Carnival in Rio Cruise: Rio de Janeiro

by Bethany Explores March 29, 2023

In this ninth post of a multi-part series, Bethany explores the city of Rio de Janeiro on her Carnival in Rio cruise on Azamara.

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 Days 9, 10, and 11 in Rio de Janeiro. 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 9

The morning of February 19th we arrived into the port of Rio de Janeiro. This kicked off a three-day stay here in this vibrant city! It was another beautiful sail-in, although there was some patchy fog and low-lying clouds as we approached the port.

Once docking was complete, I headed out for my first excursion here in Rio. We were getting an early start, 8:45AM, because the streets were already bustling with the Carnival revelers and associated traffic. As we made our way into the city, I started seeing more and more people walking on the sidewalks. Many were dressed in fun and colorful costumes. They were all making their way to the blocos, or local block parties, to celebrate Carnival! Traffic was pretty backed up as well, as many streets are shut down completely during this festival season. But our capable driver navigated his way smoothly through the congestion.

Metropolitan Cathedral

The first stop of the excursion was to the Metropolitan Church. This is a modern Roman Catholic church designed in the shape of a pyramid. Our guide explained that the architect was using both the Mayan pyramids and the Apollo space capsule as inspirations for this building. While the exterior is fairly nondescript, the interior is rather stunning. There are four huge stained-glass panels, in bold primary colors, that soar from the floor all the way to the open top of the building. The beauty is amazing! Our small group had plenty of time to wander in and around the building, enjoying the beauty of the design from all angles.

Sugar Loaf

From the Cathedral, we made our way over to Sugar Loaf Mountain for the next stop of the excursion. Here we took two different cable cars to eventually reach the summit of the taller of two mountains. We took the first cable car from the base station to the summit of the smaller mountain and had some time to walk around and enjoy the stunning views from this first perch.

From here we boarded a second cable car to reach the final summit, which is more than 1200 feet above sea level. To say the views from the top were spectacular may be under-stating things a bit…

After enjoying the stunning views of the city and its infamous beaches from the top, we made our way back down to the base on the same two cable car system.

Bloco Madness

Making our way from Sugar Loaf back to the ship mid-day showed just how popular the blocos really get…while I saw a lot of people out and about earlier in the morning, by mid-day the streets and parks were PACKED with people! Everyone was singing and dancing and simply enjoying the day. It was quite a sight to see.

Getting Ready for the Samba Parade

Back at the port, I had some free time to browse the many small shops and stalls there. I found a fabulous new headpiece, in the colors of the Brazilian flag, and a colorful flower lei to wear to the evening’s highlight…the Samba Parade.

Click the button below to read more about my fabulous night at the Samba Parade:

Samba Parade

Cruise Day 10

After a fun, festive, and long night at the Samba Parade, I was glad to spend Day 10 of the cruise simply resting and relaxing on the ship. I arrived back to the ship after the Parade around 4:30AM, so I took the opportunity to sleep in a bit that morning. Later that morning, I woke up in time to enjoy lunch in Windows Café and then headed out to the pool deck to relax and enjoy the sights. I eventually made my way back to my cabin and enjoyed some quiet time out on my veranda. There was an ever-growing bloco that popped up right there at the port!

Our ship’s captain, Captain Mikael, had a blast (literally!) with the partygoers at the bloco. He started blowing the ship’s horn and the crowd went wild! From my veranda I could see him out on the bridge, and he was having such a great time playing with the crowd and taking several selfies with them in the background.

It was a wonderful day to wander around the ship. I managed to finally catch the artwork in the right angle so the shadow from the sun made the “Forever Forward” message appear. I also enjoyed watching the Brazilian flag blow in the breeze. When it got a bit too warm outside in the sun, I made my way back inside the ship…first stopping to relax on a comfy chaise in the Living Room on deck 10, and then down to the Mosaic Cafe on deck 5 for some much-needed caffeine!

Cruise Day 11

My final day in Rio wrapped up with one more excursion. This morning’s excursion brought me to the iconic Christ the Redeemer statue and two of the city’s infamous beaches, before wrapping up my time in Rio.

Christ the Redeemer

First up today was the Christ the Redeemer statue. This adventure started at the base of Corcovado Mountain, where we boarded a cogwheel train. We took the train up through the Tijuca Rainforest to the summit of the mountain, at 2400 feet above sea level. Once we reached the summit, we disembarked from the train and walked up a few steps to reach the base of the 125-foot-tall statue. This iconic monument has been here, overlooking Rio, since 1931.

Like Sugar Loaf, this is another amazing spot to get 360-degree views of the bustling city below. But because it is a relatively small area and it is a very popular attraction, it is rather crowded up there! There were large crowds both at the base of the statue and at an overlook on one side, which had a glorious view of Sugar Loaf Mountain. But I still managed to snap plenty of photos and enjoy all of the views.

Beaches

As we made our way back to the ship after another fun morning excursion, we visited two of the most famous beaches in Rio. Our first stop was to see Ipanema Beach, where we had a few minutes to get off the bus and enjoy the views. The beach itself is fairly narrow but it is pretty long, so there was plenty of room for the throngs of beachgoers enjoying the gorgeous day. And yes, I did spot several “tall and tan and young and lovely” girls from Ipanema go walking by…and I am certain I heard each person as they passed, go, “ahhh…” But I digress…next to the beach is a gorgeous sidewalk with a typical Portuguese-style tile pattern. Again, as with a few other stops in Brazil, I was immediately reminded of my time in Lisbon a few months prior to this trip.

From Ipanema Beach we hopped back onto the bus and continued back to the ship. Along the way we drove past another famous Rio beach, and another one synonymous with a catchy tune, the Copacabana Beach. With Barry Manilow singing along in my head (“Her name was Lola…she was a show girl…with yellow feathers in her hair, and a dress cut down to there…“), I marveled at the long beach. As with Ipanema Beach, there were plenty of beachgoers here as well. But this beach is much larger, so it did not seem as crowded overall.

Fat Tuesday Lunch and Sail-Away

We made it back to the ship after the morning excursion and prepared for a mid-day sail-away. Today also happened to be Mardi Gras, or Fat Tuesday. It is also known as Shrove Tuesday or Pancake Day. The Pursuit crew never lets a good theme go by, so we had a lavish buffet dinner served up on the pool deck as we set sail. For dessert, there were some delectable made-to-order crepes to help celebrate Pancake Day. I had mine stuffed with Nutella and topped it with some powdered sugar, sliced almonds, and caramel syrup (and some fresh fruit on the side, to help me feel ever-so-slightly less guilty!). It was wonderful!

After the amazing lunch buffet, I stayed up on the pool deck and soaked in the awesome views as we left the port of Rio. The sky was crystal blue, and the sun was shimmering on the water. We sailed right past Sugar Loaf Mountain, and I could see the cable cars going up and down. I also got a fabulous view of the Christ the Redeemer statue perched high atop Corcovado Mountain in the distance.

Dinner at Aqualina

To help cap off a fabulous three days in Rio, I celebrated with dinner this evening at the other specialty restaurant onboard, Aqualina. This is an Italian-themed restaurant, and I enjoyed it just as much as I had enjoyed Prime C a few nights earlier. After enjoying a hazy sunset view from my veranda I headed up to Aqualina for dinner.

Tonight’s meal:

Amuse Buche: grilled eggplant crostini
Appetizer: pancetta-wrapped scallops, shrimp, with butternut squash purée and spinach and aioli
Salad: radicchio with green apple, English celery, fig, rosemary-roasted honey walnuts, and Gorgonzola dressing
Entrée: grilled Mediterranean Sea bass, risotto with sautéed shrimp, calamari, and scallop, with a lemon butter sauce
Pre-dessert: amaretti cookies stuffed with chocolate and pistachios
Dessert: caramel soufflé

Tango Show

Tonight’s entertainment onboard was a fabulous Tango show. The dynamic duo of Roxana and Cesar amazed the crowd with several different dance performances, showcasing the history of the Tango. They are professional dancers and teachers from Argentina who have choreographed and performed in many international dance productions, as well as appearing in the Argentinian version of “Dancing with the Stars.” They were both absolutely mesmerizing!

Conclusion

My three days in Rio were absolutely amazing from start to finish! I got to visit two of the most well-known attractions, Sugar Loaf and the Christ the Redeemer statue. I also got to see two of the famous Rio beaches, Ipanema and Copacabana. There was a fabulous sail-away with breathtaking views, all wrapping up with a delicious dinner and a stunning Tango show. But the highlight of the entire cruise was the awesome Samba Parade. I knocked several bucket-list items off during these three days in Rio. While the city of Rio itself can be a bit gritty and rather hectic and busy, there are definitely many gems to explore here. And the frenetic energy throughout the entire city during Carnival season is palpable and almost indescribable. To have experienced all of this left me feeling like a very, very lucky woman!

Carnival in Rio Cruise: Rio de Janeiro

In this ninth post of a multi-part series, Bethany explores the city of Rio de Janeiro on her Carnival in Rio cruise on Azamara.

Carnival in Rio Full Itinerary