Rio Carnival & the Grand Parades of the Sambadrome

The Carnival festival before Lent is celebrated throughout the world—though perhaps nowhere as festively as in Rio de Janeiro. Rio is particularly famous for its parades, held in a permanent parade ground known as the Sambadrome, where samba schools compete against each other.

The colors, the music, all are specific to the traditions of the school. The Grand Parades are more than dancing feathered rainbows, just like the music is more than a good beat. Samba music pulsing in your veins, almost violently colorful costumes parading before your eyes... this is Brazilian culture at its highest, most breathless point, a spectacle that everyone should take part in at least once in their lifetime. For detailed information on the individual samba schools which compete, check this out. For pictures of some of the intricate costumes, go here.

Grand Parade Schedule

These parades occur over four consecutive nights of dusk-to-dawn dancing. The first night is Access Group A samba schools on Saturday, followed by Special Group on Sunday and Monday, and Access Group B on Tuesday. Each samba school has 80 minutes to parade from one end of the Sambadrome to the other, flaunting their thousands of dancers, drum sections and floats, to a grand jury. On Wednesday the winner is declared, and the following Saturday the Parade of Champions features the best of the samba schools.

Getting Tickets

Tickets to the Grand Parades are pretty easy to get—as long as you get them early. The seating in the Sambadrome is divided into sections, which vary from bleachers to full VIP suites with a bar and buffet. The price varies accordingly, from a mere $70 all the way up to $2200—and they're rising fast. If you don't want to get stuck with the overpriced scalped tickets, it's better to order sooner. Go to the official Sambadrome ticket site here to order, and to find out more detailed information about the Grand Parades.