Pantanal
Set in the south of Brazil, Pantanal is one of the world’s largest wetlands and one of the prime wildlife-viewing areas in South America, best known for its incredible jaguar sightings and with other highlights including giant anteaters, giant otters and capybaras.
Manaus Amazon
Set in the heart of the Amazon Basin in Brazil, Manaus is a major city and the main hub for riverboat explorations of the world’s largest rainforest. Highlights include lost cities, pink dolphins, endemic primates, superb bird-watching and authentic indigenous culture.
Rio de Janeiro
Set on the Atlantic Coast in the southeast of Brazil, Rio de Janeiro is one of the most iconic cities in South America. The vast majority of visitors to the country spend around 3-4 nights here, taking in the highlights, whilst staying in an hotel along the famous beaches of Ipanema or Copacabana.
Costa Verde
Set on the Atlantic Coast to the south of Rio de Janeiro, Costa Verde is a beautiful stretch of coastline, with mountains cloaked in Atlantic rainforest, remote islands with wonderful beaches and hiking routes, as well as peaceful and authentic historical ports. The accommodation options may be rather simple, but this is a surprisingly cool area to explore.
Salvador
Set on the central Bahia Coast of Brazil, Salvador is the bustling and vibrant former capital of Brazil, a hectic and entrancing place, which is a major epicentre for Afro-American culture. The handful of boutique hotels in the city are often combined with the tropical beach lodges to the north and south.
Porto Seguro
Set on the central Bahia Coast of Brazil, Porto Seguro is a relatively small coastal town, whose airport serves as the main point of access for Trancoso, arguably the coolest and most attractive beach location in the country.
Buzios
Set on the Atlantic Coast of Brazil, Buzios is an upmarket coastal resort, usually visited for 3-4 nights in combination with Rio de Janeiro, with a nice relaxed atmosphere, comfortable accommodation, fine dining and a decent range of marine activities.
Alta Floresta Amazon
Set in the far southeast of the Amazon Basin in Brazil, Alta Floresta comprises a patchwork of reserves, which provide some interesting wildlife experiences, notably including some unusual primate and bird species. Easier to combine in trips with Pantanal than the central Manaus Amazon area.
Iguacu Norte
Set in the far south of Brazil and straddling the border with Argentina, the Iguacu Falls is one of the great natural wonders of South America, a really popular hub for visitors to the continent. There’s a good range of hotels and a wide range of activities in the area.
Fortaleza
Set on the northern coast of Brazil, Fortaleza is the fifth largest city in the country, whose main airport serves as a hub through which to access various renowned beaches, most notably the remote and sociable hangout of Jericoacoara.
Nascentes do Parnaiba
Set in northcentral Brazil, Nascentes do Parnaíba is a little-known but utterly entrancing reserve, which offers unique opportunities to encounter rare maned wolves, tool-using capuchin monkeys and fabulous hyacinth macaws. Difficult to get to, but what a treat.
Sao Paulo
Set in the southeast of Brazil, São Paulo is the country’s largest city and a bustling financial, cultural, and gastronomic hub. Known for its impressive skyline, vibrant neighbourhoods, and world-class museums, highlights include the Avenida Paulista, the São Paulo Museum of Art, and the historic Municipal Market of São Paulo, with most visitors staying in well-located hotels in the central or Jardins districts to make the most of the city’s cultural, dining, and shopping opportunities.
Sao Paulo
Set in the southeast of Brazil, São Paulo is the country’s largest city and a bustling financial, cultural, and gastronomic hub. Known for its impressive skyline, vibrant neighbourhoods, and world-class museums, highlights include the Avenida Paulista, the São Paulo Museum of Art, and the historic Municipal Market of São Paulo, with most visitors staying in well-located hotels in the central or Jardins districts to make the most of the city’s cultural, dining, and shopping opportunities.
Fernando De Noronha
Set 400 km (240 miles) offshore from the far northeastern tip of Brazil, Fernando De Noronha is a very remote and alluring group of volcanic islands, which offer some modestly pretty mountain scenery and some of the best diving in South America.
Lencois Maranhenses
Set on the northern coast of Brazil and accessed via the airport at Sao Luis, Lencois Maranhenses is a substantial national park, largely comprised of coastal sand dunes, which miraculously form a vast network of freshwater pools following the rains, peaking Jun-Aug.
Belo Horizonte
Set around 350 km inland from Rio de Janeiro, Belo Horizonte is a substantial city, but one which only tends to feature in trips as a stopover on the way north to the remote Nascentes do Parnaíba reserve.
Bonito
Set in the southwest of Brazil, close to Pantanal, Bonito is a small rural town which is renowned for its impressive limestone caves and crystal-clear swimming rivers. It also happens to be the little-known best location on the continent for viewing giant anteaters.
Brasilia
Set in the heart of Brazil, Brasília is the country’s modernist capital and a UNESCO World Heritage city, renowned for its distinctive architecture and planned layout. The city’s key landmarks include the Monumental Axis, the Cathedral of Brasília, and the Palácio da Alvorada, with most visitors staying in centrally located hotels within the North or South Hotel Sectors for easy access to its cultural and administrative highlights.
