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Rio de Janeiro · Mixed

Rio Highlights on Foot: From the Real Gabinete to Glória Hill

Downtown Rio packs four centuries of city into a few kilometres. This must-see route starts among books and pastries, crosses Cinelândia and Lapa, and ends on top of Outeiro da Glória, with Guanabara Bay and Sugarloaf Mountain in front of you.

  • 6 stops
  • 3 km
  • 2 h 5 min
  • Free
Start with GPS Read about this stop 1
The white Lapa Arches with the cone-shaped cathedral behind

The route

Stop by stop

  1. 1 Royal Portuguese Reading RoomA façade that looks lifted from Lisbon's Jerónimos Monastery guards the largest Portuguese library outside Portugal.
  2. 2 Confeitaria ColomboSince 1894, beneath mirrors from Antwerp, it has served coffee and cakes to poets, presidents and queens.
  3. 3 Theatro MunicipalThe Republic wanted its own Paris Opera, and built it in four and a half years.
  4. 4 Metropolitan Cathedral of Saint SebastianAfter three centuries of borrowed churches, Rio gave itself a 75-metre concrete cone of a cathedral.
  5. 5 Lapa ArchesColonial Brazil's biggest structure once carried water to the city; today it carries a tram.
  6. 6 Church of Our Lady of Glória do OuteiroA figure-of-eight Baroque gem, the church of imperial baptisms, with the bay at its feet.

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Start with GPS

Guide mode

Walk it with GPS.

Open guide mode on your phone: you’ll see your position and the distance to each stop, and we’ll let you know when you arrive. Then read or listen.

Start with GPS

  1. Turn on your location

  2. Walk to the spot

  3. Check the photo and listen

What you’ll discover

Rio Highlights on Foot: From the Real Gabinete to Glória Hill

Rio's Belle Époque

Mirrors from Antwerp, a Parisian-style avenue and a theatre inspired by the Palais Garnier.

From Baroque to concrete

An eighteenth-century church and a 1970s cone-shaped cathedral on the same walk.

A finale with a view

From Outeiro da Glória: the bay, Flamengo Park and Sugarloaf Mountain.

Keep exploring

More routes in Rio de Janeiro

Back to Rio de Janeiro
HistoryFrom Portuguese Court to Empire: Rio as a Capital Mysteries & legendsWitches, Tunnels and a Saint on a Colonel's Pay

Itineraries

How many days do you have in Rio de Janeiro?

We’ve planned it day by day for you: which routes to walk and in what order, what else to see and where to eat.

1

Rio de Janeiro in 1 day

All three routes in one full day: the highlights, the history and the legends at dusk.

See the itinerary 2

Rio de Janeiro in 2 days

A gentler pace: the three routes over two days, plus extra sights and where to eat.

See the itinerary 3

Rio de Janeiro in 3 days

The city in depth: one route a day, extra museums and neighbourhoods, and a day for good food.

See the itinerary