With the world's biggest open-air show currently in full swing in Rio and flooding the media with colourful and thrilling extracts, are you hesitating about travelling to Brazil for the next edition? Discover our many information and tips on carnival to prepare yourself for one of the most memorable moments of your life!
Brazil is full of treasures including its excellent gastronomy, its traditions and its natural heritage. The pinnacle of its culture, the Rio carnival is the most celebrated national holiday in Brazil.
During these few days of festivities, the whole city is animated to the rhythm of the samba. Whether in the streets of Rio de Janeiro or at the Sambadrome Marquês de Sapucaí, the temple of samba. There are more than 291 blocos, which are groups of people who parade through the streets on a particular theme and for a particular organization. There are notably samba schools, smaller than those that parade at the sambadrome, which parade in the streets from 4pm. The atmosphere of the city is thus boosted during this period when many bars and restaurants are transformed into party places.
In parallel, the heart of the show with the official carnival parades takes place in the sambodrome of the city. This is a traditional samba competition in the form of parades where several renowned schools compete against each other with precise rules that are evaluated by judges. Among these different schools we find 3 distinct categories.
The schools in series A are the first to parade, 7 parade on Friday and the other 7 on Saturday. These are the schools competing for access to the special groups. These are excellent schools that potentially belonged to the special group before and may have already won the carnival before going back down to the A series. Although these schools are not considered elite, the show is magnificent and we highly recommend it.
The schools in the special group are the elite of the samba and they offer the greatest show. The winner of the carnival will be rewarded for their imagination, their work, the richness of their parade but also the appropriateness and representation of their theme called enredo. Series A parades represent the climax of the carnival and take place on Sundays and Mondays.
Finally, the junior samba schools parade on Tuesdays and are the same as the senior schools in the small version with children and teenagers from 3 to 15 years old who sing, dance, have floats and play percussion. These schools are usually accompanied by important carnival figures for synchronisation and choreography. These schools often represent the junior division of the major samba schools. We also advise you to attend these junior school parades, which are also free of charge.
How to organize yourself and choose your seats for the carnival?
If you want to experience Rio's carnival from the streets of the city, we recommend that you immerse yourself in the parades of bandas and blocos and take part in the party with them that is sure to be memorable. Ipanema's banda is a group that dates back to 1965 and is part of the city's cultural heritage, the party they offer is vibrant and ideal if you want to take part in the parade with them. They start at 4pm in General Osorio Square with their anthem before continuing the parade to the rhythm of carnival music. Piazza Cinelandia is also famous for its animation where many singers and musicians perform and complete the colourful show of the dancers. This square may be a good choice if you wish to experience the carnival animation in a more tranquil way by sitting on a terrace.
If you wish to attend the parades that take place at the Sambadrome, several types of places will be offered to you and their choice can be very judicious. First of all, you will find the bleachers located on the heights of the Sambadrome which offer a crazy atmosphere, the lowest prices but unnumbered seats where you will surely be quite tight. It is therefore advisable to arrive early, at least 2 hours in advance to have a good seat. You will also have the possibility to reserve seats in the dressing rooms, which overlook the carnival and are the most luxurious seats which are covered and offer the greatest comfort with generally drink and food at will. Finally, the frisas are seats on the edge of the runway which gives the impression of being in the parade as you are so close to the runway. Once you have chosen your place among the bleachers, boxes or frisas it is important to choose your sector (from 1 to 13) which will not ensure you the same point of view and the same animation according to your location. Moreover, whether you are on the even or odd side, the subway to take to the sambadrome will not be the same. You will be able to get your tickets directly on the Internet or from agencies. If we are sure of one thing at Villanovo, it is that you will not regret your trip to Brazil for its famous carnival!
