Rio de Janeiro · HISTORICAL TOURS
The 15 best historical tours you can book right now, with what each costs, how long it runs and who it suits. Number one is top for a reason; start there.
Rio Centro walking tour with Lucemir: Theatro Municipal, Selarón steps, cathedral, and historic plazas for $29, about 3 to 4 hours.
“We enjoyed the walking tour with Lucemere and Lucas. The highlight was hanging out with these wonderful gents and exploring Brazilian history, culture, and landmarks from the local perspective.”
Private 3-hour Rocinha cultural walk with a bilingual local guide, rooftop views, and a thrilling start by motorbike in Rio.
“Makes you feel a whole lot more comfortable when your guide actually lives in the area you’re touring. Antonio was an excellent guide; friendly, knowledgeable, and helpful. He made the tour fun & kept me wanting to see more.”
Walk Rio’s Saúde with a small group, from Valongo Wharf to Pretos Novos, linking samba, slavery, and memory in 3.5 hours.
“This tour of little Africa was exactly what I had hoped for! Ana (Scarlet), my guide was very friendly and extremely knowledgeable, thoughtfully guiding me through different museums, points of interest and landmarks. She gave me time to read things, supplementing information as I needed and made sure I was safe throughout! I thoroughly enjoyed the tour and feel like I learnt a lot in a short period of time. The organisers were able to fit me in last minute which I am very grateful for - thank you for a great experience!”
Explore Rio’s historic center and Santa Teresa art streets in 4 hours, with hotel pickup, a multilingual guide, and Laurinda Santos views.
“Edwardo was brilliant!! Lots of information and we had a feed laughs too”
Walk Rio’s Little Africa from Mauá Square views to Pedra do Sal and Valongo’s history, guided in English for 150 minutes.
“We had a great time on this tour. Luana, our tour guide, was very informative and you could tell she was passionate about the information she was providing. It was very eye-opening and I would recommend this tour. It's a walking tour outside so be prepared to be out in the heat for 2.5 hours. But it was worth it.”
A 6-hour small-group food walk through Rio, from Copacabana juices to Santa Teresa art and a legendary Portuguese library.
“Excellent day trip... well organised from start to finish. did exactly what was promised, Train was good, food OK and driver pickup drop off very easy. Our guide Zohaib was excellent and knowledgeable given plenty of insights and getting us into all he right locations and in front of the queues. Overall perfect trip and well worth little bit extra for private tour and service....”
A small-group hike in Rio’s Tijuca Forest, mixing rainforest, waterfalls, caves, and history, plus a refreshing waterfall shower break.
“Riccardo was a super guide with a huge knowledge base - while taking us around, he introduced the Brazilian and Tijuca past, today's trends and facts. Highly recommend!”
A 4 to 5 hour Centro walking tour with Bruno, tracing Rio's past to present from Cinelandia to Valongo Wharf.
“Amazing insights into Rio, and a fantastic experience overall. I feel like I learnt so much in just 4 hours - Thank you Bruno!”
A 3.5-hour guided walk through Rio’s Little Africa landmarks, mixing decolonial storytelling with key sites like Valongo and Pedra do Sal.
“Our tour guide Carolina has so much knowledge and enthusiasm which made for a wonderful day! I wish the tour was longer because I really enjoyed learning about the Afro Heritage History in Rio”
Private 3-hour Centro walking tour through Rio’s history and architecture, from Theatro Municipal to Paço Imperial, with your group guide.
“Amazing, friendly and very informative walk around the historical center of Rio! 5 / 5 stars! Thank you!”
A 4-hour Old Rio walking tour with free church-and-palace stops, Olympic legacy at Mauá Square, and hotel pickup from Ipanema, Copacabana, Leblon.
“Only us 2 in the tour. The tour guide is constently busy texting on his phone and rushing us to get the tour over with. At one point he even comment that he is a man of the clock meaning he is intested only to make all check list that need to visit and get us over with.”
Rio in 3-4 hours by e-bike: Afro-Brazilian sites, iconic architecture, and beach-path riding to Ipanema with a friendly guide.
“Starting in little Africa, ending at Ipanema beach, hit all the highlights by e-bike, no need to even pedal! Bruno was great and because of the day of week, I essentially got a private tour. History and cultural highlights provided. Able to stop for photos as desired. Parts of tour do require some riding in streets and people dodging on the paths. Would recommend.”
Half-day guided walk through downtown Rio from Cais do Valongo to Museu do Amanhã, with hotel pickup and a sweet stop at Colombo.
“Greatly enjoyed this tour. Although we had done a couple of city tours already, we got a great overview of the old downtown that we had not seen including Little Africa, the historic churches, Olympic Avenue, as well as the Museum of the Future. We also got to taste sweat and savory pastries from historic Confeitaria Colombo and viewed the vintage building. Get ready for a lot of walking if you take this tour, but our guide Carlos made it fun and we took frequent breaks to accommodate all fitness levels. Carlos was very knowledgeable about the city and very enthusiastic. There was some confusion regarding the pick up location:…”
4-hour Rio Downtown tour hitting Valongo Wharf, Eduardo Kobra graffiti, Museum of Tomorrow, Monastery of Saint Benedict, and Confeitaria Colombo.
“Emma was a great and friendly guide. We had a great time touring the locations in the tour and loved the flexibility of touring the museum of tomorrow at our own pace. Highly recommend for those wanting to see a different side of Rio not covered in many other tours of the city”
A 3-hour guided walking tour through Rio’s Centro and Lapa, with major landmarks, strong history talk, and photo stops like Selarón’s stairs.
“Disappointed that our tours booked in English were cancelled due to a minimum of 3 people needed in order to conduct the tours. The fine print does state that a minimum of 3 are needed but we would have been happy to tip more to meet the minimum. Both tours were cancelled a few hours before the scheduled start time. Our time in Rio was limited and thus it was impossible to find an alternative at the last minute. Wish we had had some warning a few days in advance and we could have prepared a backup plan.”
Every kind of day this city offers, and the best of each.
