15 City Tours in Rio de Janeiro to Build a Day Around

1.Private Guided City Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.6 · 207 reviews · 4 - 8 hours · from $56Our pick

Build your Rio day around beaches, Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, Santa Teresa, gardens, or local neighborhoods. A private guide such as Dario, Meilin, or Riccardo travels with you by car, adjusts for weather and traffic, and shares practical local insight.

“Riccardo is an amazing guide. He made sure we had a great time and he showed us Rio de Janeiro through his eyes as he was born and lives there. We saw a lot and enjoyed every moment of it. Thank you so much Riccardo! We had a wonderful day”

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2.Half-Day Christ the Redeemer and City Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.4 · 101 reviews · 5 hours · from $63

Spend five hours visiting Rio’s essential sights, beginning with Christ the Redeemer above Tijuca Forest. A multilingual guide leads you to Maracanã, the Sambadrome, Selarón Steps, and the Metropolitan Cathedral, with hotel pickup from central and South Zone neighborhoods.

“Nice guide and driver, and the statue is cool, but some things could be better. The pickup was about 15 minutes late with no communication, even though my hotel was the first stop. and the city tour was kind of meh, with a lot of time allocated. Lots of waiting around. Also, at least my group consisted of both English and Portuguese speaking, so the guide would say everything twice, and often when he got to the English part, we were already past whatever he was talking about.”

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3.Imperial City Tour

★★★★★★★★★★3.7 · 95 reviews · 9 - 10 hours · from $68

Travel from Rio to Petrópolis by air-conditioned bus with a guide in English, Spanish, or Portuguese. Visit Quitandinha Palace, the Imperial Museum, the imperial mausoleum, Crystal Palace, Santos Dumont’s house, and the Flowers Watch. Add Brazil’s oldest beer factory for tastings.

“I enjoyed most was the Imperial Palace tour next was the beer brewery tour.”

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4.Rio Samba Bus: hop-on hop-off city tour in Rio de Janeiro

★★★★★★★★★★3.8 · 94 reviews · 2 hours · from $31

Ride the Rio Samba Bus through Copacabana, Urca, Lapa, downtown, Ipanema, and Christ the Redeemer. You get live commentary in Portuguese, English, and Spanish, Brazilian music, Wi-Fi, and 26 listed stops. The $31 ticket is best for a broad city overview, not a perfectly timed transport service.

“It was fun. Saw lots of things. Driver slowed down or stopped so that everyone could take photos.”

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5.Learn the History of Rio with an Unforgettable City Center Walking Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 82 reviews · 3 hours (approx.) · from $49Top rated

Explore Rio’s historic center on a private three-hour walk with a guide such as Rafael or Danielle. See Cinelândia, Selarón Steps, Lapa’s arches, the Metropolitan Cathedral, Colombo Café, and Paço Imperial, with room to adjust the route to your interests.

“Amazing, friendly and very informative walk around the historical center of Rio! 5 / 5 stars! Thank you!”

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6.City Tour Full Day in Rio: Christ the Redeemer and Sugar Loaf

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 81 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $126

Spend about nine hours seeing Rio’s major sights by shared transfer, with entry to Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf, a Brazilian buffet lunch, and an accredited guide. The group can reach 19 people. Pickup runs from Rio’s South Zone to Centro, not Barra or Recreio.

“Long day but worth it. Our guide had lots of information to share. We were a group of 20. The only downside was that sitting in the very back of the bus we couldn’t really see any of the scenery and had a hard time hearing the guide.”

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7.Rio de Janeiro City Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 67 reviews · 5 hours (approx.) · from $125

Spend about five hours seeing Rio’s headline sights in a van for up to 19 people. Visit Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, Mirante Dona Marta, Santa Teresa, and Selarón Steps, with guides such as Alex or Fernando sharing local context. Pickup details should be confirmed before departure.

“Booked this due to 11:30 start but was moved to 10am which was at least still later than other tours. Had a great day seeing the sights and time for a wonderful lunch in Santa Teresa. We learnt a lot and got some great pictures taken for us at the key sights which was a lovely bonus and memory.”

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8.Full Tour in Rio: Christ, Sugarloaf Mountain, City Tour and Lunch

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 55 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $164

Spend about eight hours seeing Rio’s essential sights with an accredited polyglot guide, including Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf cable cars, a buffet lunch, Maracanã, the Sambadrome, the Cathedral, and Selarón Steps. Carolina is one guide praised for friendly, well-paced touring.

“It was an awesome experience with Carolina! Timing at each site was just nice. She was knowledgeable and friendly. Well recommended!”

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9.Full Day City Tour in Rio de Janeiro

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 53 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $165

Spend about eight hours seeing Rio’s major sights in a shared, air-conditioned vehicle with a multilingual guide such as Mar. Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf Cable Car, lunch, hotel pickup, Lapa, Selarón Steps, Maracanã, and the Sambadrome are covered, with some stops viewed from outside.

“We have a fantastic time our tour guide was wonderful and we enjoyed learning about Rio De Janeiro :)”

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10.Private City Tour with Hotel Pickup

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 49 reviews · 8 hours

Spend eight hours exploring Rio with Rodrigo of ExploRio Tours in a private five-seat car. Visit Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf, Selarón Steps, and other sights, or shape the day around your interests. Choose English, Portuguese, or Spanish, with hotel pickup and drop-off included.

“We spent two amazing days in Rio de Janeiro with our guide Rodrigo, and it was truly unforgettable. He showed us so much and took us to places we would have never been able to discover on our own. Rodrigo tailored the program perfectly to our wishes and quickly became a full member of our group. It honestly felt like he knows almost everyone in the city, which made the experience even more authentic and special. On top of that, we learned countless fascinating insights that only a local could share. Thank you, Rodrigo – highly recommended!”

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11.City Tour of Rio de Janeiro con ingressi e pranzo

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 48 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $250

Spend about eight hours seeing Rio’s major sights by private vehicle, with a guide, hotel pickup, Sugarloaf and Corcovado admissions, and an all-you-can-eat Brazilian barbecue lunch. Guide Italo is noted for professional, helpful service, while the group size is limited to 20 people.

“Italo, out guider, is very professional,knowledgeable, and helpful. We enjoy the trip very much! Rio is a wonderful destination.”

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12.Rio DE Janeiro SUV Private City Tour : avoiding crowds and clouds

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 46 reviews · 5 to 6 hours (approx.) · from $112

Explore Rio in a private, air-conditioned SUV with a guide, snacks, WiFi, and child seating. Visit Christ the Redeemer, Dona Marta, Santa Teresa, Selarón Steps, Centro, Urca, and Sugarloaf. The SUV reaches corners that larger vans skip, while you choose how to finish at Sugarloaf.

“This is an absolute MUST when visiting Rio!!! Made the entire trip worth it! On top of all of the knowledge and sites, the photographs are top notch!! Would recommend!!! 10/10!!”

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13.City Tour Full VIP – Corcovado Train + Churrascaria Rodízio

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 43 reviews · 9 hours (approx.) · from $147

Spend about nine hours touring Rio in an air-conditioned vehicle, riding the Corcovado train to Christ the Redeemer, taking Sugarloaf’s cable cars, and eating at a churrascaria rodízio. You’ll also see Selarón Steps, the cathedral, Copacabana, and the Sambadrome from outside.

“An excellent way to visit the key sights in Rio. Lots of time both at top of Sugar Loaf and at Christ the Redeemer with our excellent guide Aldo. Lunch was superb - a huge and varied salad bar plus endless portions of meat brought to the table. Small group and very friendly.”

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14.Excursion: Cristo Redentor, Tijuca National Forest and City Tour in 7 hours

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 35 reviews · 6 to 7 hours (approx.) · from $107

You’ll travel by private vehicle with a guide from Copacabana to Christ the Redeemer, then through Santa Teresa, Selarón Steps, Ipanema, Tijuca Forest, São Conrado, and Sugarloaf Mountain. The Christ ticket is included, lunch and the Sugarloaf cable car are extra, and the group is limited to 13 people.

“Amazing experience and tour! We got to see most of the most popular touristic attractions and our guide was very knowledgeable of the city and culture. I would highly recommend :)”

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15.Rio de Janeiro City Tour for One Day

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 34 reviews · 8 hours (approx.) · from $176

Spend about eight hours touring Rio by air-conditioned vehicle, with included access to Christ the Redeemer and Sugarloaf Mountain, lunch, and guided stops at Maracanã, Selarón Steps, the Metropolitan Cathedral, Arcos da Lapa, and the Sambadrome. Pickup time is confirmed the day before.

“AGENCY TRAVEL RBP is the one who organize my tour. They are scammer. We bought 8 hours tour with lunch, included pick up at our hotel. They email less than 24 hrs before tour start (so I can not cancel and get full refund) to tell me they want to meet at another hotel, about 30 minutes away, and I have to show up 45 minutes early. I try to get there on time at 7:15am, the tour guide from another company show up at 7:45am. We do the tour, but it's for 4 hours tour without lunch. My complaint was ignore from both companies and Viator as well”

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