Best of Brazil

(12 days / 11 nights)

Rio De Janeiro, Iguassu Falls, Amazon, Salvador

Price: from £1079 per person*
Departure Dates:10 Jul - 28 Dec 2011

Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive Rio de Janeiro
Welcome to Rio de Janeiro, the city of mountains and sea, samba and carnival, and a relaxed way of life. You are transferred to your hotel along Copacabana Beach.

Day 2: Rio de Janeiro
The Corcovado mountain has been Rio's top attraction widely sung by famous Brazilian composers. Tour will leave the hotel riding along the beaches of Rio and taking the Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas (lagoon) will reach the Rebouças tunnel, a 2.6 km long complex that links the southern and northern parts of the city cut in half by the Tijuca ridge that makes Rio the only city in the world to have a National Park 5 minutes from downtown. Reaching the Cosme Velho district, tour members will take a cogwheel train of Swiss manufacture that climbs the mountain from its base at 15 mts to almost its summit at 670 mts. The very top is reached by climbing a flight of steps reaching the base of Christ the Redeemer statue. The view, from this vantage point, with the surrounding Tijuca National Forest spreading below and a circle of mountains closing the horizon at the very back of the Guanabara bay. Lunch at local restaurant. We will follow to Sugar Loaf, known world over as Rio's postcard and a must to visit. Sugar Loaf is reached on a two-stage cable car ride. This cable car, in operation is of Italian manufacture and takes 80 persons per trip on a 2-minute ride, each stage. The first stage, Morro da Urca - barely 170 mts high, has a restaurant, amphitheater, a helipoint for scenic rides and a privileged view of the Yacht Club and Botafogo Bay. The second stage takes one up to the Sugar Loaf - thus named because of the loaves of sugar that were commonly used by the Portuguese at the time of the discovery of the city. The allencompassing view of this privileged 270-meter high lookout is unrivaled. Visit downtown where Rio's major colonial buildings are located and where the city started to develop. We will pass by the Marechal Floriano Square, also known as Cinelandia. This square concentrates the best of late 18th century French style architecture in Rio de Janeiro: the Municipal Theatre, a scaled-down of the Paris Opera; the Fine Arts Museum; the National Library (reputed worldwide for the copies of Gutemberg's bible and other first editions dating back to 1500 - brought to Brazil by the Imperial Family of Portugal when they moved to Brazil fleeing Napoleon's threat). Overnight in Rio de Janeiro (B, L)

Day 3: Rio de Janeiro
Day at leisure to relax on the beach or you can take one of the several optional tours vailable.
Overnight in Rio de Janeiro (B)

Day 4 : Rio de Janeiro / Iguassu Falls
Fly this morning to the Brazil/Argentine border and transfer your hotel overlooking this unforgettable scene. Iguassu National Park is natural wonder of tropical nature, vistas, and 275 thundering cascades. Overnight in Iguassu Falls (B)

Day 5: Iguassu Falls
Walking tour on the Brazilian side to strategic overlooks at a variety of levels. Trail winds towards the falls from the area in front of the hotel, populated by contis, long-tailed raccoonlike creatures with a well developed sense of tourists’ feeding habits. At its end, an elevator provides speedier access to a viewing platform at the foot of the falls. Overnight in Iguassu
Falls (B)

Day 6 : Iguassu Falls / Manaus / Amazon
You will be transferred to Iguassu airport for your flight to Manaus. Arrival and transfer to your lodge in the Amazon Jungle.
Amazon Jungle Palace : Transfer from the airport or hotel to pier. Arrival and accommodation. In the evening alligator spotting. Dinner and overnight (B, D)
Amazon Eco Park : Transfer to the Amazon Ecopark Jungle Lodge. Reception with local juice. Following visit to the Monkey Jungle. Dinner and evening tour by canoe with opportunity for Alligator Spotting. Overnight at the lodge. (B, D)
Amazon Village : Transfer to the lodge. Arrival and accommodation. Dinner and Alligator spotting. Departure around 20h00 in motorized canoe with guide, in search for alligators called "caimans". Once they are paralized by the light of the flashlight, their eyes go red, enabling the guide to easily locate them. The guide will try to catch one of them with his bare hands and, depending on its size, bring it aboard the canoe for observation. Afterwards, the "caiman" is safely returned to the waters. (B, D)

Day 7: Amazon
Amazon Jungle Palace: Breakfast. Jungle walking tour. Lunch. Visit to a local community, to learn about the culture of the Indians. Ride along Igarape of Cumaru with Piranha fishing. Dinner and overnight. (B, L, D)
Amazon Eco Park : Breakfast followed by Nature Hike. Lunch. After a short rest, visit to the home of local Amazonian residents with fishing.Dinner and overnight at the lodge. (B, L, D)
Amazon Village: Breakfast / Jungle Trek tour - Departure around 09h00 walking or in motorized canoe with guide until appropriate area to enter the jungle. The guide will lead the hikers on a trek through the rainforest, educating them about the local flora and fauna. Lunch. In the afternoon reconnaissance Tour - Departure in motorized canoe with guide to visit the river area inlets and floaded forest. Dinner and overnight (B, L, D)

Day 8: Amazon
Amazon Jungle Palace : Breakfast. Meeting of the Waters ride with visit to Janauary Ecological Park, where we will have the opportunity to see Vitória Regia. Lunch. Jungle walking tour. Dinner and overnight. (B, L, D)
Amazon Eco Park : Breakfast and full day tour to the Meeting of the Waters with lunch. Following optional canoe ride with an opportunity for Piranha Fishing. Arrival at the lodge by 17h30. Dinner and overnight (B, L, D)
Amazon Village : Breakfast. Fishing trip and visit to Caboclo's house - Departure in motorized canoe with guide to try to catch local fish, such as, tucunaré, tambaqui and piranha. Afterwards, you will learn about the customs and way of life of these native inhabitants, descendants of the Indians. Lunch. Free afternoon. Dinner and overnight (B, L, D)

Day 9 : Amazon / Manaus / Salvador
Amazon Jungle Palace : Breakfast. AM departure and return to Manaus and transfer to Airport (B)
Amazon Eco Park : Breakfast. Free time to enjoy and transfer to Manaus (B)
Amazon Village : Return to Manaus arriving approx. 11h30am Fly Salvador, where Brazil was born and where the history remains, in the colonial buildings and African culture. Arrival and transfer to your hotel. Overnight in Salvador (B)

Day 11 : Salvador / Historical Tour
Morning tour of Salvador. Leaving the hotel, tour will stop at Barra Lighthouse, entrance to the All Saints Bay. Baia de Todos os Santos / All Saints' Bay is not only biggest bay but also one of the biggest in the world. Barra Lighthouse was build using the foundations of the Santo Antonio Fort. After time for photos, tour will pass by Santa Maria Fortress, Porto da Barra where Tomé de Souza docked in the 16th Century; Ladeira da Barra, Vitória and its 19th Century mansions; Campo Grande and the monument of the Liberation of Bahia; Castro Alves Theater, Sete de Setembro Avenue and its throbbing commercial life; São Bento Monastery and last but not least - the main stage of Bahian Carnival - Castro Alves Square.
This is the site of the Portuguese America. Tour will continue visiting the upper entrance of the Lacerda Lift; See Square; Terreiro de Jesus - a square with 5 churches, among them the Basilica Cathedral, the Saint Francis of Assissi church - built in the 18th Century and famous for its gold-inlaid interior. Pelourinho, declared in 1985 an UNESCO World Monument, Latin America's biggest colonial complex with buildings dating back from the 16th, 17th and 18th Century, that has been completely overhauled by the city authorities. Another stop will be at Carmo church and monastery for a visit. Overnight in Salvador (B)

Day 12 : Salvador
Transfer back to Salvador airport or you may extend your stay to one of the beach resorts near Salvador (B)

What is included:
• 11 nights accommodation with breakfasts at hotels (full board in the Amazon lodge)
• All transfers on a private basis (except for the lodges in the Amazon)
• Seat in bus tours in Rio, Iguassu and Salvador
• Transfers and tours include English Speaking guide and deluxe air-conditioned vehicles.

Price does not include any international or domestic flights.

Vegetarian meals are available with all our tour packages

*Please note that prices are per person based on twin share in a standard room and are subject to availability and change. Terms and conditions apply.

For more information on any of our packages featured or to book, please call us on: 0207 312 1742