9-Day Brazil Private Tour - Rio, Inhotim and Salvador

A 9-day Brazil private tour taking in Rio de Janeiro, imperial Petropolis, the Inhotim art institute and historic Salvador de Bahia, with private guides, transfers and hotels throughout.

Description

Four cities, four completely different Brazils. This 9-day Brazil itinerary moves from the beaches and mountains of Rio to the imperial palaces of the Serra, then into one of the world's most unusual art collections, and finishes where the country itself began.

Rio opens things properly. You'll ride the cog train up through Tijuca Forest — the largest urban forest on the planet — to Christ the Redeemer, standing 700 metres above the bay, then take the two cable cars to the summit of Sugarloaf for the full 360-degree sweep. Day three climbs into the mountains to Petropolis, where Emperor Pedro II's summer palace still holds a crown set with gold, pearls and diamonds, and a Crystal Palace built in France and shipped over piece by piece.

From there, a short flight to Belo Horizonte and the Inhotim Institute — part contemporary art museum, part botanical garden, spread across a landscape you wander rather than tour. There is genuinely nothing else like it anywhere.

The finale is Salvador de Bahia: Fort Santo Antônio and the Farol da Barra lighthouse, the UNESCO-listed streets of Pelourinho, and the view over the Bay of All Saints from the Lacerda Elevator. A free day follows, because Salvador rewards unstructured time more than most cities do.

Because this is a fully private Brazil tour, nothing is fixed. Add nights, swap a hotel, build in Iguazu or a beach extension in the Northeast — just tell us and we'll adjust the route around you.

Highlights & Attractions

Christ the Redeemer (Corcovado), Sugarloaf Mountain, Tijuca Forest, Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, Imperial Museum, Petropolis Cathedral, Crystal Palace, Inhotim Institute, Fort Santo Antônio, Farol da Barra, Pelourinho, Jorge Amado House Foundation and Lacerda Elevator

Includes & Not Includes

Meet-and-assist service on arrival and departure at all airports
All airport transfers by private air-conditioned vehicle
All touring is private
Accommodation for 3 nights in Rio de Janeiro, 2 nights in Belo Horizonte and 3 nights in
Salvador de Bahia, on a bed-and-breakfast basis
Daily breakfast at your hotels
1 lunch during the Corcovado and Sugarloaf excursion (drinks not included)
Full-day excursion to Corcovado and Sugarloaf in Rio de Janeiro
Full-day excursion to Petropolis from Rio de Janeiro
Full-day excursion to the Inhotim Institute from Belo Horizonte
Half-day historical city tour in Salvador de Bahia
Entrance fees to all sites listed in the itinerary
Professional local guides throughout all tours
Permanent local assistance in every destination

International and domestic airfares
Any services or meals not listed in the itinerary, including drinks
Early check-in, late check-out and hotel extras
Personal expenses
Tips for guides and hotel staff

Scheduled Travel Plan

01

DAY

Arrival in Rio de Janeiro

Welcome to Brazil. Our representative will meet you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel, with time to settle in and take your first walk along the seafront.

Overnight: Rio de Janeiro
02

DAY

Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain

Rio doesn't ease you in gently. After a scenic drive around the Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon, you'll board the cog train that climbs through Tijuca Forest — the world's largest urban forest — to Christ the Redeemer, standing 700 metres above the city and one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.

The afternoon takes you to Sugarloaf Mountain, where two successive cable cars carry you to a summit with a full 360-degree view over the bay, the beaches and the mountains behind them.

A proper Brazilian churrasco lunch rounds off the day.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Overnight: Rio de Janeiro
03

DAY

Petropolis, the Imperial City

A day in the mountains, 60 km from Rio. Petropolis was settled by German immigrants and became the summer capital of imperial Brazil, and it has kept that atmosphere in its streets.

You'll visit the Imperial Museum, once Emperor Pedro II's summer residence and now home to the imperial crown — gold, pearls and more than six hundred diamonds. From there, the Gothic Cathedral, the resting place of Pedro II and Princess Isabel, and finally the Crystal Palace, manufactured in France, shipped across the Atlantic and reassembled here for the princess's exhibitions and receptions.

Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Rio de Janeiro
04

DAY

Rio de Janeiro to Belo Horizonte

After breakfast, you'll be transferred to the airport for your flight to Belo Horizonte, where our representative will meet you and take you to your hotel.

Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Belo Horizonte
05

DAY

The Inhotim Institute

Today is the one that surprises people. Inhotim is part open-air contemporary art museum, part botanical garden, holding one of the most significant art collections in the southern hemisphere alongside rare plant species gathered from every continent.

The works sit in individual pavilions scattered across a landscape of lakes and gardens, which means you walk between them rather than moving through galleries. Give it the full day — most visitors wish they'd had longer.
Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Belo Horizonte
06

DAY

Belo Horizonte to Salvador

After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your flight to Salvador de Bahia. Our representative will meet you on arrival and transfer you to your hotel.

Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Salvador de Bahia
07

DAY

Historic Salvador

Where Brazil began. You'll start at Fort Santo Antônio and the Farol da Barra lighthouse, the point where Salvador's Carnival circuit launches each year.

From there into the Historic Centre and Pelourinho, a UNESCO World Heritage site of colour-washed colonial facades, baroque churches and the Jorge Amado House Foundation, dedicated to the writer who did more than anyone to put Bahia on the literary map.

The tour finishes at the Lacerda Elevator, which drops between the Upper and Lower City and delivers the classic view across the Bay of All Saints.

Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Salvador de Bahia
08

DAY

Salvador at Your Own Pace

A free day. Salvador is a city that rewards wandering — the drumming that starts up in the street, the acarajé stalls, the churches you find by accident. Your local team can suggest options if you'd like structure, or you can simply follow the noise.

Meals: Breakfast
Overnight: Salvador de Bahia
09

DAY

Departure

After breakfast, you'll be transferred to the airport in line with your flight schedule. End of our services — until next time.

Meals: Breakfast