Transportation

Brazil is a popular tourist destination, so transportation in and around Brazil is well taken care off and it is not too difficult to move from one tourist attraction to another.

The following are the modes of transportation in Brazil:

Air travel

There are frequent flights to Rio de Janeiro from all major cities in South America and from a number of major airports in the USA and Europe. Other gateway airports in Brazil include São Paulo, and Manaus.

Varig, Brazil's national airline, flies to many major cities in the world. Brazil's airlines are Varig and Tam. Both Varig and Tam are the only Brazil airlines that offer airpasses that allow visitors to fly around the country relatively easily domestically.

Flying within Brazil isn't cheap, but the size of the country makes it necessary to take at least a couple of flights.

Bus

Brazilian people love to travel by bus around the country, which is relatively cheap and usually comes with an excellent and reliable service.

The bus can also transport you to all major cities in Brazil, including right into the heart of the Amazon jungle. Though you have to keep in mind that the roads (safety-wise) leave a lot to be desired.

Train

If you would like to catch a train in Brazil, you should already know before they arrive which Brazilian train line to select from, since most trains in Brazil these days are under serviced and lack real investment.

Brazil offers some of the most picturesque train journeys available anywhere in the world, including the delightful Curitiba-Paranaguá line.

Car hire

It is not advisable to hire a car in Brazil unless you absolutely know what you are doing! The roads are not safe in Brazil and also the standard of driving leaves a lot to be desired, particularly at night, when many drivers prefer not to use their lights.

By water

Due to the construction of an enlarged road network, traveling by water is decreasing, though it is still possible to travel by boat between some of the cities of the Rio São Francisco and along the Amazon, where road travel is sometimes not possible.

Also many travelers take a slow boat along the Amazon from Iquitos in Peru or into the Pantanal via the Rio Paraguay from Asunción, Paraguay.