Brazil

About Brazil

Brazil is the largest country in South America, covering almost half the continent, and it offers everything from world-famous city beaches to vast rainforest, wetlands teeming with wildlife and a long Atlantic coastline dotted with islands. Portuguese is the national language, and UK travellers usually fly long-haul into Rio de Janeiro or São Paulo, then use domestic flights to reach other regions.

Rio de Janeiro is many visitors' first stop, with a setting few cities can match. The statue of Christ the Redeemer looks down from Corcovado, cable cars climb Sugarloaf Mountain, and the beaches of Copacabana and Ipanema are the centre of daily life. The city is also famous for samba and its spectacular Carnival. Along the coast nearby, the colonial town of Paraty and the car-free island of Ilha Grande offer a slower pace, with rainforest trails and quiet coves.

Further afield, the Iguaçu Falls on the border with Argentina are an unforgettable sight, best seen from both sides. In the north, Manaus is the gateway to the Amazon, where river cruises and jungle lodges introduce visitors to the rainforest, its wildlife and its waterways. The Pantanal, one of the largest tropical wetlands on Earth, is among the best places in South America to see jaguars, caimans, capybaras and an astonishing variety of birds.

The north-east has a distinct character. Salvador, in Bahia, is a centre of Afro-Brazilian culture, with the colourful historic Pelourinho district, capoeira, drumming and rich, spicy cooking. The coastline beyond is lined with dunes, palm-fringed beaches and laid-back villages such as Jericoacoara, while the protected island of Fernando de Noronha is prized for diving and marine life. Brazil rewards those who combine city, nature and beach in one holiday.