Yay, Carnival is here! If you are planning a trip to a beautiful place, full of excited people, good parties and events like bloquinhos to go, what about Brazil? Here, Carnival is one of the most popular (and expected) holidays of the year. Check it out some options of wonderful cities for you to visit in brazilian lands.
#1 – São Paulo
Credits: Vida de Turista
Even São Paulo stops during Carnival. Usually, its streets have a lot of hurry people going to their jobs. But on this period of the year, almost everybody wants to relax and to fall into the party. There are a lot of options to have fun in the city. If you want to be among the people, listen to funny songs and dance a lot, you should try the traditional carnival street blocks, the bloquinhos de rua. We’ll have 491 of them this year, you just gotta search and see which ones fit more into your preferences. Another choice is watching to the beautiful samba school parades. People rehearse and work hard during all the year to present amazing shows in the Carnival.
#2 – Rio de Janeiro
Credits: Vida de Turista
Known by the affectionate name of “cidade maravilhosa”, Rio de Janeiro really is one of the best places to be during Carnival. The numerous beaches, the receptive people and all the atmosphere of Rio is contagious. There are also a lot of blocks to enjoy on the street. And if the weather is too hot, you have the option of taking a break on the party to take a dip (most of the parties are around the sea). You can also visit one of the most traditional Sambódromos – Marquês do Sapucaí – and watch the samba school parades, just like in São Paulo.
#3 – Salvador
Credits: Vida de Turista
Have you ever listened to the music rhythm “axé”? If you choose Salvador, you will have the chance to fix in your head the most famous songs of the gender. This is a city where people can always go when they want to have fun. During Carnival, the place is even more amusing. Besides the wonderful beaches, there are a lot of electrical trios and famous singers to cheer the revelers – if you are lucky, you can get really next to the stage and dance close to the artists. When the parties are done, what about visiting the main touristic points of the city to get to know a little bit more about its gracious culture?
#4 – Ouro Preto
Credits: Vida de Turista
Usually, people like to visit Ouro Preto, in Minas Gerais, because of its spectacular baroque architecture. But it’s also a wonderful place to be during Carnival. The city is filled of young people that organize their own parties in their student residences, as the city has a Federal University. There are packages that include unlimited drinks, accommodation, 24 hours security and parties every day. The celebration frequently extends itself to the streets and achieve the traditional “bloquinhos” – one of them is Zé Pereira dos Lacaios, from 1867, the oldest one in Brazil.
#5 – Recife and Olinda
Credits: Guia da Semana
Recife and Olinda are very beautiful cities in Pernambuco. The second one is considered patrimony of humanity by Unesco because of its bigs and worldwide known “Olinda dolls”, as you can see on the picture above. A good program is to enjoy the blocks during the day in Olinda and then go to Recife (at located less than one hour of distance) to feel the swing of Frevo and Maracatu, traditional local rhythms. Do not forget of checking “Galo da Madrugada”, the biggest block of the entire world (according to Guinness), with almost two million participants.
Now that you have some options to celebrate Carnival, you just gotta make the bags and come to Brazil!