Best views in Rio de Janeiro
November 3rd, 2009Rio de Janeiro is famous for its samba, bossa nova, its February carnival and soccer but what most people retain in mind is pictures of its landmark views and vistas with Rio’s key symbols in it.
Two of its most recognized symbols are that of the outstretched arms statue of Christ the Redeemer mounting the Corcovado peak, and that of the Pao de Acucar, or Sugar Loaf, the solid granite monolith of some 1300 feet surrounded by deep blue waters of the Guanabara Bay.
Many calendars and posters depict these two landmarks from various viewpoints, so which are indeed the best to visit for that classic picture postcard shot of Rio?
It says that it’s best to visit the Sugar Loaf first before climbing any other summit. The views from its top of Botafogo beach, Leme, Copacabana, Ipanema as far as Leblon beach are stunning, as is the view of the towering Corcovado peak looking toward the mountains.
Excellent views can be had by taking Rio’s yellow trolley up to the mountain to Santa Teresa neighborhood. This is indeed one of Rio’s oldest neighborhoods which grew in the 18th century when during yellow fever epidemic many Rio’s residents tried to escape the sea-level mosquito-infested downtown of Rio for the cooler air of Santa Teresa’s higher ground.
Another hilltop of note for fine views is not far from Santa Teresa. With its prominent location above the Botafogo neighborhood and studded with a Baroque landmark chapel of Nossa Senhora da Gloria do Outeiro, the hilltop offers another stunning panorama of Rio de Janeiro.
Behind the high-rises lining the Ipanema beach there is Lagoa Rodrigo de Freitas, a natural lake that sits surrounded by Rio’s mountaintops. Anywhere around the lake brings fine views of Rio, all worth the trip around its perimeter, and especially if one decides to venture to Rio’s Botanical Garden, Jardim Botanico, located not far from the lake’s edge below the ridge of Tijuca National Park.
But to encompass all the major symbols of Rio de Janeiro, there is only one place to find the best panoramas of Rio – it is on the high road of the Parque Nacional da Tijuca, the Tijuca National Park.
Driving up the winding road of the national park one comes across number of stunning views that should not be missed.
One of the best is the panorama from the Mesa do Imperador, the site of the royal picnic of Pedro II. Next it is the Vista Chinese, or Chinese View, hailed as having the best views of the summit of Corcovado in the foreground, with Botafogo beach on your left and Copacabana on your right and the Sugar Loaf as a backdrop.
For yet another alternative impressive panorama of Corcovado peak, Sugar Loaf and the beaches around is provided from the viewpoint of the Donna Marta Belvedere, which summit, few feet short of 1200 feet, is some 1,000 feet lower than that of Corcovado’s 2300 feet above sea level.

