Media Blog
4 Benefits of Traveling to Brazil
What’s on your travel bucket list? Is going to the carnival in Rio de Janeiro? Learn to samba? Did you want to walk on Ipanema beach? If you thought that these vacations were beyond your budget, look again. Now that the US Dollar is so strong and the Brazilian Real is so weak, these trips might be quite affordable after all.
1. How to take advantage of the strong dollar when traveling to Brazil
Now is a good time to visit Brazil when the dollar is so strong. Foreign visitors will benefit from the fall of the Brazilian Real. Your US Dollars will go a long way after you touch down at Rio de Janeiro airport. When you buy Brazilian Real, you currently get a little under 3 Real to 1 USD.
2 Afford to see Rio de Janeiro in luxury. With more Brazilian reals to the dollar, your holiday budget can stretch a bit further. So instead of roughing it, you can afford to see Rio de Janeiro in comfort and luxury.
You don’t want to risk not having cash on you when you arrive in Rio. Make sure you buy foreign currency at home before you leave.
*Instead of hiking up to the Cristo via a jungle path, the 125 ft Christ the Redeemer statue, you can take the cog train up. *Next, take the glassed-in cable car up to Sugarloaf, where you get the most iconic view in town. Bring your cameras and be prepared to be awed. *You can afford to take taxis instead of risking the local buses. *You don’t have to risk food poisoning by eating at the cheap street vendors, although their espetinhos grilled meat skewers are quite tasty.
*Catch a game of beach volleyball on Copacabana beach.*Learn to surf in Arpoador*And if plastic surgery is your thing, that nose job will now be even more affordable.*Now, renting a car can be quite reasonable, plan a road trip from Rio to São Paulo via Costa Verde. You can choose to follow one of the luxury tour operator’s itineraries which take in the island of Ilha Grande and pretty Paraty. Along the way, you can stay in some of the new eco resorts and posh beach hotels.
3. Dont’ pay in USD with your card on vacation Make sure you buy foreign currency before you travel. This way you can lock in the best exchange rate before your trip. Use the cash to pay for your hotels and incidentals. If you have to pay by card, make sure you do in in local currency and not in USD as the rates will always be bad.
4. You don’t have to rough it in a cheap hostel. With more BRL in your pocket, you can upgrade your hotel stay. You will get more for your money if you don’t book through the big online sites. Those rates are always in USD. If you find somewhere you would really like to stay, contact them directly and offer to pay them cash or local currency. You will find that this is a trick a lot of seasoned traveler use. You will almost always get a better rate. If you made friends with a local travel agent, they sometimes have local rates for holiday resorts too, instead of the internationally quoted USD rates. (This tip works in Asia too).
There’s no time like the present to book that trip to Brazil. Book soon to grab the best deals.