Visas & entry
For tourism, Brazil generally allows stays of up to 90 days, with extension rules that can permit up to 180 days in a year. As of the research date, U.S., Canadian and Australian passport holders need a visitor eVisa (in force since April 10, 2025); EU citizens are visa-exempt for short tourist visits. Rules change and are nationality-specific: check the Brazilian consulate or official eVisa system before buying non-refundable flights.
Getting in
- São Paulo–Guarulhos: Brazil’s dominant international and domestic hub, and the most practical arrival for São Paulo, Rio, Minas Gerais or any multi-region itinerary. It has the best onward-flight network, but do not underestimate the time needed to cross São Paulo or transfer airports.
- Rio de Janeiro–Galeão: The straightforward international arrival for a Rio-first trip, Costa Verde, or an itinerary beginning with Rio before flying onward. It is less useful than GRU as a countrywide connecting hub.
- Brasília: A major domestic connector rather than most visitors’ preferred international arrival. Useful when linking the Southeast with the Center-West, Pantanal/Bonito or the Northeast without routing everything through São Paulo.
- Salvador: The sensible regional gateway for Bahia and much of the Afro-Brazilian Northeast. Use it rather than backtracking via Rio or São Paulo if Salvador and a Bahia beach extension are the point.
- Manaus: The operational gateway for the central Amazon. Arrive here only with enough time for a lodge or river program; it is not a quick side trip from the Southeast.
Getting around
Treat Brazil as an air-connected continent, not a road-trip country. Fly between regions: a domestic flight effectively consumes most of a day once transfers, check-in and possible connections are included. Buses are good value and practical within a region, and cars work for specific road-based areas, but there is no useful nationwide passenger-rail network. Rio–São Paulo and Rio–Paraty–Ilha Grande work overland; Manaus, Salvador, Foz do Iguaçu, Pantanal and Lençóis Maranhenses are separate trips in practical terms.
Money
Brazil uses the Brazilian real (R$ / BRL). Budget roughly R$250–500 per person per day for value travel, R$600–1,200 for a comfortable mid-range trip, and R$1,800–3,500+ for high-end travel, excluding international flights; domestic flights, single rooms, Carnival/Réveillon, Noronha, Pantanal lodges and guided Amazon trips push costs sharply higher.
Daily budget · Brazilian real (R$ / BRL).
- Value
- R$250–500
- Mid-range
- R$600–1,200
- High-end
- R$1,800–3,500+
- Per-person daily bands exclude international flights and assume two people sharing a room; solo travelers should expect accommodation to push costs up.
- Value: hostel bed or simple pousada, prato feito or quilo lunches, local restaurants, buses/metro, occasional rideshares and paid sights.
- Comfortable mid-range: good three- or four-star hotel or polished pousada, frequent rideshares, good restaurants, domestic sightseeing and some tours.
- High-end: design hotels or resorts, private transfers, better guides, destination dining and premium rooms.
- Domestic flights are the major omitted cost and are essential for most cross-country itineraries; book early around holidays.
- Carnival, Réveillon, prime Rio beachfront hotels, Fernando de Noronha, Pantanal lodges, guided Amazon packages, private drivers and single occupancy can exceed the high-end band substantially.
Eating well
- Eat almoço strategically: quilo restaurants charge by weight, while prato feito is a good-value set plate.
- Dinner runs later than in the US, especially in big cities.
- Reserve destination restaurants in São Paulo and Rio; book Saturday feijoada, popular beachfront restaurants and special Carnival or New Year meals ahead.
- Do not expect local açaí in the Amazon to be a sweet smoothie bowl; it is often savory and eaten with fish or cassava flour.
Book before you land
- Do not build an itinerary around distant highlights just because they are all in Brazil. One major city plus one nearby region is a proper first trip; three stops linked by one domestic flight is the sensible upper limit for a short visit.
- In Rio, Salvador and other big cities, treat petty theft and street robbery as real operational risks: keep phones and jewelry out of sight, carry little at the beach, and use rideshares rather than walking between nightlife areas late at night.
- Carnival, New Year’s Eve and Easter reshape prices, transport and business hours. During Carnival, book far ahead and do not schedule a tight connection immediately after the festivities.
- For Amazon, Pantanal and Iguaçu itineraries, seek travel-health advice well before departure. Yellow-fever vaccination is not an entry requirement, but may be recommended depending on where you go.
- Eat almoço rather than chasing dinner bargains: quilo restaurants charge by weight and prato feito is the standard-value set lunch. Dinner starts later than many North American travelers expect, especially in big cities.
- Weather is regional. The Pantanal is strongest in the drier months; Amazon water levels change the experience rather than simply making it better or worse; dry-year fires and smoke can disrupt Amazon and Pantanal plans, so leave flexibility.
Entry rules change — verify visa requirements for your passport before booking this country.
Season by season
December–February
Summer is hot, humid and busy, with good beach weather across much of the coast but frequent heavy rain and thunderstorms in Rio, São Paulo, Minas and the Center-West; the Amazon is in higher-water season and Pantanal access is less dependable.
Réveillon and Carnival bring the country’s highest hotel rates, sold-out flights and transport, while rain and heat make urban sightseeing and Pantanal logistics harder.
March–May
After Carnival, crowds generally ease; March remains warm and wet in the Southeast, while April and May bring more comfortable walking and hiking weather in Rio, São Paulo and Minas.
Easter briefly pushes up demand, and Recife/Olinda and parts of the Bahia coast can be notably wet.
June–August
This is generally the driest, most reliable period for the Pantanal and much of the Southeast and Center-West; the South becomes genuinely cool, while the Amazon remains hot, humid and rainy despite lower average rainfall.
Rio evenings can be cool and beach weather is less certain; July school holidays increase domestic prices and crowds.
September–November
September and October are an excellent cross-country compromise: Pantanal wildlife remains strong, the Northeast is broadly sunny, and Rio and São Paulo warm before peak summer; humidity and rain build in the Southeast and Center-West by November.
Dry-year fires, drought and smoke can disrupt Amazon and Pantanal travel, so keep flexibility rather than treating the dry season as a guarantee.
Events worth planning around
New Year’s Eve / Réveillon · Late December to 1 January · Especially Rio de Janeiro’s Copacabana, plus Salvador and major beach resorts
One of Brazil’s biggest domestic travel peaks: prime beach hotels, flights and restaurants book early, and Copacabana becomes exceptionally crowded.
Carnival · Usually February or early March; dates vary with Easter · Nationwide, with the biggest impact in Rio de Janeiro, Salvador, Recife/Olinda and São Paulo
Expect sold-out flights and intercity transport, sharply higher hotel rates, altered business hours and major street closures. Rio’s Sambadrome requires tickets; Salvador and Recife/Olinda are more street-party-driven. Avoid tight onward connections immediately after festivities.
Easter · March or April; dates vary · Nationwide, especially beach and heritage destinations
A shorter but meaningful domestic holiday peak: expect fuller buses and flights, higher weekend accommodation prices, and busy coastal towns.
Festas Juninas · June, often extending into early July · Especially Northeast Brazil, including Bahia and Pernambuco
Worth timing for regional music, food and local celebrations, but it raises domestic demand and accommodation prices in popular northeastern cities and towns.
What to eat
Brazil is not one cuisine: use each region as its own kitchen rather than ordering generic "Brazilian" food. The baseline is rice, beans, salad and protein, but the memorable meals are Bahian palm-oil seafood, Amazonian fish and manioc, Minas farm cooking and southern barbecue.
Salvador and Bahia: Acarajé from a respected baiana stall · Abará and vatapá · Moqueca baiana and seafood with dendê palm oil, coconut milk, dried shrimp and chili
Manaus and Pará: River fish including tambaqui, pirarucu and tucunaré · Manioc in its many forms · Tucupi, jambu, cupuaçu and local savory açaí served with fish or cassava flour
Minas Gerais: Pão de queijo and queijo minas · Feijão tropeiro and tutu de feijão · Frango com quiabo, pork, doce de leite and cachaça
Rio de Janeiro: Feijoada, traditionally a long Saturday lunch · Boteco snacks: fried cassava, bolinhos and pasteis · Portuguese-influenced seafood
São Paulo: Japanese-Brazilian food in Liberdade · Italian-Brazilian cooking, Lebanese/Syrian food and pizza · Markets and contemporary Brazilian chefs using regional ingredients
Northeast beyond Bahia: Carne de sol and queijo coalho · Tapioca and macaxeira/aipim · Fried fish, stews and coastal seafood
South and gaúcho country: Churrasco cooked over coals, often rodízio-style · Chimarrão in Rio Grande do Sul