Favela Tour: Visit Rocinha and Vila Canoas in Rio de Janeiro for an Insightful Experience
4.6
349 Ratings
Rio de Janeiro
Immerse yourself in the captivating world of Rio de Janeiro's favelas with our insightful Favela Tour. Discover the complex socioeconomic structure, interact with locals, and support community projects. Book now!
Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 1 day learn more
Highlights
  • Rocinha - Arriving in Rocinha, explanation about the architecture, public services, local cultural aspects, carnival etc…

Visiting the Rocinha handcraft center.

Going to a local terrace, pause for pictures and images of a breathtaking view over Rocinha and Rio, talks about the security, local infrastructure and other aspects of favelas and favela life.

Driving down through the “Estrada da Gávea”, a former F1 race track.

Walking on the commercial and central area.

Visiting the “MORANGUINHOS” or “SACI SABE TUDO” community schools. These social projects are financed by FAVELA TOUR. Besides regular classes, the school teaches local kids initial computer skills, English classes, music, capoeira, ballet classes etc… These projects have absolutely no financial support from Brazilian government.

What's Included
  • Air-conditioned vehicles for a comfortable ride
Additional Information

The FAVELA TOUR is essential for anyone seeking an in-depth understanding of Brazil’s intricate socioeconomic landscape. This tour bridges the gap between tourists and residents, shedding new light on the favelas and their inhabitants whilst challenging their status of marginalization.

The tour takes you to Rocinha, Brazil’s largest favela, as well as Vila Canoas, both are near the São Conrado district. From these locations, you’ll enjoy striking views over Rio. Stroll around the residential and commercial spaces, and, if you like, buy from local artisans.

Along with these, you’ll visit a local school funded by FAVELA TOUR and engage with other community-run initiatives. Despite common misconceptions, favelas are safer than generally perceived. However, for a foolproof experience, it’s advisable to embark on these journeys with an organized tour group, like us. Having spearheaded social tours in favelas since the early 1992, you’re in capable hands.

To truly grasp the essence of Brazil, your visit to Rio isn’t complete without the FAVELA TOUR.

Please note, tours are not conducted on Sunday afternoons. A certain number of participants are required for tours to proceed.

  • Não operamos tours nos domingos a tarde. Tours sujeitos a quorum minimo para a confirmação final
Location
Rocinha
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.6
(349 Ratings)
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Uteko968vq
May 8, 2024
🤩 great - Barbara was super competent and very friendly 😀 Lots of good information. We really enjoyed it. We would book a tour with her again at any time.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
George_o
May 5, 2024
Wonderful experience - Absolutely amazing. Truly eye opening and extremely interesting, very educational tour. It is also well organised. Marcelo kept always in touch. He picked me up promptly and gave lots of information on the way. The actual tour was done by wonderful Barbara. Both her and Marcelo are very charismatic, which made the tour even more enjoyable. And absolutely no safety issues, felt definitely safer than in Rio or many big cities around the world.
Review provided by Viator
Ecorb
Apr 20, 2024
An unforgettable experience - The tour was extensive and included a great variety of sights. Leo, our guide, was excellent. Marcelo also went above and beyond. The tour was an experience I won’t forget.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Lesley_s
Apr 16, 2024
Fabulous experience - Fabulous tour with Matthew who was extremely knowledgeable. We learnt so much about life in the reality of Rio’s Favelas. Highly recommend
Review provided by Viator
Makaila_v
Apr 12, 2024
BOOK IT !! - female solo traveler. definitely book the tour. the car ride was tight and a bit toasty but getting there was smooth. the first guy gave a lot of info that was cool to listen to. the best part was with barbara. she’s a doll! we started at the entrance and worked our way inward and out. dope experience. she was pretty funny too and definitely showed us the ins and outs of the place. there wasn’t anything to be afraid of either. also she taught us how to ride the subways back to our hotels. wear comfy shoes. it’s like a mini country inside a huge one lol
Review provided by Viator
Sharon_s
Apr 11, 2024
Realistic tour. - Realistic overview of what life is like in a favela. Thoroughly recommend. Knowledgable guide. Small group of 6. We bought some snacks off stallholders. Wear sturdy shoes, there’s walking up and down stairs.
Review provided by Viator
963francoisep
Apr 29, 2024
A must do - French speaking guides. Thank you Marcelo and Barbara. Very very interesting. No filter. Go by car . Return by metro. There we walk for about 2 hours in the streets. No voyeurism. You cannot know Brazil without having visited a favela. I recommend!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Stephen_j
Apr 24, 2024
Toured Rochina April 2024 - Great tour of the Favella with Matte who was very knowledgeable. Even though its not recommended to tour alone without a guide we felt safe enough. Might have been different otherwise. What was strange was that we were picked up by Marcelo in a lovely car before being driven to meet another person who was to join us as well as the guide. We then transferred to a taxi which took us to the Favela. Once the tour had finished we were taken to the tube station and given passes to get back to where we were staying. Trouble was it was a fair walk back to the hotel from the station after a very long and tiring walk round the Favela. This sort of spoiled the experience as we thought we'd very taken back directly to the hotel.
Review provided by Viator
Cond0r
May 26, 2024
It was okay. - Advertising a bit deceptive. Header shows full day tour with price in the text. The price in the text is a half day tour not the full day.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Zahra_a
May 23, 2024
Good tour if the guide hadn't ruined it... - The tour was good but it was severly let down when discussions about the ongoing conflict in the middle east was brought up by the guide, unprovoked. I don't mind hearing about the politics of the country I am in, in fact I enjoy local views on current and previous goverments. However, I didn't sign up to hear about his very strong personal views on who were the agrressors and instigators in a conflict thousands of miles. It's a shame because otherwise it would have been a great tour overall.
Review provided by Viator
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June 2024
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