Cruising the Guanabara Bay in Rio

Get set to enjoy the famous icons of Rio de Janeiro…from the water!  Take in Rio’s most iconic sites and stunning coastline as you cruise around Guanabara Bay, the second largest bay in Brazil.  From the bay you will view Sugarloaf Mountain, Christ the Redeemer Statue, and the white sands of Copacabana Beach.

Guanabara Bay

From this unique perspective, you will also view the beaches of Niteroi, fortified walls of the seafront Santa Cruz de Barra fortress built in 1555, and admire the hillside fortress of São João.

The harbor of Rio de Janeiro, surrounded by majestic granite mountains, was named one of the seven natural wonders of the world.

The cities of Rio de Janeiro and Duque de Caxias are located on the western shore of Guanabara Bay, while on its eastern shore lies the cities of Niterói and São Gonçalo.  Four other municipalities also line its shores.

The bay is 19 miles long and 17 miles wide at its maximum, and almost one mile wide at its mouth to the Atlantic Ocean.  The mouth is flanked on its eastern tip by Parrot’s Peak and Santa Cruz fortress and its western tip by Sugar Loaf and São João fortress.  In the entrance is the island-fort of Laje, temporary site of a Huguenot settlement in 1555. 

Guanabara Bay

The Portuguese were the first Europeans to arrive on its shores on 1 January 1502.  According to some historians, the bay was first called “Ria de Janeiro,” or January Sound.  But it seems there was some confusion between “ria,” meaning bay or sound, and “rio,” meaning river, as some thought the bay was the mouth to a large river.  In the confusion, the name became Rio de Janeiro, and the city was named after the bay.

The name Guanabara comes from the Tupi language and translates “bosom of the sea.” 

More than 130 islands dot the bay, which is crossed by the 8.26-mile long Rio-NiteróiBridge.  Numerous smaller bridges connect the mainland to the two largest islands of Fundão and Governador.

Those Famous Beaches of Rio!

Why exactly are the beaches in Rio de Janeiro so well-known?  The answer is simple—there are just so darn many beautiful sun-drenched beaches all in one locale, in fact over 50 miles of beach shoreline—and the most famous are Copacabana Beach and Ipanema Beach.

Copacabana Beach is by far the most famous beach in the world.  (No doubt, Barry Manilow is singing his hit “Copacabana” in your head right now.)  The beach was named after the Copacabana Palace Hotel which caters to the rich and famous. And if you look at the lyrics, you’ll see the song is about the hotel, and not the beach!

Its white sands stretch long, wide, and crescent shaped and are perfect for sunbathing and swimming.  It sits anchored at one end by Sugarloaf Mountain and the old Copacabana Fort at the other end.

The bustling beach is noted for its wavy mosaic-covered promenade, Avenida Atlantica, making it an ideal place for strolling or people-watching.  It is also party-central 24/7 with a hubbub of activity.

Copacabana Beach

The 2.5-mile long beach was made famous in the 1950s lined by nightclubs, casinos, and hotels.  The beach is quite wide in places and flatter than neighboring Ipanema Beach, as well as having calmer waves.  In addition, it is the site of the world’s largest New Year’s Eve party, Revéillon, where thousands come dressed in white to watch the fireworks at midnight and party until dawn to watch the sunrise.

Ipanema Beach, on the other hand, is a narrower beach with rougher water.  (Ipanema is a native Indian word for “bad or dangerous water.”)  While Copacabana tends to be more popular with tourists, Ipanema attracts a more upscale crowd with its beach lined with high-end condos and expensive hotels.  It has been dubbed the world’s sexiest beach!

Ipanema Beach is part of one long beach flanked on the upper end by Arpoador Beach and on the lower end by Leblon Beach.

It will forever be associated with Tom Jobim's famous song “The Girl from Ipanema,” which he and the poet Vinícius de Moraes wrote while sitting in a bar watching “tall and tan and young and lovely” girls walking to the beach. (Go ahead…I know you’re humming it right now!)

Ipanema Beach

Arpoador Beach is the dividing line between Copacabana Beach and Ipanema Beach.  This 600-yard area is more family friendly.  It is most notable for the giant rock that juts out from the shore into the crashing waves.

The most recognizable beaches in photographs, however, are the Botafogo and Flamengo Beaches.  Botafogo Beach is the horseshoe shaped beach seen in aerial views that overlook the Christ of the Redeemer Statue looking toward Sugarloaf Mountain.  Flamengo Beach sits adjacent on Guanabara Bay and houses the Museum of Modern Art.

Barra da Tijuca Beach is actually the longest beach in Rio de Janeiro. It is one of the least crowded Brazil beaches you'll find in Rio and a favorite with surfers.  Other notable beaches around Rio include Sao Conrada Beach, popular with hang gliders; Vermelha Beach, at the foot of Sugarloaf Mountain where one might spot monkeys playing in the trees above; among many more.

Along the beaches are numbered postos, or lifeguard stations, set every few hundred yards and are some of the most common landmarks along the beaches.  Sand sports are also common, especially futebol (soccer), vôlei (volleyball), and futevôlei (foot volleyball!).

And here, too, is the beach you’ve all heard about—Abrico Beach.  Located in the Grumari area in the far west of the city within a nature reserve, it is the one chosen by those who wish to swim and sunbathe in the nude.  In fact, this beach legally became a nudist beach in 2003.  Topless sunbathing is prohibited on all public beaches in Rio, except for Abrico Beach.

And last, but not least, there are some “unwritten” rules when visiting Rio beaches:

1. Never bring valuables to the beach.

2. Bring no food or drink with you.  You are expected to buy from the hundreds of beach vendors.  (As well as rent or buy anything else you may need.)

3. Wear your havaianas, Brazilian style flip flops.

4. Absolutely no one uses a beach towel. They use a kanga, or sarong.

5. And everyone wears skimpy bikinis or Speedos, not bathing suits.

Seriously…would I lead you wrong?  You don’t want to be branded a gringo in Rio!