Brazil is among other things known for its beautiful beaches, The Amazon River and Rainforest, the phenominal Iguazu Falls and the Rio Carnival.
Brazil has a lot to offer when it comes to beach holidays. Florianópolis Island, about an hours flight south of São Paulo has over 42 breathtaking beaches. Praia Mole is the most popular one, surrounded by green mountains. Fernando de Noronha is an archipelago 350 km off the north-east coast of Brazil. It is a place of stunning beauty and finding a nice beach is an easy task. Because tourist numbers are strictly monitored, it is easy to spot turtles, octopuses and a great number of different fish. At the end of the Ipanema and Copacabana beaches in Rio de Janeiro you find Arpoador beach, favourite with surfers, body surfers and local bathers. Arpoador beach is lit up at night. The 1,100 km coastline of the state of Bahia is speckled with spectacular beaches, among these Taipus de Fora on the Maraú Peninsula. One of Brazil's best beaches is on a river at the heart of the Amazon forest. Around 30 km from the rainforest city of Santarem, Alter do Chao is the jungle's answer to the Caribbean.
Hoewer, Brazil has more to offer than beautiful beaches, it is also home to the largest part of the Amazon River and Rainforest with its wealth of flora and fauna. More than a third of all species in the world live in the Amazon Rainforest, a giant tropical forest and river basin, and among the richest tropical forests in the world, and is the worlds most diverse biological area. The Amazon River has over 3,000 recognized species of fish and that number is still growing.
Brazil is a good starting point if you want to visit the Amazon Rainforest, as the bulk of rainforest lies within its boundaries. Manaus is the main hub for the Amazonas region in the north of Brazil, and is unique for a city of its size, in that road access is very limited. It relies much more on air travel and the vast network of rivers in the area. Nearly all visitors would fly in here for the start of their Amazon adventure, and continue their journey by boat. As one would expect, Manaus has a good choice of hotels and accommodation in most price levels.
Rio Carnival has become world famous through the Samba Parade, a show, a display and competition of the Rio Samba Schools. The two major days are Carnival Sunday and Monday. The second best option is the Champions Parade on Saturday, followed by the Access Group parading on Carnival Friday. The annual carnival is held 40 days before Easter, so in 2010 the Rio Carnival starts on Saturday 13th February and ends on Fat Tuesday on the 16th February.
