Carnival in Rio Cruise: Buzios

In this seventh post of a multi-part series, Bethany explores the next Brazilian port on her Carnival in Rio cruise on Azamara: Buzios.

Back for my second cruise on Azamara…this time I am exploring South America. The 15-night Carnival in Rio cruise is round-trip from Buenos Aires, going up to Rio de Janeiro and back. Join me as I explore the many wonderful ports in Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil along the way!

Carnival in Rio Full Itinerary

Below is the full itinerary for the trip. This post includes details about Cruise Day 8: Buzios, Brazil. Looking for info on earlier stops? Check out the ‘Links’ section at the end of this post!

• Pre-Cruise – February 9 & 10: Buenos Aires, Argentina (embarkation)
• Cruise Day 1 & 2 – February 11 & 12: Montevideo, Uruguay
• Cruise Day 3 & 4 – February 13 & 14: At Sea
• Cruise Day 5 – February 15: Santos, Brazil
• Cruise Day 6 – February 16: Ilhabela, Brazil
• Cruise Day 7 – February 17: Parati, Brazil
• Cruise Day 8 – February 18: Buzios, Brazil
• Cruise Day 9-11 – February 19-21: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Cruise Day 12 & 13 – February 22 & 23: At Sea
• Cruise Day 14 – February 24: Punta del Este, Uruguay
• Post-Cruise Day 1 – February 25: Buenos Aires (disembarkation)
• Post-Cruise Day 2 – February 26: Iguazu Falls, Brazil
• Post-Cruise Day 3 – February 27: Iguazu Falls, Argentina

Cruise Day 8

The 8th day of the cruise dawned with yet another pretty sunrise over the water! We sailed into the lovely port of Buzios early this morning, and the scenery was gorgeous. This absolutely charming seaside village was originally settled by European pirates and slave traders. Buzios became famous in 1964 when Brigitte Bardot vacationed here and was photographed along the beach…we’ll meet her a bit later on in our exploration!

After a hearty breakfast in Windows Cafe, I set out again by tender to the shore. A quick tender ride brought me to the main pier in Buzios, where the guide was waiting for us to kick off today’s excursion: Buzios by Open-Air Trolley.

Setting Out on the Open Air Trolley Tour

After meeting up with the guide, we headed over to our open-air trolley. This vehicle is the perfect way to really see all of the amazing scenery that Buzios has to offer. And it was a gorgeous morning, so the fresh air felt wonderful!

As we made our way from the main pier area, we drove through a few small residential areas along the water and started to get a glimpse of the beauty here. What seemed like hundreds of small boats dotted the main harbor, with our ship anchored not far behind them. Small streets wind through the seaside village, and I started to see some of the lush greenery that is everywhere here as well.

Magnificent Vistas on the Open Air Trolley Tour

Along the way we made stops at a few different viewpoints to really enjoy the panoramic views.

The views are each more stunning than the last! It was a beautiful clear day as well, so the bright sunshine only enhanced the beauty of everything.

Forno Beach

Another stop along the tour was to Forno Beach, a small horseshoe-shaped beach nestled within a quiet cove. Here we had the opportunity to walk along the beach and enjoy the views. There were many families out enjoying the beach as well…it is summer vacation here, so the kids are all out of school!

The sand at Forno Beach is a gorgeous shade of pink! It is really pretty and different than any other beach sand I have ever seen. I also took the opportunity to slip my shoes off and dip my toes in the water as I walked along the beach. The water felt cool and refreshing!

Wrapping up the Trolley Tour

The trolley tour continued from the beach to a few last viewpoints as we made our way back to the center of town. The first photo below is an area they call “turtle rock” because of its shape…if you look closely, you may be able to make out the turtle’s head (the smaller rock on the right), with the larger hills in the middle being the turtle’s shell and the ridge of hills towards the front being the turtle’s fin.

Once the tour wrapped up, I had the opportunity to walk around the town for a bit. I even met Brigitte Bardot…well, her life-sized bronze statue, anyway! The small town is very quaint and is full of restaurants and small shops. It was a great place to just wander around in for a while before heading back to the ship. Once back onboard, I relaxed out on my veranda for a while and continued to enjoy the views of the turquoise water and the rugged coastline.

White Night

We set sail in the late afternoon, making our way to Rio. But first we enjoyed White Night on the ship tonight. White Night is Azamara’s themed party that is held once on each cruise. For the event, everyone is encouraged to wear white. We all head up to the pool deck, which is also all decked out in white, and enjoy a fun evening of dinner, drinks, and dancing.

The dinner at White Night is an extensive buffet of wonderful hot and cold choices. There are delicious options as far as the eye can see, and it can be difficult to narrow it down! The highlight is dessert, where senior crew members serve up crepes Suzette made-to-order.

Once dinner winds down, the White Night entertainment kicks in. The Marvelous Funk band got the party started with some fun dance tunes. Then the entertainment team, led by Cruise Director Emily, hit the stage with the Pursuit Band backing them up. Classics from “YMCA” to “Sweet Caroline” to “Dancing Queen” keep everyone up and dancing the whole night long!

Conclusion

I was delighted with my day in Buzios. It is an absolutely lovely place to spend a day, and the good weather only enhanced the visit. The breathtaking views are found everywhere you look, with each one more beautiful than the last. The White Night party was a perfect way to cap off the spectacular day. Now we make our way to the highlight of the cruise: Rio! Stay tuned for more details about my three days in Rio.

Links

Click the button below to read the next post in the series:

Click the buttons below for earlier parts of the series:

Click the buttons below for more information about Azamara, and to read about my first cruise on Azamara in June 2022:

Note: I fully funded this trip on my own and received no compensation or any other benefits from any service providers I used along the way. The opinions expressed here are my own and I am not being compensated by any service providers.