Holiday in Rio de Janeiro with kids
Rio de Janeiro is fun year round. No matter if with kids or solo there are always great options to enjoy. We have been to Rio quite a few times but it was the first time the four of us together. We were a little frustrated of not being able to travel the last few weeks and holidays so we were ready for family travel fun time.
We love to explore and meet new areas everywhere we go so this time we chose to drive to Rio. It was an amazing trip and I feel so proud of myself driving 12 hours to get there! If you don’t have the option of driving you can always get Ubber, just know that places are far away from each other if you really want to explore so that can be a little extra money.
We had about 6 days and since Vincent couldn’t dive in the water due to his ear ache we split into cultural schedule and also beach time all done with the kids. They loved it!
Our highlights to going to Rio de Janeiro with Kids
1.Aqua Rio Aquarium : the biggest one in South America is really worth going with the kids! From little sea horses to big sharks they have it all and kids love it! We stayed almost 2.5 hours inside!! To make matters worse there is a surf board exhibition that caught us for a long time. Not even mentioning about the shells from worldwide Martina the mermaid couldn’t stop looking at.
2. Sugar Loaf: best view for the adults, great adventure for the kids. They got so excited crossing in the Tram!
3. Lagoon Rodrigo de Freitas: Rio is all about nature and our family loves it! We went to Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas on a late afternoon. The view was astonishing and kids played for hours. We rented bikes, they went skating and running. Place with lots of kids and really nice to engage locally. We ended up having dinner there too, very nice and pleasant.
4.Grumari & Prainha: we love to run and ride bikes at Copacabana and Ipanema beachside. But when the subject is going to the beach, We prefer the more wild and nature like beaches like Grumari and Prainha. Two amazing beach locations where you get more nature and nice water, surf (prainha) and good vibes.
5. Urca Trail: easy trail with nice structure and view from Morro da Urca. We stoped for a little slack line play in the between, kid loved!
6. Christ redeemer: a faster ride for kids but still interesting. We got there late afternoon, no lines and nice views!
7.New Year’s eve at Leblon: we were afraid of how would it be since Rio gets really crowded for new year but it we went to Leblon, in a little restaurant at the beach. Got perfect firework view and not too crowded. Hard to make kids awake until midnight and then even harder to walk back 2.5km to Copacabana at 3 am with them in the lap. But still worth it.
8.Tomorrow Museum: we only went to the restaurant!! Kids were hungry and tired. We went walking from the aquarium to there in a 41 degrees celsius, dont do that! Kids will get so tired and they won’t want to do anything else. Do these in different days! Food at the museum’s restaurant was amazing though! Good veggie options!
9. Sunset at Joatinga’s beach : definitely a secret spot worth going. Besides the beautiful road up the Hills, you have to do a little down hill trekking to get there which we all love. A must go for nature lover families. The Sunset there is one of the bests too. Go up the hills and appreciate it.
Eating healthy in Rio
If you are veggie like us or not but like the healthy eating lifestyle, we super recommend you going to Bibi, they get everything from açaí bowls to salads and great veggie options! We love the one in Copacabana, just one block from where we stay and one block from the beach.
Another great option is at Barra da Tijuca at Barraca do Pepe with great healthy food and it’s literally at the beach, while you enjoy a nice coconut water the kids can play on the sand.
We loved going to Rio de Janeiro with the Kids! No night clubs, no malls but a lot of Nature and culture for the family! We all loved it and wouldn’t change for anything else! What about you? Have you ever been to Rio with Kids?
After Rio we decided to go Sailing for a day and went to one of the best places in Brazil for it Angra dos Reis, check it out!