Hotel or Apartment in Rio

[glorygaf]

We are disembarking in Rio in November and are undecided about accommodation in an Hotel or Apartment. We are there for 4 days.

Maybe the Sofitel at Copacabana or would Ipanema be better any suggestions or recommendations would be helpful.

[zorro90068]

We are disembarking in Rio in November and are undecided about accommodation in an Hotel or Apartment. We are there for 4 days.

Maybe the Sofitel at Copacabana or would Ipanema be better any suggestions or recommendations would be helpful.

 

If you are looking for location, try the Mercure Ipanema ....can;t beat the location but it's not a Four Season or Ritz Carlton.

[jagi]

I definitely felt safer in Ipanema than I would have in Copa. The neighborhood was upscale and it was quite lively at night. The young professionals were out having late dinners or socializing in the outdoor cafes. You have to be far more careful in Copa.

 

I still wouldn't advise walking on the beach after dark.

 

There are several nice hotels in ipanema, though I can't remember where we stayed.

[Keith1010]

I would go with a hotel. You may also want to post this on the South America Board. I would put the type of hotel (how many stars you are looking for).

 

Keith

[kiskadee]

We would also like to hear of a hotel in Rio in a safe area. I have been told Seabourn may be using Sheraton but the reviews in Tripadvisor are not so good and it is not very central. We would also like to spend 2 days sightseeing with a reputable company or tour group.

[wripro]

The best hotel in Ipanema is the Fasano. It's a bit hip, slick and cool, but the location is good, they have a great rooftop pool with superb views, a terrific restaurant. Make sure to get at least a deluxe ocean view room.

[kiskadee]

The best hotel in Ipanema is the Fasano. It's a bit hip, slick and cool, but the location is good, they have a great rooftop pool with superb views, a terrific restaurant. Make sure to get at least a deluxe ocean view room.

 

Thank you Wripro for all the useful info.

[JaneBP]

I also stayed at the Fasano for three days. QUite pleasant and no complaints, IIRC.

[wripro]

You're welcome, Kiskadee. Enjoy your cruise and time in Rio.

[glorygaf]

Thanks for all your suggestions, we would love to stay at Fasana, but its a bit expensive. It looks like we must look at Ipanema for safety. We heard of a great Tour Company in Rio, but have lost the information.

[wripro]

Check the ports of call section and the South America board here on CC. You'll surely find suggestions and advice for tour companies in Rio.

[CraftyEC]

We have booked the Mar Ipenema. The reviews of all the Rio hotels were mixed, and we think anything will be a come-down after a Seabourn TA, so we went for a moderate priced hotel in a supposedly fairly safe area with OK reviews! Sometimes life is a compromise ...

[Sea Lord]

We're getting on Quest when you get off. We're booked at Marriott Copacabana.

[VidaNaPraia]

Thanks for all your suggestions, we would love to stay at Fasana, but its a bit expensive. It looks like we must look at Ipanema for safety. We heard of a great Tour Company in Rio, but have lost the information.

I definitely felt safer in Ipanema than I would have in Copa. The neighborhood was upscale and it was quite lively at night. The young professionals were out having late dinners or socializing in the outdoor cafes.

Many foreign tourists do feel that Ipanema looks more familiar and therefore project that it is safer. That is a feeling, not a reality.

Also right now the new metro station there is closed for further construction, so it’s less convenient, taxis or the bus to get around to the sights.

 

You have to be far more careful in Copa.

 

That is not necessarily so. Copacabana is bustling and busy, and it is a traditional middle/working class residential neighborhood in which the residents are out and about. There are lots of good restaurant/bistro and bar choices in more of a variety of price ranges, esp. on N.S. de Copacabana.[/font][/color]

On the end nearer to Arpoador/Ipanema in particular (Posto 6 and the fort) the neighborhood is quite upscale. You couldn’t even afford to buy an apartment there right now, guaranteed, unless you currently own on the Upper West Side of Manhattan or equivalent. Again, I think many foreign tourists feel that it looks less like home and translate this erroneously to unease with this neighborhood.

If I had to choose between walking on a quiet, deserted street in Ipanema or a busy street in Copacabana, I’d pick the latter hands down.

The Sofitel in Copacabana is very well located at Posto 6 near the fort, with its pleasant café, and across from the beach and a great early morning fish market. The Marriott is a bit more toward the middle of the beach, a few blocks from the Sisqueira Campos metro.

 

 

For a general tour without having to plan or to get off the beaten path, I'd hire a private guide. Otherwise, you can really see the sights on your own using taxis.

[pmacher61]

The best hotel in Ipanema is the Fasano. It's a bit hip, slick and cool, but the location is good, they have a great rooftop pool with superb views, a terrific restaurant. Make sure to get at least a deluxe ocean view room.

A Deluxe Oceanview King in the Fasano is going for about US$1100 per night. A standard for $790. Breakfast is not included. Here is what one Tripadvisor commentor recently had to say:

“Way, Way OverPriced.”

Reviewed April 20, 2013 via mobile

I Travel Over 200 Nights Per Year And Stay In Very Nice Hotels. This Hotel Broke All Records For Price. $30 For A Drink At The Bar. $25 Per Device Per Day For Internet, $800 Per Night For A Small Ocean View Room The Pool, Design And Location Are Great But The Price Is Insulting. There Are Hotels Up And Down This Beach That Are Almost As Nice. Do Not Make The Mistake I Made

 

The Sofitel and Marriott in Copacabana are very nice hotels. So is the Marina Palace in Leblon. Businessmen tend to stay more in the downtown areas as opposed to Rio's tourist zona sul, but the Everest hotel in Ipanema, a block in from the beach with a good Japanese sushi restaurant in the lobby, is frequented by business people and is more reasonably priced.