Brazil is the country to go for an adventure trip known for its tropical beaches, soothing waterfalls, and Amazon rainforest. It has more animal and plant species than any other country on the globe. Before I go into the details of the best adventurous places to visit and things to do here, keep in mind that the best time for you to plan a trip to Brazil is in the summers between December and March and in the winters between June and September.
If you can, try planning a trip in either September or October since you might be able to ditch a lot of the crowd in the winters. Going during this time will help you get a pleasant experience on your trip.
1. Amazon Rainforest
Making to the top of the list of adventure destinations in Brazil, comes the Amazon rainforest!
Among the top few things that you can do here is zipping from one canopy platform to another. This is absolutely safe and a perfect thing to do for you while you are here especially if you are looking for adventures. The Longest zipping canopy system is the Tahuayo Lodge. This activity is open to both children as well as adults.
While you are zipping, you will have amazing views from up there of the canopy, the wildlife, and the birds. The Tahuayo Lodge also offers survival training which is amongst the most adventurous things you can do here. Evidently, it is an award-winning lodge. Training lasts for either one or two nights. This training offers everything including how to find food, what to stay safe from, what to be on the lookout for, and pretty much everything you need to know before going on a solo adventure in the Amazon rainforest by yourself.
The second activity to do here for you is to find the world’s largest tarantula, called the Goliath tarantulas, locked up anywhere they are roaming free and could be right beside you and you wouldn’t even know. They are easier to find at night. There are a lot of other species of tarantulas as well for you to explore and there is a high probability that you will come across them while you are looking for Goliath tarantulas.
All of the Amazon rainforest has the biggest species of tarantulas, it also has the smallest species of monkeys here, known as the Pygmy Marmosets. You will most likely find them around or in villages. These monkeys are curious creatures and if you attempt to take photographs of them or do an activity that they might not be familiar with they might just stare at you out of curiosity.
Black Caiman is another animal that you can look for in the Amazon rainforest. They are the size of a crocodile but a lot less dangerous and aggressive. You can also fish for Piranhas. Their teeth are known to be used for cutting hair. That is how sharp they are, so be careful.
2. Rock Climbing in Rio De Janeiro
You don’t need to have a lot of experience of rock climbing here. You can be a beginner and still have fun. This is not restricted only to people on the intermediate level or above of rock climbing. There are programs that teach the basics of rock climbing in case you have absolutely no experience.
You can take a four-day rock climbing course in Curitiba if your schedule and budget allow that and you have no experience.
The best areas for rock climbing are in the south of Rio De Janeiro, although there are places in the north as well.
Salinas, Pão de Açúcar, Itatiaia and Anhangava are some of the best places to choose from. Salinas is for more experienced rock climbers. This is a long journey and there are three main points that you can explore. They are all located in the Tres Picos State Park. The three peaks are namely Pico Major, Pico Medio, and Pico Menor.
Capacete another one but climbers mostly choose not to pursue that since they are mostly planning to go to the three main peaks as mentioned. If you feel like exploring you are free to do that.
Pão de Açúcar, known as Sugarloaf, is the one that mainly invites climbers who have at least a little experience with climbing. This is a great location for you especially if you are looking to brush up on your Rock climbing skills or if you are someone who is just getting started. Spending at least one day here will help you get the most out of this experience.
3. Diving
Brazil has some of the best wildlife experiences, it also has some great locations for diving and snorkeling, especially because of its scenic nature and the number of species of every kind of animal present here.
Sao Pedro and Sao Paolo are both surrounded by a clear blue ocean. This location has certain rules and restrictions because the sharks are present here. Be especially careful of the Whale Sharks.
Another great location for diving is Ilha Rasa, which is a small island located offshore from Rio De Janeiro. It starts at about 8 metres below the surface and goes to about 40 metres. Fernando de Noronha is a popular destination for divers. This location is a UNESCO World heritage site with the lord of caves, tunnels, and extraordinary rock in the clear blue waters.
Laja De Santos is another one of the great locations for diving in Rio De Janeiro. It is a Marine park located off the coast of Sao Paulo. There was a fishing boat here that was sunk on purpose to attract marine life.
4. Tandem Hang Gliding
This is not only one of the most adventurous activities to do in Brazil but also, the whole world. Hand gliding in Rio De Janeiro is a gliding session from the mountain to the beach. You will be trained by a fully qualified instructor. The safety instructions will be given to you prior to your flight. The maximum weight limit for this activity is 95kgs or 209lb. The minimum age to be able to do this is 16 years. The availability of this depends completely on the weather conditions as heavy rain, strong winds, and low clouds are unfavourable conditions for hand gliding.
5. Windsurfing
The first location I want to mention here is Rio De Janeiro, because a lot of the other activities are here as well. The best time for surfing here is between August and December, especially in the afternoons as the winds are more favourable at that time during these months.
Besides Rio De Janeiro, the top locations here for windsurfing in Brazil are:
- Ipanema,
- Barra da Tijuca which is in the outskirts of Rio De Janeiro,
- Cabo Frio, and Búzios,
- Florianopolis in Santa Catarina Island,
- São Paulo in Ilhabela,
- Porto Galinhas in the northeast,
- Canoa Quebrada, and
- Jericoacoara.
