We've stayed there a couple of times and really enjoyed it. The hotel is located at Sao Conrado Beach, which is well south of the main tourist areas. Aside from the small shopping area near the hotel, the beach and the golf course, there are not a lot of places to walk to and there is a very large favela district 6-8 blocks inland. The hotel is well-kept and you will find excellent dining, from the snack bar on up. (We especially recommend the pool terrace restaurant for great lunches and the Sunday champagne brunch is outstanding.) The club level is worth the premium for the cocktail hours and light breakfast in the morning.

If you won't be renting a car -- and I wouldn't -- then I highly recommend the hotel's car service. It's more efficient than going the tour bus route and not really very expensive (I would say around $20/hour, which gets you a solid driver with a nice car with all of the convenience and personal security that entails.) The fellow that we used is a wonderful man by the name of Jose Carvalho (e-mail: [email protected]). He is a really tuned in fellow and you can learn a lot about the politics, economics, etc. of Rio. If you touch base with him in advance, you can arrange for airport pickup.