A bite-sized guide to Brazil: From stunning Rio to Iguazu Falls and the mighty Amazon

Introduction

Swaggering cities of style and colour. Incredible natural landscapes. Yellow-shirted footballers of amazing ability. Rump-shaking carnival queens wearing gravity-defying headdresses (and little else). No country on earth does tourism clichés quite like Brazil.
The thing is, these clichés have become clichés because they are genuine elements of what makes Brazil Brazil - and gloriously so. Gifted youngsters do juggle footballs on beaches. People do dance in the streets to samba rhythms for no clear reason beyond the fact that the beat is infectious.

Brazil here we come...There's never been a better time to touch down on South American soil

Rio De Janeiro is arguably the most visually stunning city on the planet. The Amazon rainforest – the world's largest – is daunting and breathtaking in equal measure. A country in name but a continent in atmosphere, variety and size, Brazil rewards repeat visits. Indeed, it is only through repeat visits that you can come close to appreciating the travel riches waiting to be discovered.

Cities

With its famous beaches, lofty peaks and dawn-ignoring nightlife, Rio steals most of Brazil's plaudits and many of its tourists. Naturally, no visit to the samba state can be complete without at least half a week in this legendary metropolis. But Brazil does have other cities. Sao Paulo is a place so large that it merges with the horizon even when viewed from an aircraft, and while it remains Brazil's industrial powerhouse (and is hugely ugly in parts to boot), it also has a lively arts scene and fine restaurants.

Samba! Normally the biggest event in the Brazilian calendar is Carnival during February...but not in 2014

Brasilia, the purpose-built capital, is certainly an oddity, its mixture of late Fifties and space-age architecture sitting roughly in the middle of the country (if you ignore the Amazon region). Salvador, on the coast 1000-ish miles north of Rio, has a discernible vibe that makes it feel like a Caribbean island stuffed inside a Portuguese colonial city. Noisy, busy, bustling Manaus, meanwhile, is the big metropolis of the Amazon region.

Retro city: Brasilia, the built-to-order capital is home to the National Museum, designed by Oscar Niemeyer

Resorts

Rio, again, is top of the pops here. Its iconic Copacabana beach can be a tad dirty and inevitably crowded on close inspection, but as a venue for people-watching it has few rivals. Its ritzier rivals, Ipanema and Leblon beaches, on the other hand, have all the white sands, crashing waves and bronzed locals anyone could wish for.
Elsewhere, the north-east coastline is a sandy paradise (this was the first area of Brazil settled by Europeans. It's amazing they explored further). There are resorts galore around Salvador, while Ilheus, 250-odd miles to the south, is a bar-laden beach city.

Beautiful from every angle: The famous Christ the Redeemer statue is just one of Rio's iconic sights

Sightseeing

Aside from its beaches, Rio has its twin peaks: Corcovado, from which the iconic statue of Christ The Redeemer looks out across the bay and Sugarloaf Mountain (Pao De Acucar), the curious molar-shaped 1300ft rock that guards one end of the city, and is ascended via two spectacular cable-car rides.
Away from Rio, the Iguazu Falls are unmissable. This series of watery cascades helps the River Iguazu mark the border with Argentina, with the main plunge, the Garganta Do Diabo (Devil's Throat) offering an impressive demonstration of nature's power.

Where the Amazon waters meet: Rio Negro and Rio Solimoes meet close to Manaus in the country's north

The Amazon rainforest could be a holiday in itself, but those who fly in via Manaus will be treated to the majestic sight of The Meeting Of The Waters. This is the point where the Rio Negro and Rio Solimoes connect to form the River Amazon – but initially fail to mix. The result is a remarkable stand-off, the former's darker, denser flow refusing to mingle with the latter's lighter, swifter water for a full six miles.

Eating

It's not hard to find something to eat in Brazil, whether you want to grab a snack from a street stall, fill your face at a lanchonete (a cheap-and-easy local café), or blast the bank account at some of the better restaurants in Rio or Sao Paulo. As a general rule, Brazil is not a place for vegetarians. The national dish, feijoada, is a stew of sausage, pork and beans, while steaks and grilled meats feature heavily. Don't ask for tofu.

The heartiest of dishes: Feijoada, a meaty, bean-laden stew is hugely popular in Brazil

After dark

Brazil has a reputation for being a place that can out-party any country on earth. It's a reputation well-deserved if you are standing in any of the many bars that line Rio's seafront or, particularly, are (unwisely) trying to get a couple of hours' sleep during the Rio Carnival (every February).
But it's not all about Rio. Sao Paulo has some top-draw watering holes, Salvador seems to break out into street dancing at the first sign of a drum beat, and indeed, almost every city has lively nightlife. Beer is popular, with several national brands available in most hostelries, while cachaca, Brazil's sugary form of rum, will get any evening moving, not least if drunk with lime as a caipirinha.

Rum-laden: The caipirinha has been known to loosen the inhibitions of tourists

Wear it like Neymar: The Brazilian team are tipped for glory on home soil in 2014...if there's one rival team shirt worth snapping up, it's this yellow jersey...

Shopping

Big cities such as Rio and Sao Paulo have the major malls that you would expect of any major metropolis, and the weakness of the Real (four to the pound) makes bargains easy to find. Clothing in particular is of good quality and well-priced, with one of Brazil's legendary yellow football shirts likely to be far cheaper than at home.

Family

On one hand, the distances involved in travelling around Brazil can make a holiday tiring for an adult, let alone a child. On the other, the country's shoreline is perfect for beach babies, Rio is impressive at any age, and Brazil is a family-friendly country where children are valued and welcome. It's a long way to go for a family holiday, but South America's largest country will not disappoint those who make the journey.

World wonder: The Iguazu Falls, which straddle the Brazilian/Argentine border remain one of the country's biggest lures

Travel facts...useful links for holidays to Brazil 

Although you can drive and there is a good network of long-haul buses, planes are the easiest (and, in some parts, the only) way to get around this vast country, with Sao Paulo and Rio acting as the main hubs for tourists (with the capital Brasilia, to a lesser extent, performing a similar role).

Airlines

National airline Varig (www.varig.com) criss-crosses Brazil with an extensive web of flights although TAM (www.tam.com.br) has now overtaken it as the country's main carrier.
Tap Air Portugal also connect via Lisbon (www.flytap.com).