Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
jazz nights (see p.104). With stunning panoramic views of
Guanabara Bay, it has featured in movies and
accommodated several film stars. The
favela
around it is
friendly, with no security issues day or night - indeed,
there's a police station right behind the hotel. Minibuses
and motorbike taxis from the junction of Tavares
Bastos
with Be
nto Lis
boa will take you up there. Dorms
R$60
;
doubles
R$140
T
21 2287 6086,
W
biarritzhotel.com.br;
M
Cantagalo;
map p.81.
Basic and unexciting, but clean and friendly
place with everything you need (hot water, a/c, wi-fi)
located in a quiet side-st
reet on
e block back from Avenida
Atlântica and the beach.
R$420
Che Lagarto Hostel
Rua Santa Clara 304
T
21 2257
3133,
W
chelagarto.com;
M
Siqueira Campos; map
p.81.
Located in central Copacabana some five blocks from
the beach, this relaxed but friendly hostel, one of
Che
Largarto
's four Rio hostels, has four- to eight-bed dorms
and en-suite doubles. Si
milar p
ropertie
s are
located in
Ipanema (see p.96). Dorms
R$35
; doubles
R$86
★
1
BOTAFOGO
Hotel Mercure Botafogo Mourisco
Rua da Passagem
39
T
21 2131 1212,
W
accorhotels.com;
M
Botafogo;
map pp.76-77.
Oriented to business travellers, this 110-
room hotel offers large, comfortable rooms (ask for one
with a view towards the Corcovado), an outdoor pool and a
reasonable restaurant. Rates v
ary wit
h demand, but tend
to be cheaper if booked online.
R$600
El Misti Hostel
Praia de Botafogo, Casa 9
T
21 2226
0991,
W
elmistibota.com;
M
Botafogo; map pp.76-77.
A pretty nineteenth-century house offering rather cramped
dorms and private rooms. A varied buffet breakfast is
included, and excellent but inexpensive meals are offered
on weekend evenings.
El Misti
is l
ocated
on an all
eyway
with
a couple of other hostels. Dorms
R$35
; doubles
R$160
★
Copacabana Palace Hotel
Av Atlântica 1702,
Copacabana
T
21 2548 7070,
W
copacabanapalace.com
.br;
M
Cardeal Arcoverde; map p.81.
Anyone who's
anyone has stayed in this gloriously maintained Art Deco
landmark, which, despite Copacabana's general decline,
remains a great experience. Although every possible
facility is on offer, there's a curious lack of communal areas,
apart from the large pool in a central courtyar
d. All in
all,
this is a great place to relax, if you can afford it.
R$1722
Hotel Acapulco Copacabana
Rua Gustavo Sampaio
854, Leme
T
21 3077 2000,
W
acapulcohotel.com.br;
M
Cardeal Arcoverde; map p.81.
This comfortable, highly
recommended hotel is in a quiet location near the beach
,
a
couple of minutes' walk from the Cardeal Arcoverde
metrô
station. Rooms are modern, reasonably spacious and well
decorated; some of the balconies just about offer a beach
view, and the staff are very h
elpful.
Actual prices are
usually only half the o
cial rate.
R$895
★
Vila Carioca Hostel
Rua Estácio Coimbra 84
T
21
2535 3224,
W
vilacarioca.com.br;
M
Botafogo; map
pp.76-77.
Not as raucous as some hostels but extremely
friendly, with an attractive lounge and terrace-garden for
relaxing. Loca
ted on
a quiet,
safe s
treet a block from the
metrô
. Dorms
R$35
; doubles
R$110
Hotel Atlantis Copacabana
Rua Bulhões de
Carvalho 61, Copacabana
T
21 2521 1142
,
W
atlantis
hotel.com.br;
M
Ipanema/General Osório; map p.81.
In
a quiet location just one block from Ipanema, this good-
value hotel has bright, gleaming rooms done out in white
and apricot, and hel
pful, e
cient staff. The small rooftop
pool has great views.
R$350
Hotel Excelsior Copacabana
Av Atlântica 1800,
Copacabana
T
21 3259 5323,
W
windsorhoteis.com;
M
Cardeal Arcoverde; map p.81.
Well-run upper-end
choice in the middle of Copacabana's beachfront. Rooms
are small but well equipped, with tasteful decor, the staff
are sup
er prof
essional and the rooftop pool has spectacular
views.
R$412
Hotel Martinique
Rua Sá Ferreira 30, Copacabana
T
21 2195 5200,
W
windsorhoteis.com;
M
Cantagalo;
map p.81.
Popular hotel located near the quiet, western
end of Copacabana, close to the Forte de Copacabana.
Modern rooms have large, excep
tionall
y comfortable beds
and there's a small rooftop pool.
R$492
Hotel Porto Bay Rio International
Av Atlântica
1500, Copacabana
T
21 2546 8000,
W
portobay.com;
M
Cardeal Arcoverde; map p.81.
A cut above Copacabana's
other seafront hotels, partly thanks to the attentive staff,
COPACABANA AND LEME
Copacabana's street life and general raucousness help to
make it the kind of place you either love or hate. And while
the area has certainly seen better days, it still has by far the
greatest concentration of places to stay in the city, ranging
from hostels to luxury hotels. Leme - really a continuation of
Copacabana - is less frenetic due to its location at the far end
of the stretch of beach in the opposite direction to Ipanema.
For
apartments in Copacabana and Ipanema, try Rio
Apartments (
T
21 2247 6221,
W
rioapartments.se) or Rio
Holidays (
T
21 8119 4471,
W
rioholidays.com); expect to
pay from R$200 a day for a one-bedroom unit (sleeping two).
In Copacabana, Edifício Jucati at Rua Tenente Marones de
Gusmão 85 (
T
21 2547 5422,
W
edificiojucati.com.br) offers
studio apartments for R$240-260 per night for two people.
Apa Hotel
Rua República do Peru 305, Copacabana
T
21 2548 8112,
W
www.apahotel.com.br;
M
Cardeal
Arcoverde; map p.81.
This is a decent mid-range hotel
well located in a central area of Copacabana The rooms are
airy and spacious, all with a/c and balconies, and t
he one
s
that sleep f
our are
particularly good value. Doubles
R$352
;
quadruples
R$506
Biarritz Hotel
Rua Aires Saldanha 54, Copacabana
