Think Rio de Janeiro Carnival and you think costumes, dancing, rhythmic melodies, celebration and revelry. Since 1723 people have celebrated carnival in their own way, but now millions of people flock to the Rio Carnival to Samba the week away in their best sparkly attire. It’s the biggest carnival in the world and the week-long festival is televised globally too, so make sure to book your Rio Carnival accommodation as early as possible. The Carnival has a rich history and today’s parades, apart from being a huge amount of fun, are also seriously competitive with Samba schools nationwide competing for that number one spot.
History of the Carnival
Every year the carnival takes place 46 days before Easter to prepare for the abstinence of Lent. It started as an ancient Greek spring festival in honour of Dionysus, the God of wine, but soon developed into a great excuse for a party for the Romans before becoming a festival for Ash Wednesday for the Roman Catholic Church. After a brief time of juts being an opportunity for a brawl every year the Rio Carnival became a masquerade ball and costumed street parade which is how we know it today. Everyone is expected to celebrate the festivities with the people of Rio de Janeiro stopping all work and serious activities for the week to join in with the 24-hour festivities.
Rio Carnival Parade
The grand parade is the main highlight of the festival. Samba schools from around the country show off their best dancing, costumes, floats and music. Each participating school has 80 minutes to impress the judges with their attitude, flow and ability to please the crowd. The biggest carnival days are Saturday, Sunday and Monday with the main parade taking place in the Sambadrome in downtown Rio.Tickets to the Sambadrome cost between $160-1500 – although there are some agencies that can arrange for you to actually be part of the parade, making it free.
The Carnival culminates on the final day with the top six Samba schools competing in the parade for the coveted first place trophy and accolades. The crowd join in any way possible – beating instruments, dressing up and dancing. Everyone in Rio knows how to do the national batcuda style of dance popular in Brazil, and this is the time to show off their skills. International tourists will soon latch on and love to put their own spin on the batcuda samba.
Safety at Rio Carnival
Rio Carnival is much safer now than it has been in previous years. Security has stepped up a notch and plain-clothed police and security officers are everywhere. That doesn’t mean there’s no danger though; you should always stick to the usual safety rules that you would in an enclosed space with lots of people around.
Travelling around Rio during the Carnival
The best way to get around Rio during the carnival is the Sambadrome Shuttle Bus. Pay around $49 and it will pick you up from your hotel and drop you right next to the heart of the parade. You can also travel around via taxi, although due to the amount of people you’ll probably need to be dropped off away from the main area. The subway will also take you to the Sambadrome too.
Author: Victoria Philpott from the HostelBookers blog – she isn’t very good at Samba, but she’s great at celebrating