriched by the typical African-American customs, it has reached incredible dimensions, with the due differences from region to region and from city to city. The Carnival of São Paulo, for example, is very similar to that of Rio de Janeiro, but in other cities it is very different.
Let's see what the other Carnivals are:
- Recife Carnival: Famous for the stages set up throughout the city. On the Night of the Silent Drums African slaves who died in the prisons of Brazil are remembered.
- Olinda Carnival: Famous for the parades of huge puppets, called Bonecos de Olinda.
- Florianopolis Carnival: It takes place mostly on the beach, with dancing and singing.
- Salvador de Bahia Carnival: It is divided into three districts, the Pelpurinho, or the historical center, where the main shows take place; La Barra, the promenade, where the parade of the carts is held, and Campo Grande, an avenue where decorated trucks parade and group dances are improvised.
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