Things to do
Free things to do in Rio de Janeiro
Much of the best of Rio charges no entry: beaches, viewpoints, street art and the landscape itself.
Updated on October 7, 2026 ✓ Information verified on October 6, 2026 adapted version of the Portuguese original
Rio’s landscape is free. These outings charge no entry:
Beaches and seafront
- Every beach, from Copacabana to Grumari.
- The wave-pattern promenade and the seafront cycle path.
- Sunset on the Arpoador rock.
- A loop around Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon.
Downtown
- The Selarón Steps and the Lapa Arches.
- The Olympic Boulevard and the Etnias mural.
- The facades of Cinelândia and the Municipal Theater.
Nature
- Mirante Dona Marta and Vista Chinesa.
- Trails in Tijuca National Park.
- The Pista Cláudio Coutinho.
Events
New Year’s Eve in Copacabana and the Carnival street blocos are free. So are the samba schools’ technical rehearsals at the Sambadrome in January, according to Riotur.
Places mentioned
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Free access South Zone Mirante Dona Marta One of Rio's most beautiful viewpoints, on the way to Corcovado, with Sugarloaf and Botafogo Cove straight ahead. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Copacabana Beach Rio’s most famous beach, with its Portuguese stone wave promenade, kiosks, beach sports and the world’s biggest New Year’s Eve party. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Ipanema Beach The bossa nova beach between Arpoador and Leblon, with Dois Irmãos on the horizon and one of the most applauded sunsets in Rio. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Leblon Beach The continuation of Ipanema to the foot of Dois Irmãos Hill: a calmer seafront, the Leblon lookout and a neighborhood of restaurants and bookshops. See details -
Free access South Zone Arpoador The rock between Copacabana and Ipanema where locals applaud the sunset. Below it, a small surf beach. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Praia Vermelha and the Pista Cláudio Coutinho Next to the cable car station: a small cove beach and a flat walk between forest and sea, where marmosets are a common sight. See details -
Free accessKids West Zone Barra da Tijuca Beach A long, wide seafront with open sea and mountains behind, in a modern neighborhood further from the postcard sights. See details -
Free access West Zone Prainha and Grumari Two pale-sand beaches between forested hills, with no buildings on the seafront. They are far away and call for a car, but show an almost wild Rio. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon The stretch of water between Ipanema, Leblon and Jardim Botânico, with a cycle path around it, kiosks and Christ the Redeemer high above. See details -
Free access Downtown and Lapa Lapa and the Lapa Arches The old aqueduct that became a postcard, and the bohemian neighborhood of samba circles at the foot of Santa Teresa. See details -
Free accessKids Downtown and Lapa Selarón Steps The staircase covered in colorful tiles between Lapa and Santa Teresa, the work of Chilean artist Jorge Selarón. See details -
Free accessKids Downtown and Lapa Olympic Boulevard and Praça Mauá The bayside promenade born from the port's renewal, with the Etnias mural and Praça Mauá. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Copacabana promenade (Calçadão) The Portuguese-stone waves came before Burle Marx. He turned them parallel to the sea and designed the mosaics along the rest of Avenida Atlântica. See details - Free access Downtown and Lapa Valongo Wharf and Little Africa The old wharf where hundreds of thousands of enslaved Africans landed, recognized by UNESCO in 2017, and the neighborhood that kept that memory alive. See details
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Free access Downtown and Lapa Pedra do Sal The rock with carved steps in the Saúde neighborhood, linked to the origins of carioca samba and to open-air samba circles. See details -
Free access North Zone Vista Chinesa A Chinese-style pavilion high in the Tijuca Forest, with views of the Lagoa, the South Zone and the sea. Its story begins with tea. See details -
Free accessKids South Zone Flamengo Park (Aterro do Flamengo) A whole park built on the sea, between downtown and Botafogo, with Burle Marx gardens and views of Sugarloaf Mountain. See details - Free accessKids South Zone Urca and the Mureta da Urca The quiet neighborhood where the city was born, with old houses, moored boats and the low wall by the bay for late afternoons. See details
Keep reading
Keep planning
- How much a trip to Rio de Janeiro costs The official prices we have checked, what is free and how to build your budget without surprises. Read guide
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Rio de Janeiro viewpoints From the top of Corcovado to the Arpoador rock: where to see Rio from above, and when. Read guide - Rio de Janeiro beaches From the classic South Zone beachfront to the forest-framed beaches of the West Zone. Read guide