Rio's City Walking Tour: A Glimpse Of History And Olympic Legacy

Highlights include Benedictine Chapel with amazing art work and the beautiful Portuguese Library both in down town.

Unfortunately, not enough people signed up for the tour and it was cancelled. HOWEVER, the communication between the operator and Viator was seamless, and the tour was refunded with kind apologies. Tourism is full of moving parts, and sometimes things just happen. I must admit I was disappointed, however given the opportunity to revisit, will definitely try again.

We had arranged to be picked up at our hotel and André arrived on time. He was very attentive and knowledgable. When I mentioned that there were a few places I planned to visit after the tour, he added them to the tour! We were delighted with his willingness to spend as much time (or as little) in each spot according to our wishes. A fantastic guide who helped me to fall more in love with Rio than I already was. Highly recommended.

Good introduction to old Rio. Old Portuguese Library Building was most impressive. Good information on city history. Enjoyable guide.

The walking tour gave us some really good highlights of the city. What I really enjoyed most was the fact that we were able to stroll on our own time without being too hurried with the agenda. Our guide was able to get us a shuttle ride around the museum of tomorrow which was very nice. Also, the highlight of this tour was the library of old books that she took us to. I didn’t know such a library existed and I was happy that we were taken there.

Melanie is extremely friendly and easy going, very smoothly transitioning from Spanish to English to take care of multiple customers. Great experience!

our tour guide was absolutely wonderful. She was very knowledgeable and took us to interesting places. I am not very good at names, but I believe her name was Malenia. I would recommend this tour.

Not a lot of walking, traffic was bad. Recommending more time to walk, browse more streets; give 10 mins of free time.

On this tour your will visit several churches along with other places of interest. Melanie was an excellent tour ambassador for, Rio de Janerio! She shared history of the city and allowed us time to make our way through the sites. I recommend, shopping at the local market near Rio Cathedral and taking in linch at places less touristy as the line ups are shorter and the snacks and meals overall throughout Rio are of European standard. I recommend doing this tour on your first or second day of your visit as it provided you with an understanding of the cities layout and identifies places you may which to spend more time exploring. I woupd recommend asking your tour guide to share tips and make recommendations for things of interest to you. Webdid and Melanie was aboe to offer suggestions that saved us money and make the local experience in Brazil meaningful.

Lovely tour to meet our exact taste... We were the only people on the tour so the guide amended it to meet our interests and it was delightful, seeing and hearing about the origins of Rio, small backstreet life so as to understand real Rio life... Highly recommended

A nice tour that takes you thorough the most important landmarks in downtown Rio in a reasonable and good pace. Our tour guide Melanie was honestly such a sweetheart and we enjoyed our time with her a lot.

Great tour. Melani was a great tour guide. We'll experienced, knowledgeable and pleasant. Street Art in Lapa and Selatom steps are so attractive.

JB did a very good job of explaining all the historic sites during the walking tour of old Rio. It was a great experience and highly recommend to anyone.

JB was an enthusiastic and informative guide giving a great introduction to the many wonderful sites of Rio. There were only 3 on our tour and we were picked up promptly by bus from our hotel and dropped off .

Only us 2 in the tour. The tour guide is constently busy texting on his phone and rushing us to get the tour over with. At one point he even comment that he is a man of the clock meaning he is intested only to make all check list that need to visit and get us over with.

<p>Another great tour. It was not a hard walk. Good pace and lots to see on this tour. Worth taking this one.</p>

<p>JB was a great tour guide- very energetic and well- informed. He gave us a good introduction to Rio downtown and we enjoyed walking around that area. Worth- taking</p>

<p>It turned out to be a private tour ! Therefore our guide could be flexible and adapt the program to avoid the places we had already visited the day before. Jean-Baptiste proved to be a great guide because he knows Rio, loves the city and makes you love it too.<br/> We discovered places we would not have thought of visiting. The walking experience is definitely the best way to discover a city and its people.</p>

<p>JB was knowledgeable, spoke English well and is obviously very passionate about his city. WE got a view of the Museum of Tomorrow from the Benedictine monastery that normally you would not see so got a cracking photograph. Excellent value for money, as got lots of info about getting about Rio in general,</p> <p>Tip -- if you are meeting at a hotel but not resident there then go into reception --- he will look for you there not outside.</p>

<p>A pretty relaxed meander round the downtown area of Rio which I probably would not have seen otherwise. Quirky guide who looked after us well.</p>

<p>Despite a bad start, Juan Bautista provided an interesting walking tour from the Sao Bento monastery to the Metropolitan Cathedral in Rio. His passion for the history and architecture of Rio was obvious. The tour was quite expensive and I would recommend a tour arranged locally, instead, especially since we spent 30 minutes in a tea shop albeit beautiful, but at the expense of seeing more. As it is, the tour ended one block short of seeing the Teatro Municipal and the Catedral Metropolitana. Fortunately, we were able to continue the walking tour on our own a couple of days later for just the cost of the metro. <br/> The tour started badly as the bus went to the wrong hotel at the wrong time and left without us a group of four. We had to take a taxi to catch the group one other person at the monastery. A big problem with arranging tours thru third parties is the communications gap/delay. Between Viator, the local tour company and the tour guide, there were three different stories.</p>

<p>This was one of my best tours booked on the Rio trip. It was highly personalized since I was the only one on the tour. The guide was very friendly, warm and knowledgeable and well planed. I had an amazing experience with JB. I wanted to book him for another tour, but he wasn't available. It was a pleasant surprise. Thank you JB! You are the best.</p>

<p>There is generally not a lot of history in Rio to be seen. I would re-title this tour the Old historic churches tour. Very underwhelming.</p>

<p>A good afternoon and a great way to see parts of Rio you would not normally visit. Good too having a local guide who knows the area, gives lots of history and background and shields you from pick pockets. Thanks JB.</p>

<p>It was set at a nice pace and he was a very knowledgeable guide.</p>

<p>This was a really good way to spend a few hours. Gave a good overview of old Rio and some sites you may not visit on your own.</p>

<p>The tour was very worthwhile. tour guide well informed. Very patient. Was very passionate about Rio and the history of the city. Answered all questions and had time to answer individual questions.</p>

<p>We did this our first day and had a wonderful introduction to Rio. Our guide, JB (short for Juan Batiste), gave us a detailed history of all we saw. He was funny, personable and has left a lasting memory of Carioca hospitality.</p>

<p>A little background about myself: this was my first trip to Rio, and before this tour, I had not spent any time in downtown Rio. I am generally interested in history, perhaps more than the average person.</p> <p>Our tour guide, JB, was fantastic. He was very energetic, and was very enthusiastic about the city. He was extremely knowledgeable about the stops on the tour (and a lot off the tour) and effectively communicated with all of us. He walks fast, he talks fast, which is great, because he was able to cover a lot of ground in the 4 hours we had. (Even during the ride to and from our hotel, he was telling us about the buildings we passed and the early rulers of Brazil.)</p> <p>The tour stops were also well chosen. We visited four churches, two cultural centers, three squares and a wonderful old restaurant (the Confeiteria Colombo), all of which were downtown landmarks. I was never bored, I felt like I got a good sense of downtown, and though the tour was 6 hours long, the time just flew by.</p> <p>Again, you walk a lot, so if you don't walk well/cannot do so for long periods, I would not suggest this tour.</p> <p>Highly recommend this tour!!!</p>

<p>Very interesting. The guide was very repetitive, too. This was tiresome!</p>

<p>Our guide JB was perfect! Very kind and funny, but most of all PASSIONATE about the city. He will bring you to the best spots. Thank you for the amazing tour, we learned a lot!</p>

<p>The highlight of this tour was undoubtedly the guide - J.B.<br/> He managed to make everything so interesting and included everyone in his question and answer sessions. Within 20 mins he had remembered all our names. Old town Rio is starting to become dilapidated and the old historic buildings are gradually being replaced by modern skyscrapers. Such a shame really, these places must have look magnificent in their heyday. The visit to the Cake and coffee shop was a well appreciated break in the walk which took approximately 4 hours.</p>

<p>Our tour guide JB was really quite fabulous. Full of energy, just a great ambassador for the city. I really enjoyed it.</p>

<p>It was fantastic. Very interesting and got a good feeling and understanding of the city</p>

<p>Wonderful! We learned so much about Rio/Brasil and saw sites that we would never had seen if we hadn't taken the tour. JB was well-informed and very pleasant.</p>

<p>Very informative, good guide who spoke English , nice to have door to door service. overall an enjoyable tour. only issue was amount charged differed from website , I contacted the email for customer service but no reply</p>

<p>I booked 3 tours through Viator. JB, the tour guide is the best. He is very passionate about his job and tour reflects it.</p>

<p>Great tour given by JP, he is very knowledgeable and a truly dedicated tour guide. We were quite fortunate to be only 3 and got a very personal tour, It was amazing to go through the old city and see the sites. It made the trip more enjoyable and much more worthwhile.</p>

<p>The historical center of Rio de Janeiro is interesting. Our guide was very knowledgeable and efficient. Don't miss the famous cafe "Colombo".</p>

<p>We had an invigorating tour with our guide John the Baptist. Highly recommend this walk for those interested in the history of Rio de Janeiro -- as well as good exercise. Get off the beach and see the real Rio and learn about its architecture and history.</p>

<p>Excellent tour with a very knowledgeable guide, JB. Saw and toured the important sites of the city and learned its history.</p>

<p>Excellent trip. JB is so enthusiastic and knowledgeable. We visited places that we would never have found on our own. And the cake shop - fab!!!</p>

<p>Our tour guide "JB" was very amusing. The walk is about 3-4 hours through downtown. JB was sure to stop for breaks and snacks. We also had 3 small children who did well on this tour. Note, we went during summer, and a couple people struggled in the heat, so be sure to bring big hats and water.</p>

<p>Guide very knowledgable and friendly. They called my hotel before pickup to confirm my availability and if not available they would reschedule tour. Can't beat that! Ron from toronto</p>

<p>Just OK at best. Joe the guide was on was so far ahead of us we could have veered off the path and he would never have noticed. Plus he provided little info and never encouraged questions. Should be called a church tour.</p>

<p>Delightful tour! Excellent, knowledgeable guide. Small group made this tour extra special!</p>

<p>Really enjoyable afternoon out. "JB" was our guide and what a true pro....we were a small group of 4 women and he made sure we were well looked after. His knowledge of Rio's history, the architecture and his sheer enthusiam made this a treat</p>

<p>A great way to see central Rio, with a wonderfully charismatic guide. Lots of interesting insights and we had delicious cakes when he took us to a famous cafe.</p>

<p>Very interesting and informative. The churches old and new form a large part of the tour.</p>