Bruno Madeira

The staff and the food were extraordinary! They can improve some things in the lodge, but it was fine for a jungle experience.

Amazing location on Copacabana beach, very comfortable beds, large room, good breakfast (but very crowded/busy), incredible rooftop pool with very attentive bar service and beautiful views

I recognize this is probably the best option on an island like Isla Grande, but for the price it wasn't quite up to the normal standards - our room was too small for us to fit our suitcases (and we couldn't open them) and there were ants in the bathroom. The view from the rooms is amazing, but we couldn't enjoy the balcony as much as we would have liked because the hotel allows smoking on the balconies and the person in the room next to us smoked constantly, ruining the experience for us. The hotel is also a long walk from the pier and the main part of town which was tough with our daughter especially since it rained on us the first day. Overall it was okay, and maybe the best option available, but it was our least favorite hotel that we stayed in.

Absolutely loved this place! A ton of historic character, amazing location in the old part of Paraty, very nice swimming pool and bar, the rooms were large and comfortable, and the staff were so nice.

Very comfortable, good breakfast.

Marcelo was a wonderful guide again on this day. We loved visiting Sugarloaf. We ended up skipping the old town part of the tour because I wasn't feeling well, but we were grateful to have a private tour so we could be flexible on our plans and adapt as needed. Marcelo helped make sure everything ran smoothly and took care of everything, and recommended a great restaurant for lunch that everybody loved.

We had an amazing time with Marcelo. He was so nice and informative. We loved seeing Christ the Redeemer and many beautiful beaches in Rio. Marcelo showed us a great place to try acai and watch people hang gliding off the mountains. We loved having him as our private guide so we could be flexible and stop where we wanted. Definitely recommend Marcelo to any travelers visiting Rio!

The people running the class were so nice and made my daughter feel included. All the food and drinks were delicious and we loved the explanation of the ingredients and Brazilian culture/history. There were just a couple of issues. The class started extremely late because one of the other parties in the group was running late, and also because no one had informed the instructors that I was vegetarian, so one of them had to go to the store to buy more ingredients. Even if the class had started on time it still would have been late at night for my daughter, but with the delay, I had to take her back to the hotel before we even got a chance to eat the main dish. It was disappointing that the disorganization affected our enjoyment of the class. I wish we had been able to book something earlier in the day.

We loved the island, the boat ride, the nature - but wished a private tour had been available. There was a lot of waiting around for the group, and we were at the swimming/snorkeling areas at the same times as all the other groups, so it was very crowded. Also there was no kids snorkeling equipment available so my daughter was very disappointed by that. We also received a couple of mixed messages about the meeting time, and no one told us in advance that we would have to pay extra for snorkeling equipment, so communication could have been better. None of the guides spoke English and we relied on other people on the boat to translate for us because we had no idea what was going on.

We really enjoyed the waterfalls and distillery tour. The restaurant where they took us for lunch wasn't very good, but it was okay. We wish we had booked a private tour because being part of a group made the experience less enjoyable - there was a lot of standing around waiting for other people in the group, and the guide had to repeat all the information in multiple languages.

We had a great time walking around and exploring with our guide.

We were tired after our overnight flight, but we enjoyed the tour and our guide was very nice.

Beautiful accommodations. Very nice accommodations. Bed was super comfortable, and air condition was great. Food was amazing, and staff were so attentive

This was truly the highlight of my trip. The lodge was incredible. So organized with activities, and such a variety of activites. The animals around the lodge will melt your heart. I could have stayed a month at this lodge......The food was incredible

The only issue I had with this accommodation was that the AC wasn't working, and there is no staff after hours to fix it

Beautiful lodge...... Food was very basic, but I wasn't there for the food. The scenery was incredible

Fabulous bed, and fabulous air conditioning

The pool and the room were wonderful. The bed was sensational

Amazing experience, Be prepared to get wet, which is a lovely experience in the heat

I was somewhat reluctant to go and see the falls, because I thought it would be like Niagara Falls. Well I was astonished about how different it was. These falls are surreal. You can not describe them. There is simply no comparison to Niagara falls. You must see these falls from both the Brazilian side and the Argentinian side to experience their grandeur

Incredible experience. I saw first hand about the Favela s and the drug and gun culture. I wasn't at all afraid. It is a highly functioning society, and everyone cares for each other. You must take off your sunglasses when entering as they they are worried about cameras taking pictures and reporting to the police. You also are not allowed to take pictures in the Favela. At our resting point, we danced to the carnival music, and had fabulous views of the city. There is a lot of walking up steep hills, so you need to be in good shape physically.

Spectacular experience. Make sure you wear comfortable clothing and running shoe.......

A bit rustic and sometimes noisy but great overall experience. Be prepared to carry your luggage from the harbor (10 minutes)

The size of the beds was HUGE … bigger than a California king … great sleep Excellent breakfast

Comfortable beds - clean - quiet Just needed an extra blanket

Great boutique hotel downtown Manaus with great beds.

The island is really a backpacker paradise - jungle & beach combo with great hikes and beautiful secluded beaches (reachable by boat). Food options are plentiful but expect to wait a long time to be served.

Beautiful city with lots to do - safer than I expected - beaches are gorgeous but crowded.

In the heart of the earths lungs … insane beauty and quiet place - farm to table food - Piranha fishing and night time boating to see caymans was brilliant

This boutique-hotel was in a perfect spot, surrounded by chapels, attractions and shops. The room itself was breathtaking, with lovely decor, tables, mirrors, sofas, a table for the custom breakfast served in the room. We stayed only 1-1/2 nights though. The staff did not speak much English but were extremely friendly.

The Amazon Tupana Lodge was the perfect place to enjoy our Amazon jungle adventure. The rooms on stilts, a common area with hammocks and comfortable chairs and of course, the buffet area and the steps leading to the port dock were all so beautiful. We saw wildlife right at the port deck - dolphins, herons, vultures, tepir and several birds. The stray dogs were too friendly and almost bit my hubby as we walked up the deck stairs. The stray cat was very cute though. The room was quite good and the fan really helped. Opening the curtains a little at the night helps cool air enter. The buffet meals were all amazing especially as they had several vegan options. They also took care to not contaminate vegetarian food with the meat - this was our highlight during the camping dinner at the forest. All the staff and guides were very friendly. The activities were all exceptional. Night or forest walks require us to wear long sleeves and pants. So, packing thin kurtis with long sleeves or thin slacks/leggings will help prevent mosquito bites.

We had a stay for a few hours in the night as we landed around midnight on Christmas. The staff was very friendly. However, we did not get any hot water in the morning. Seems like instructions to get hot water should be handy.

The room was very clean and we had ample room to open our suitcases. The staff at the hotel was exceptional as they answered all our questions and directed us to laundry service/laundromats close to the hotel. We didn't have enough time for the laundry service but the automated laundromat near the hotel saved our day.

The hotel room was very clean but the bed was so large that we had trouble opening our large suitcases on the floor. Enjoyed the breakfast with coffee, fruits, salad, cereal, hot milk and yogurt. The staff was not very friendly compared to the other places that we stayed at. It took us more than a day to figure out how to get room service or call the front desk. A paper with the key services would have helped as the icons on the phone were not very intuitive.

Our visit to the Argentine side of the Iguacu falls (called Igauzu in Argentina) was a wonderful experience with expert guidance from John, right from crossing the border to touring the falls in the Park. The hikes to the Devil's throat and Upper falls were amazing as we saw the falls from closeup. The boat tour by Gran Aventura (an additional trip) which took us under the waterfalls was an exhilarating experience. John gave us all the necessary instructions in advance and so we were prepared with an extra set of dry clothes. We also enjoyed an extra tour of the bridges across the 3 countries (Paraguay, Argentina and Brazil) and downtown.

Our trip to Brazil was unforgettable, thanks to Bruno and kimkim. Bruno helped us with our custom itinerary and was always available to answer any questions before and during the trip. The guides were very professional, knowledgeable and friendly and made our trip memorable and worthwhile. Marcelo at Rio, John at Foz do Iguacu, Carlos at The Amazon and Luiz at Salvador were our amazing guides. Our trip highlights - seeing Christ the Redeemer at Rio on a cloudy day and catching a glimpse for a few moments, Sugar loaf mountain at Rio (saw marmosets and vultures), Iguacu falls (Argentine side was our highlight) and the boat tour under the waterfalls at the Argentine side (we got soaked thrice), Bird Park near Iguacu falls, Brazil, amazing Amazon experience (canoeing, fishing, sunrise and sunset tours, forest walks), Salvador city tour. We saw exotic wildlife everywhere and endangered birds at the bird park. The hotels were all very good but with the Salvador hotel being our favorite as it was a boutique hotel located in a historic center surrounded by chapels and shops. We were able to get vegan food in all places with the Amazon Tapuna lodge being our highlight as several vegan options were available with breakfast, lunch and dinner. We had difficulty in finding vegan food in small airports. Latitude at Rio international airport was a great place for vegan food.

The most interesting part was reaching the Amazon Tapuna lodge from Manaus via 2 motorized boats and a 4*4 - a total of 4+ hrs. None of the staff or drivers spoke English and we didn't have internet coverage en route so Google translate didn't work (key takeway is to download the language package before your trip). When aboard the first small motorized boat, we feared we would be in this boat for 4 hours and so quickly wore the life jackets. Thankfully, it was only for 40 minutes or so. The driver stopped in the middle of the river and showed us flags of Peru, Columbia and Brazil. We saw that the color of the water had changed at that point too - apparently it was the meeting point of two rivers moving in different directions. We then went on the 4*4 trip for 2.5+ hrs. with one truck stop/toilet break. The final hop was a 1/2 hr. boat ride to the Amazon Tapuna lodge. The beautiful view of the lodge on stilts, the steps from the port deck and the hammocks, etc. were indeed breathtaking. We had arrived in the jungle.!!! We were greeted with a welcome drink by Carlos, our awesome guide who spoke perfect English in addition to Portuguese and Spanish. We were thrilled to learn that we would be getting vegan food for all our meals - our Brazil trip highlight. We loved doing the tours with a Japanese Brazil family and a British woman. Since we left at 7am or so from Manaus, we were at the lodge by 11:15am. We had lunch at 12:30p (the lunch time at the lodge) and had 2 tours that day. The 4pm tour on the boat was to meet a local family, learn about their hard life and taste their awesome farina/farofa (the toasted cassava flour used on all salads, rice and beans, etc). We got a demo of making farina and tapioca. After our awesome dinner at 7:30p, we left on a boat tour to see alligators. It was awesome to see a baby alligator from up-close.

This Pousada was great. It felt very authentic and quaint. The room was lovely and had a great view. There was a coffee break we enjoyed each day with tasty treats and the breakfast was also well supplied with homemade local food.

Windsor Plaza was fine. We stayed a few nights in a room facing the main street, and a few nights facing the side street. The main street room was pretty loud and we preferred the side street room. Dining options were nice and location was convenient. We had dinner there one night and room service another and both were decent. Main complaint was the construction. We had at least 10 power outages from the work. They had to shut down 2/3 elevators for most of our stay which meant taking the stairs several times.