Nightlife · Rio de Janeiro · Brazil
Rio de Janeiro nightlife
Where the evenings happen in Rio de Janeiro, from early drinks to late nights.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: Donatas Dabravolskas, CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answer
Rio's nightlife centres on live samba, beachfront kiosks and neighbourhood botecos where crowds spill onto the pavement. Things start late: bars fill after 10pm and samba venues in Lapa run into the early morning. The main areas are Lapa, Pedra do Sal, Botafogo and Leblon and Ipanema.
Key facts
- Nightlife areas
- 4
- Stay near the action
- Copacabana
- Local drink
- Caipirinha
Where to go out
Lapa
Samba halls and live-music bars along Rua do Lavradio and Rua Mem de Sá, plus street parties under the arches at weekends.
Pedra do Sal
Free open-air samba circles on the historic steps in Saúde, near Praça Mauá, usually on Monday and Friday evenings.
Botafogo
Dense streets of botecos and craft-beer bars around Rua Voluntários da Pátria, popular with a young local crowd.
Leblon and Ipanema
Polished bars around Rua Dias Ferreira in Leblon, and the LGBTQ+ bars around Rua Farme de Amoedo in Ipanema.
Nightlife tips
- Travel to and from Lapa by taxi or ride-hailing rather than walking the quiet streets around it late at night.
- Carry a copy of your ID, one card and a little cash on nights out, and leave the rest at the hotel.
- At Pedra do Sal, drinks come from street stalls; bring small notes.
Evening sights
Landmark · Urca
Sugarloaf Mountain
Arrive about an hour before sunset to see the city in daylight, at dusk and lit up; fit walkers can climb Morro da Urca by trail from the Pista Cláudio Coutinho path at Praia Vermelha.
- Time needed
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Iconic
- Views
- Couples
- Kids
- After dark
Landmark · Maracanã
Maracanã Stadium
Buy match tickets through the clubs' official sales or a reputable tour operator, and take the Metrô to Maracanã station rather than driving.
- Time needed
- 1.5 hours for a tour
- Cost
- Mid-priced
- Iconic
- History
- After dark
- Kids
Historic site · Lapa
Lapa Arches
See the arches by day and come back for live samba at night, arriving and leaving by taxi or ride-hailing.
- Time needed
- 30 minutes by day, an evening for samba
- Cost
- Free
- History
- After dark
- Free
- Architecture
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Architecture · Centro
Theatro Municipal
Check the programme for a performance; a show is the best way to see the auditorium full and lit.
- Time needed
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Low cost
- Architecture
- History
- Rainy day
- After dark
What to drink
- Caipirinha — Cachaça, the Brazilian sugarcane spirit, muddled with lime and sugar over crushed ice. Variations swap the lime for passion fruit or strawberry, or the cachaça for vodka (caipiroska).
- Draught beer — Rio drinks its draught lager very cold with a thick head, in small glasses that waiters refill quickly so it never warms up in the heat.
Evenings through the year
Sunset and the overnight low decide how long the outdoor part of a night lasts. January has the warmest evenings, with lows around 23°C (73°F).
| Month | Sunset (15th) | Overnight low | Rainy days |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | About 18:43 | 23°C (73°F) | 12 |
| April | About 17:40 | 22°C (72°F) | 9 |
| July | About 17:24 | 18°C (64°F) | 5 |
| October | About 17:56 | 20°C (68°F) | 9 |
Getting home late
- Metro — On weekdays at rush hour, carriages marked in pink are reserved for women.
- Tram — The VLT light rail links Santos Dumont Airport, Praça XV, Praça Mauá and the Museum of Tomorrow, the Novo Rio bus station and Central do Brasil.
- Walking — The seafront promenade runs continuously from Leme through Copacabana and Arpoador to Ipanema and Leblon, about 8 km, and is the most pleasant way to move between the beach neighbourhoods.
- Ride-hailing — Wait for your car inside a shop or hotel lobby rather than on the pavement with your phone out.
- Taxi — Yellow taxis are metered and can be hailed or found at ranks; at the airports use the official prepaid or rank taxis.
- Ferry — Ferries from Praça XV cross Guanabara Bay to Niterói in about 20 minutes and also serve car-free Paquetá Island.
Late-night bites
- Biscoito Globo and iced mate — From vendors walking every Zona Sul beach; bakeries and supermarkets also sell the biscuits.
- Coxinha — Botecos, padarias and lanchonetes everywhere; Confeitaria Colombo serves a smarter version.
- Pastel and sugarcane juice — Stalls at the weekly street markets (feiras livres) held in each neighbourhood, and pastelarias in Centro.
- Salt-cod fritters — Old-school botecos in Centro, Botafogo and Leblon.
- Grilled coalho cheese — Sold by vendors walking the beaches of Copacabana, Ipanema and Barra.
Staying safe at night
Phone snatching and petty theft are the main risks, especially on beaches, in Centro and on quiet streets after dark: carry little to the beach, keep phones out of sight and use ride-hailing at night. Strong rip currents occur on the open-ocean beaches, so swim near the lifeguard posts.
- Emergency number
- 190 police, 192 ambulance, 193 fire
Where to stay for nightlife
$$ · Best for first-timers, budget, nightlife and beach
Copacabana
Copacabana's 4 km beach is lined by the hotels and kiosks of Avenida Atlântica, with shops, juice bars and restaurants along Avenida Nossa Senhora de Copacabana one block back. It has the widest range of hotels at every price, several Metrô stations and easy access to Sugarloaf and Ipanema, though it is noisier and more worn than its neighbours.
- Good
- Huge hotel choice at all prices; Metrô stations along its length; Lively beachfront in the evenings
- Watch out
- Some side streets feel run-down; Petty theft on the beach and quiet streets after dark
- Nearby
- Copacabana Beach, Copacabana Fort, Leme, Arpoador
Questions travellers ask
+Where is the best nightlife in Rio de Janeiro?
Lapa, Pedra do Sal and Botafogo. Samba halls and live-music bars along Rua do Lavradio and Rua Mem de Sá, plus street parties under the arches at weekends.
+Which area of Rio de Janeiro is best for nightlife?
Copacabana: Long beachfront avenue, big hotels and round-the-clock street life.