Things to do in Rio de Janeiro

Landmark · Alto da Boa Vista, inside Tijuca forest

A 30-metre art deco Christ on an 8-metre pedestal atop a granite peak, reached by an 1884 rack railway through rainforest.

Local tip: Skip the van and take the trem do Corcovado from Cosme Velho — the railway is older than the statue and the forest ride is half the point. Go on the first train of the day; by eleven the platform is a queue and the cloud has usually come in.

Nightlife · Central hills, above the Lapa arches

A hillside of colonial mansions and studios above the arches, with the city's densest live-music streets below.

Local tip: The bonde tram runs again from Carioca and is the proper way up. Lapa on a Friday is genuinely the best samba in Brazil and also the place to carry nothing you mind losing — take a card and a phone in a zipped pocket, leave the rest at home.

Neighborhood · Zona Sul

The beach that defines the city, with the Arpoador rock at its eastern end where the whole beach applauds the sunset.

Local tip: Arpoador at sunset is the one crowd worth joining — people clap when the sun drops behind Dois Irmãos and nobody finds it silly. The rock is free, always open, and the best view in Rio that costs nothing.

Culture · Jardim Botânico, at the foot of Corcovado

A 1920s mansion with a courtyard pool, now a free art school, framed by the Christ statue directly above it.

Local tip: The courtyard café is open to anyone and the whole park is free. The trail to Corcovado starts from the back of the grounds — it is a proper forest hike, not a stroll, and should be done in a group and in the morning.

Food · São Cristóvão, Zona Norte

A covered arena of 700 stalls serving the food, music and forró of Brazil's north-east to the migrants who brought it here.

Local tip: Almost no foreign residents ever go, which is the point. Open from Friday morning straight through to Sunday evening — the Friday and Saturday nights are when the forró bands play and it becomes a different, much better place. Take a taxi, not the metro, late at night.

Nature · Central massif, above the city

The largest urban forest in the world planted by hand, replanted from coffee plantations in the 1860s to protect Rio's water supply.

Local tip: The Vista Chinesa viewpoint and the Cascatinha waterfall are reachable by car; the good trails start deeper in. Go on a weekday and go with someone — this is real forest with real navigation, not a park.