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Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden is a cool park in Rio de Janeiro.
Many say it’s one of the best places to visit in Rio de Janeiro, and, having spent a month in Rio, I can agree on this. Founded in 1808, the botanical garden houses plants from Brazil and all around the world. Some of these plants are endangered. The park also houses a few well-maintained colonial buildings, fountains and sculptures.
Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden is a great place for a relaxing walk.
Continue reading to learn more about this amazing place in Rio.
1. Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden: Basics
Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden is located in the South Zone (Zona Sul).
It is a district where most tourists choose to stay. The botanical garden lies at the foot of the Corcovado Mountain – on top of which the statue of Christ the Redeemer is located. The park boasts beautiful views of the mountain and statue. Hike to the statue of Christ the Redeemer starts from a park right next to it (Parque Lage).
The park is quite big, and it takes about 3 hours to explore it all.
MY ROUTE:
TIME AND DISTANCE: 4.5 miles / 7.3 km (1.5 – 2.5 hours).
Even though the distance is not that great, it takes time to explore the park. You’ll be stopping to admire the trees and plants and take photos. So leave yourself plenty of time for this. Something around 3 hours is enough.
TIPS: Visit the botanical garden in the morning when it opens (8 AM) to avoid crowds and heat. In the morning, there’s also a better chance to see toucans. If you are lucky, you might even spot a sloth in the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden!
The park is famous for its rows of impressive, towering palm trees. Some of these palms are 200 years old. Two hundred years old palm trees!
2. How to Get to Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden?
Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden is located in the South Zone (Zona Sul).
It’s not far from Lagoa and Rodrigo de Freitas Lagoon. You can easily get there by Uber. Unfortunately, there’s no metro station nearby. So, Uber is the best option for getting to the the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden. Alternatively, you can use a bus (they are very okay in our experience traveling with buses in Rio de Janeiro; a ride costs about a dollar).
Uber is fairly inexpensive in Rio de Janeiro.
3. Exploring Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden: Our Experience
We went there at about 10 AM, and it took us about 2.5 hours to explore it.
We explored most of its paths and roads, and visited most of the sectors. We saw plans from all around the world, as well as plants native to Brazil and South America. There were different trees, some of them really big and impressive. It was the first time we saw a cannonball tree. It is native to Central and South America. The tree has fragrant pink flowers and large, interesting fruits with a woody shell. The botanical garden houses cacti, orchid and carnivorous plant collections. There’s a pretty Japanese garden and a pond, Lago Frei Leandro, with giant waterlilies.
We spotted a few birds and saw so many black capuchins (monkeys). They were curious, and weren’t too afraid of us. We managed to take a few cute photos of them. There were a few marmosets hiding in the trees, too.
It’s an easy walk, unless it’s really hot outside. If you are visiting during the hot summer months, go to the park in the morning, just like we did.
The park is a very popular place for walking and birding, so it’s often crowded, especially during the day. Go there in the morning to beat the crowds.
Here are a few photos we took in the botanical garden.
Have you been to Rio de Janeiro? Did you visit the Rio de Janeiro Botanical Garden ? If yes, what was your experience? Did you do any other walks or hikes in Rio?
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