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Rio!

The very name conjurs up exotic dreams of Brazilian metropolitan allure, beautiful Brazilian beaches such as Copacabana and Ipanema, wild carnival celebrations, and life always lived to the hilt.

Contrary to popular belief, Rio de Janeiro is not the capital city of Brazil (although it still acts like it! - but Brasilia has held that title since 1960.)

However, Rio de Janeiro continues to boast one of the most impressive harbors of any in the world, with surroundings such as Sugar Loaf Mountain and the hills of Tijuca. With the addition of the 2,330-foot Corcovado mountain topped by the gargantuan Christ Redeemer statue Rio never fails to wow first-time tourists.

With millions of visitors a year, Rio de Janeiro is currently gearing up to at least double its visitorship as the official host city for the 2014 World Cup games and, as the first South American host city, the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Getting around Rio

Truly a metropolitan world city, Rio is actually a collection of neighborhoods or zonas. These include, sadly, the city's infamous favelas or hill slums that have gained a notorious reputation of late for their illicit drug culture and violence. In stark counterpoint to its poorer neighborhoods, you'll find Rio's famous beaches (and most of its major attractions) lying further to the south. Rio central is where you will find busy financial district as well as many historical monuments while outlying areas contain one of the world's fastest growing metro suburbs.

With a city map and a pointer finger, taxis are probably the quickest way around town. They are seemingly everywhere and, bright yellow, are usually hard to miss.

Bus lines by the hundreds also busily criss-cross the city everyday, but foreign visitors with little knowledge of Portuguese are better advised to take the Rio subway. While not as extensive as the overland system, Rio's underground public transport has stops at most of the city's most popular tourist sites, and is conveniently marked throughout in both Portugese and English.

Sleeping and eating in Rio

As you might expect of any big metropolitan city, hotels in Rio range from budget students hostels to 5-star hotels. Vacation apartment rentals are also widely available, with an opportunity to experience a bit more authentic flavor of everyday life in Rio.

Local restaurants are also many and varied, appealing to any taste or price range (including Wendy's and McDonalds!), but don't leave the country without trying an authentic Rio neighborhood restaurant serving up Brazil's signature dish, feijoada (fay-zho-AH-da), a savory stew of black beans served with pork, sausage or beef.

More about Rio de Janeiro tourist attractions around the Web:

www.ipanema.com - Local resident with insider tips to the best beaches in Rio de Janeiro, favorite restaurants, clubs & nightllife, photo virtual tour, maps, travel itineraries, gay Rio guide and lots more.

Copacabana.info - One-stop browsing for everything there is to know about Rio de Janiero and its most famous beach - from reviews of clubs and restaurants to how to find cheap airfares - with photos, detailed maps, related links.

Rio de Janeiro Travel Information - Lonely Planet guide to top attractions including directions to Christ Redeemer, Ipanema and more with overviews of clubs and entertainment, the 2016 Olympics, practical travel tips, maps and photos.