Brazil Questions

[Riobard]

My anti-stickyfinger playbook in accommodations is to have the place such a hot mess with my crap scattered around that they would not know where to begin, but then I need to have coded notes to myself about where key belongings are. Once I was on my way to the airport, having checked out, and realized my passport was still in hiding at the place. I managed to get it and make the flight on time. My current go-to apto in Rio does not have a safe. 

[CaliPexx]

On 6/4/2018 at 2:49 PM, caeron said:

Thanks. I'd thought as much on safety (that it was probably overblown). I've travelled extensively, and while I make no claims to be super streetwise, I think I can handle it.

I really prefer having my own place. I may or may not want to bring a boy home to it, but I can judge that. A number of the airbnb apartments did have 24 hour security, and were still a better deal than a hotel.

My friends and I go to Rio at least annually and sometimes more often. On at least half of those trips we have stayed in apartments, the other half at hotels. While we have never rented apartments through AirBnB, we've located flats more commonly through the map feature on sites like TripAdvisor, zooming in on particular areas of neighborhoods where we like to stay.

One caveat is that, in most of the apartments we have rented, we have had to sign extensive rental agreements that specified that we were not permitted to bring "guests" back to the apartment. The penalty for violating this provision was immediate eviction, so we have never attempted to test the enforcement of that restriction. Although I generally prefer to keep my encounters with garotos confined to the saunas, which I consider safer, on those visits when we have rented apartments, my more adventurous travel companions desiring to bring a garoto back from the saunas have either (a) rented inexpensive hotel rooms for a night in the vicinity of our apartment or (b) used nearby love motels in the Zona Sul, e.g., Hotel Vanity in Copacabana.

One other thing to remember: although porteiros (the guys who sit just inside the entrance to an apartment building) are present in most condo buildings, they are NOT always there 24/7. And these guys are NOT really security guards. One apartment I stayed at recently had no porteiro coverage during the night shift or on Sundays, so there would potentially be some safety risk in those edifícios.

We have found that hotels have not objected to having guests, as long as you are upfront with them and pay the incrementally higher two-person rate, as opposed to trying to sneak a trick up the elevator. Additionally, being transparent with the hotel front desk about your guest's presence is good from a safety standpoint, as they will ask to see and photocopy his RG (Brazilian ID card).

TL;DR: I vote with the majority in this thread and recommend that you stay in a hotel, at least for your first trip, and probably for several subsequent visits to Brazil.

[caeron]

I do appreciate the advice.

That said, I've booked an apartment since over the ~10 days it's a fair savings to me. They list a 24 hour doorman and unlike other places didn't list a no guests rule. I guess we'll see. Based on my read of the place and the doorman when I arrive, I can decide whether I'd even consider bringing someone back or will just do programs in the sauna. As has been pointed out, there are plenty of love hotels and the like that I could use if I feel the need for extended cuddle time. Worst case scenario, I abandon the place and move to a hotel.

I am trying to travel a bit on a budget, and having my own kitchen for simple meals was the kicker for me. I don't really like eating out alone that much anyway.

[CaliPexx]

7 hours ago, caeron said:

I am trying to travel a bit on a budget, and having my own kitchen for simple meals was the kicker for me. I don't really like eating out alone that much anyway.

During a five week period I was alone in Rio, before my travel buddies arrived and we moved to a larger flat, I did the same thing, staying in a one bedroom apartment in Copacabana. There's something to be said about having access to your own kitchen and making healthy meals within your own space. So that's exactly what I did during those five weeks.

That said, I kept a detailed record of my expenditures, down to the centavo, comparing the period when I was on my own and the weeks after my friends arrived, when we tended to eat more meals in restaurants. The funny (and surprising) thing was that my expenditures for dining out in Rio de Janeiro turned out to be not much more than what I spent when I was making my own meals.

As you'll discover, Rio has many options for dining out very inexpensively, including por kilo restaurants (where they weigh your plate at the end of a huge buffet), juice bars that are located on practically every corner, and the ridiculously cheap pizza and breakfast restaurants that are attached to several outlets of the Zona Sul chain of supermarkets. I have dined by myself at all of those types of eateries, as do many brasileiros, and have never felt self-conscious in doing so. But YMMV.

@caeron: Out of curiosity, in which bairro did you decide to rent your apartment? Copacabana? Ipanema? Elsewhere?

[Walker]

8 hours ago, caeron said:

 

I am trying to travel a bit on a budget, and having my own kitchen for simple meals was the kicker for me. I don't really like eating out alone that much anyway.

I don't like eating out alone either, but I am too lazy to cook, not to mention grocery shopping in Brazil (I am talking about very long waiting in lines at crowded grocery stores).  I concur the previous poster about the por kilo restaurants.  You go in, grab a plate and gather the food you want on your plate, then pay and eat (or take it home).  They are usually inexpensive.  I find this work well for me since I don't have to read menus, order and wait for the food alone at the restaurants.

[caeron]

 

The apartment is in Copa, down near Ipanema. I took it from a number of older posts and what not that this was a good neighborhood for tourists to hang out in.

Good comments on cheap eats too. 

[CaliPexx]

6 minutes ago, caeron said:

The apartment is in Copa, down near Ipanema. I took it from a number of older posts and what not that this was a good neighborhood for tourists to hang out in.

My friends and I have rented apartments many times in that part of Copacabana. It's very convenient -- close to the Metrô for accessing Point 202 and Clube 117. It's within walking distance of Rio de Janeiro's Castro Street in Ipanema -- Rua Farme de Amoedo -- where there is a popular gay bar, Tô Nem Aí, and, of course, the famous Farme gay beach between Postos 8 and 9. During Southern Hemisphere winter, when you are there, Praia Farme will be busiest in late afternoon, before sunset, on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

For many years, the world-renowned gay mega-disco/bar/sauna, Le Boy, operated in that part of Copacabana. But alas, two or three trips ago my friends and I discovered that Le Boy was no more. But I have fond memories of that emporium from my first trip to Rio in the 1990s. I did something I now realize was careless and accepted the invitation of a hot and hunky Carioca I met on the disco floor to go back to his apartment. Fortunately, I had a hot night with this guy and it all ended OK but the outcome could have been different.

You'll be very close to the Forte de Copacabana, the rock outcropping and mini-neighborhood called Arpoador, which separates Copacabana from Ipanema. Be sure to take a walk out to the Fort (there's a small entrance fee, which includes some cool military museums). You can take some spectacular photos from there. Also be sure to climb up the rock at Arpoador, this time from the Ipanema side, to capture some of the most stunning sunset photos. Although the coastal fog blocked my great sunset view on this occasion, you can still see a bit of the glow on the buildings in the attached image. Fortunately, sunset will occur quite early when you are there, so you'll still have plenty of time to take the Metrô out to the saunas!