Brazil in August
 

I'm planning a trip with my brother, his wife and her sister to Brazil. We will have about 8 days. I definitely want to spend four or 5 in RIo. I am looking for a good 3 to 4 day trip from Rio. Since intraBrazil prices all seem highly expensive, I think that we will all cash in 25K US miles and get a RT on Varig. I value 25K at $250. Or if there is something near Rio then perhaps we could save that $250.

My ideas so far include Salvador, Buzios, Manaus, Iguazu, and Buenos Aires. Personally I think that I would prefer a good beach town. But I would like to be able to do the following. Swim in warm water, take snorkeling/scuba/sufing/windsurfing lessons in ENGLISH. Go out and have decent nightlife at night. Buzios sounded great and is cheap to get too, but I think that August may be too cold to go into the water. Any suggestions for my ideal beach. Salvador I have heard is good. But I am a little confused. SHould I go to the city of salvador or is there a specific beach town near it that I should look for.

I also want somewhere that is easy to get too. Preferably nonstop, but a quick connection would be OK i suppose. I'm leaning against BA becasue it seems like just another city. The amazon sounds cool, but I get the impression it is hard to really experience the wild of it, as anywhere convenient is to commercialized to really experience the Amazon. Iguazu looks cool, but I want to do stuff more than just see stuff. ANy other ideas.

2 of us are flying in and out of GRU. The other two are on AANYC tickets and have GIG currently reserved. The two GRU pax will probably just buy tix to GIG. About $50 one way. We are all between 25 and 28.

Eight days? Sounds like you need eight weeks! I've only been to a few cities in Brazil (Rio, Sao Paulo, Curitiba, Foz de Iguacu), but given you'll only have a few days to spare, I would recommend Foz de Iguacu and see the Iguazu Falls. It's just a spectacularly beautiful place. Plus it's just a taxi ride over the border to Argentina. (If you've never been to Argentina, it would be an easy way to cross another country off the list!) Both countries offer different views of the falls, each different and amazing. It sounds like you want something a little more active, but given the limited time the falls wouldn't be a bad choice. And after the energy of Rio, you might want a place a little more calm. It's expensive to fly to Foz de Iguacu, around $400 from GIG or GRU (at least booking here) so using mileage could be a good move. No matter what happens, you'll have an amazing trip...Brazil is wonderful.

I've been to Manaus, Brasilia, Belo Horizonte and Salvador recently. Always working (shooting 360° photography) and with never enough time to look around and enjoy a place as a tourist so I can't really say what the best destination for you is.

One place that comes to mind is Superclubs Breezes at Costa do Sauipe for the watersports. It's about an hour from Salvador which is a very interesting city. You could visit Salvador and see the highlights, eat Bahian food which is incredible and then spend a day or so at Breezes. It's just a typical all-inclusive but it might be easier than trying to do it on your own.

I was there less than 24 hours and only got in the ocean when it washed over my feet while taking a photo on the beach. Check around for more informed opinions it this interests you.

I'm adding a link to our website which has hotels throughout Brazil and a link to Breezes Sauipe activities.

Where ever you go, have fun.

Our website's digital brochures -- turn off pop-up blocker to view

Breezes-- Costa do Sauipe

Look into a tour package from a GIG travel agent to go t to Iguacu or Salvador (or anywhere else for that matter). They should be able to set you up with a 3 day flight/hotel excursion for a rate cheaper than the flight booked from the US.

Spent almost a month in Brazil last August. Flying around can be a pain as lots of flights incur connections at GRU. That said I rented an apartment in the Vitoria district of Salvador , Bahia. The weather was perfect and in fact you can swim! Salvador is a lovely place and like another person said the food is wonderful. Lot's of cultural/ heritage things to do and places to see. The music and dance is not to be believed. One Sunday we rented a yacht and invited friends we had met for a day of sailing and swimming. I know it sounds expensive but the day cost only 120 USD all in :) . Enjoy ^ ^ ^