Favela Walking Tour in Rio de Janeiro
Description
Take a non-intrusive 4-hour walking tour of Rocinha favela in Rio, and learn about life in the city’s famous shanty towns. Take a respectful tour with a favela resident, and meet the locals to experience their lives away from the usual stereotypes.
Tour Options
Itinerary
We will walk across the Favela of Rocinha and show you how life is in there
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Not recommended for pregnant travelers
- Not recommended for travelers with poor cardiovascular health
- Not recommended for travelers with spinal injuries
- Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
- Minimum age is 5 years
- Meeting point at Belmond Copacabana Palace at 13:25
Reviews(108)
Had Alberto as a guide who provided a great insight into the culture and provided us an authentic experience. Extremely friendly and knowledgeable, definitely worth booking and requesting Alberto
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed your tour with Alberto. Having a local guide who can share authentic stories, cultural insights, and personal experiences is something we truly value, and we're so pleased that it made your visit even more meaningful. We'll be sure to pass along your kind words to Alberto. He'll be thrilled to know that his friendliness and knowledge made such a positive impact on your experience. Thank you for choosing Brazil Expedition. We hope to welcome you back to Rio de Janeiro in the future! Best regards, The Brazil Expedition Team
Really educational experience with a kind guide. I learned a lot and would recommend this tour. G 5 stars.
Had a great experience with our tour guide Malu. The whole experience felt very authentic starting with hopping on a local public transport van that the locals use daily to enter and leave Rocinho. Our tour guide provided lots of insight and even invited us to her own home so we can see what it’s like to live in the favela. We took this tour during the Brazil World Cup match which turned out to be an AMAZING EXPERIENCE. Our group and I were able to watch Brazil take the win with locals out in the streets of the favela. Would definitely recommend.
Thank you so much for your amazing review! We're thrilled to hear that you had such an authentic and memorable experience with Malu. As a local resident, she loves sharing the real daily life, history, and culture of Rocinha, and we're delighted that her personal insights—including welcoming you into her home—made your visit so special. Watching Brazil's World Cup match alongside the local community must have been an unforgettable moment! Experiences like these are truly unique and offer a genuine glimpse into the vibrant spirit of the favela. Thank you for choosing Brazil Expedition and for recommending our tour. We hope to welcome you back to Rio de Janeiro again in the future!
Our tour guide was fantastic, very friendly, and knowledgeable. She pointed out when we could take pictures and whrn wr couldn't and we also got to experience capoeira. I would highly recommend her!!
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear that you enjoyed your visit to the favela and that your guide made the experience both enjoyable and informative. We're especially happy that you appreciated the guidance on when it was appropriate to take photos and that you had the opportunity to experience the capoeira demonstration. It means a lot to us to know that you had such a positive experience. Thank you for visiting Rocinha with Brazil Expedition, and we truly appreciate your recommendation. We hope to welcome you back to Rio de Janeiro in the future!
Such an interesting afternoon. I am very happy I joined this tour and everybody that visits Rio should do the same. We were only a small group of six led by a guy who has lived in the favela for 60 years. He took us into the controlled section with agreement, controlled by young guys with guns on their hips and Mark machine guns on their laps. Scary but very interesting and an enormous experience.M
Thank you very much for your kind review! We're delighted to hear that you found the tour so interesting and that it became a memorable part of your visit to Rio. We're also happy that you enjoyed the small group experience and Alberto's guidance. Having lived in Rocinha his entire life, he offers an authentic perspective on the community, its history, and its culture that few people can provide. Our goal is always to offer a respectful, informative, and safe cultural experience while helping visitors better understand the realities and daily life of the favela. Thank you for choosing Brazil Expedition. We hope to welcome you back to Rio on your next visit!
Alberto was our guide and he did a fabulous job. He lives in the Favala we visited and showed us all areas and made us feel very welcome. He introduced us to many people and we felt safe with him as our guide. His knowledge of the history was very informative. A highlight of the trip was local children doing a demonstration of song and dance
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We're delighted to hear that you had such a positive experience with Alberto. As a local resident of Rocinha, he brings a unique perspective and genuine connection to the community, making the tour both authentic and meaningful. We're glad you felt safe, welcomed, and enjoyed learning about the history and culture of the favela through his eyes. We're especially happy that the children's song and dance performance was one of the highlights of your visit. It's a beautiful way to experience the local culture while supporting an important community project. Thank you again for choosing Brazil Expedition. We hope to welcome you back to Rio de Janeiro in the future!
This was a very stimulating, inspiring and memorable experience. We visited a place where 200,000 people live in a way so far from our experience at home. Our tour guide Roberto went out of his way to explain and answer our questions, and with him we felt ultra safe, many thanks to him. There were some 'eye opening' parts of this visit (no spoilers, you have to go to experience the reality of being in a favela). Highly recommended.
Thank you so much for your kind words! We’re very happy to hear that the experience was inspiring and memorable for you. Rocinha is indeed a very unique and eye-opening place, and we’re glad you had the opportunity to experience it in such a positive way. Roberto will be especially happy to hear your feedback. He is truly passionate about sharing the reality, culture, and stories of the community while making everyone feel safe and comfortable throughout the visit. Thank you again for recommending us, and we hope to welcome you back to Rio someday!
The first part of the tour was very fun with the capoeira presentation of the local social project. Then, the guide takes you to see the non-touristic part where you walk the streets of the place. I wish they had more places for photos, even if only in the tourist area.
Thank you very much for your review and for sharing your feedback! We're glad to hear that you enjoyed the capoeira presentation and the opportunity to experience the authentic, non-touristic side of the community. One of our main goals is to provide visitors with a genuine cultural experience led by local guides who know the community firsthand. We also appreciate your suggestion regarding photo opportunities. We always prioritize the privacy of local residents and the safety of our guests, which is why photography is only permitted in specific areas. However, we'll certainly take your feedback into consideration as we continue improving the experience. Thank you for choosing Brazil Expedition. We hope to welcome you back to Rio de Janeiro in the future! Best regards, The Brazil Expedition Team
Very interesting experience to follow closely the life in the favela. We were able to watch a capoeira presentation from the kids which was very cool. In addition, the tour could last longer and be more informative. Anyway, a good experience and super safe!
Muito obrigado pela sua avaliação e por compartilhar a sua experiência! Ficamos felizes em saber que você gostou da visita à favela, especialmente da apresentação de capoeira realizada pelas crianças do projeto social. É um momento muito especial do passeio e uma oportunidade de conhecer de perto uma importante iniciativa da comunidade. Agradecemos também pelo seu feedback sobre a duração e o nível de informações do tour. Comentários como o seu são muito importantes e nos ajudam a aprimorar continuamente a experiência oferecida aos nossos visitantes. Ficamos satisfeitos em saber que você se sentiu seguro durante todo o passeio e esperamos ter o prazer de recebê-lo novamente em uma próxima visita ao Rio de Janeiro! Um grande abraço da equipe Brazil Expedition!
I loved the experience of knowing the favela inside, they take you by van to the beginning of the favela, then we walk down their stairs and reach the viewpoint, they take you later to know how they dance capoeira and samba, you walk the favela inside and see how they live, super recommended!!!
¡Muchas gracias por compartir tu experiencia! Nos alegra muchísimo saber que disfrutaste el recorrido por la favela, desde la llegada en van hasta las caminatas por las escaleras, el mirador y as presentaciones de capoeira y samba. Vivir la comunidad desde dentro realmente permite entender su cultura, su ritmo y su autenticidade. Este tour es muy especial para nosotros porque tiene un valor cultural enorme: permite que los visitantes conozcan la historia, las expresiones artísticas y la vida cotidiana de la comunidad desde una perspectiva real y respetuosa. Además, contribuye directamente al turismo de base comunitaria, generando ingresos para los propios moradores, fortaleciendo proyectos locales y creando oportunidades dentro de la favela. Cada visita ayuda a promover un intercambio cultural genuino y a valorizar la identidad de la comunidad. ¡Muchas gracias por recomendarlo y por ser parte de esta experiencia tan significativa!
