Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the anchor to the Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area, the second-most populous municipality in Brazil and the sixth-most populous in the Americas. UNESCO has designated part of the city as a World Heritage Site, named “Rio de Janeiro: Carioca Landscapes between the Mountain and the Sea”.

Rio de Janeiro had the second-largest municipal GDP in the country and the 30th-largest in the world in 2020. It is the headquarters of Brazilian oil, mining, and telecommunications companies, including two of its major corporations - Petrobras and Vale. In addition, the city is the home of many universities and institutes and Brazil's second-largest centre of research and development.

Rio de Janeiro is one of the most visited cities in the Southern Hemisphere and is known for its natural settings, Carnival, samba, bossa nova , and beaches such as Barra da Tijuca Copacabana, Ipanema, and Leblon. In addition to the beaches, some of the most famous landmarks include the giant statue of Christ the Redeemer atop Corcovado mountain, named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World; Sugarloaf Mountain with its cable car and Maracanã Stadium, one of the world’s largest football stadiums. Rio de Janeiro was the host of the 2016 Olympics and Paralympics games. The Maracanã Stadium held the finals of the 1950 and 2014 FIFA World Cups, the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, and the 2007 Pan American Games.

In addition to tourist attractions such as the Christ Redeemer, Sugar Loaf Mountain Maracanã and Copacabana, Rio de Janeiro has a new tourist destination: Barra da Tijuca the fastest-growing region in the city!

Barra da Tijuca, home of the 2016 Olympic Park - a cluster of nine sporting venues, popularly known as Barra, is the youngest neighbourhood in Rio de Janeiro. Until the 1970’s was nearly uninhabited; today, almost 50 years later, the region has become a complete city neighbourhood. Besides having the longest beach in Rio de Janeiro, with 18 km of sea and white sand, Barra offers a plethora of options for culture, fun, entertainment, tranquillity, safety and adventure. Barra has everything a neighbourhood needs: A wide range of hotels, from budget B&B to luxurious five-star hotels, make up the option to stay. Besides Brazilian cuisine, the influence of the whole world, especially from Europe and Asia, can be easily found in the presence of restaurants in many different countries.

Enjoy an afternoon of shopping at the famous Barra Shopping, one of the largest in Latin America, with over 700 stores. For those who love luxury, sophistication and delicious cuisine, Village Mall has over 90 stores, offering the world’s most famous brands.