Eye on Brazil

Eye on Brazil

2016 - A Dream Come True

When I heard that Rio de Janeiro had won the right to host the olympics in 2016, I like many others was estatic. I remember back in 1997 when Rio was trying for the first time to qualify, and that was for the 2004 olympics. Little by little, year after year, Brazil rose in terms of credibility and stature. I think some of the things that proved to make a diffrence were Brazil's work with alternative fuels, and the fact that they have weathered the economic recession pretty well for a country of their size. The president of Brazil, Luiz Ignacio da Silva, make a good point when he showed how many times the olympics had been held in other countries and continents, yet never in south America. The Brazilian people deserved this one, it will bring even more credibility and investment to their country, but the biggest winner by far is Rio, since she will be shined to a diamond bright and hopefully some of the crime and social problems will be addressed

Where to Go, Where to Stay?

Almost nine years ago, when we started renting apartments in Rio, about 80% of our requests were for Copacabana, and no one knew Botafogo. Nowadays, the majority of our requests are for Ipanema, and we get quite a few for Botafogo as well. Not to say that Copa is no longer a contender, but people have gotten more savvy as the internet has grown. For me, it is a question of preference, and budget. If you have the money to stay in Ipanema, I say, "Go for it!" But if you are planning to stay a month, then it is going to be expensive, so you may choose Copa or even Botafogo. I have people who are requesting an apartment for a year, and for them, it has to be somewhere that is affordable and convenient. Most of the time, they end up in Botafogo, since for the money, you can get a larger apartment in a safe area. Speaking of safety, used to be people chose Ipanema because it was safer than Copacabana, not any more! You have to be careful no matter where you are in Rio. The recession has caused people to resort to crazy stuff, so I recommend more than ever to only carry the money you need and never resist an assault. It is cheaper and safer just to give them the goods and walk away unharmed.

Beach Town

Growing up in South Carolina, I think I only went to the beach a few times before I was eighteen years old. We lived three hours away and it was not a big priority. After meeting my wife, she promised me that one day I would be able to live in Rio de Janeiro. After moving there in 1994, my whole perspective of life changed. Living near the ocean changes you. You can feel it in the air, you know when the weather is about to change, you have a different feeling about life. When we started renting apartments there, it excited me to see people arrive at the airport. Their whole demeanor changed once they arrived. They were on vacation, in one of the most magical beach towns in the world. I take pride in introducing them to the things Rio de Janeiro has to offer. But the greatest thing is her beaches.

The Weather is Great!

One thing you can count on most of the time is the weather being great in Rio. There are storms like anywhere else but for the most part, the weather is beach friendly. That nice tropical breeze coming off the water. I think that the months of April and November are the best since it is not too hot or humid, but really any time of year is nice. I always tell people to go to the mall if it is raining, but travelers would be advised to take a good book along on their trip. Having someone to spend a rainy day with doesn't hurt much either!

Making the Most of Your Time and Money

When I lived in New York I once realized that our experiences are somewhat comparable to putting coins in a parking meter. Wherever we are, whether we are living day to day in our home cities or maybe on a vacation or business trip, we are feeding a meter. Through our rent or house payment, or hotel or apartment rentals, we are paying for time spent in a certain spot. We are paying some source that allows us to stay in that place. So we have to make the most of our time and money wherever we are. The friends we choose, the restaurants we frequent, the way we spend our time and money is important. When I lived in Rio de Janeiro, I realized even more that people on vacation are really feeding meters. They wait all year to take that special trip, they want a nice place to stay, and a good experience. That`s one reason we are in the apartment rental business, since we know the importance of making the most of your time and money.

Now More Than Ever!

I used to look forward to going to Brazil every year on vacation. We would usually spend three weeks or a month there. The weather was always nice and we usually traveled around a bit while there. So many places to see, from Petropolis and Teresopolis to Cabo Frio and Buzios, there are a host of cities around Rio de Janeiro that are incredibly beautiful and historical. Accommodations are cheap nowadays, and you can budget seeing more than just one city if you plan ahead. Airfares are cheaper outside the summer months, and the weather is perfect in September and October. The biggest problem is not staying long enough!

Making Dreams Come True

When I started renting apartments in Rio, I realized that people who came there were individuals who were searching for something. Whether it was a quiet beach, a new romance, or an adventure, they all shared a common quest. I could tell right away what category they fit in, from the couples that were seeking a romantic enviroment, to the backpackers who were looking for a cheap place to stay on their way through. A lot of single guys go to Rio and never even see the wonders of the place, and that always troubled me. There are so many things to see, so many beautiful magical places, all within a half hour's radius of Rio. But if you extend your circle to include Angra dos Reis to the south or Buzios to the north, you cannot imagine the beauty of this state of Rio de Janeiro

Hanging Out on the Beach

Since I grew up almost three hours from the beach and only visited once a year at most, it was incredible for me to live in an enviroment that allowed me to visit the beach on a regular basis. I mean, who doesn't like to go to the beach? But the beaches of Rio have something very special, whether it is the rock hills of Sugarloaf or Two Brothers that frame Copacabana and Ipanema, or the nice rock islands in the distance, there is a beauty there that excites the spirit. Sometimes we would just go for a coconut milk and sit on the sidewalk there and watch the activity. Any time of day, any day of the week, it was always there, waiting. To stay in Rio, for a week, or better yet, a month, is something everyone should consider.

Fluctuating currency

I first moved to Rio in Oct '94 since my wife is Brazilian and we wanted to spend more time with my newborn son. We arrived there when the "plano real" (currency) was first installed and was one to one with the dollar. As time went by, the real started to fall and by the time the "Asian economic crisis" hit in 1997, the real was 1.8 to the dollar. We left in December and watched from the U.S. as it continued to deteriorate. By the time 2001 rolled around, the real was 3 to 1 with the dollar and then Sept 11 hit.
We decided right then that we were going back to Rio, bad or good, since almost everyone in the world had lost perspective and our priorities had changed from material to emotional. We arrived in Rio in Aug of 2002 and the real was already 3.5 to the dollar. We saw it go down, down, down and hit 3.99 but not 4. The government was buying dollars to prop up the real. The Iraq war started in 2003 and the dollar began it's tumble. The election of Lula (Brazil's president) helped build hope and investors started believing that Brazil was a formidable partner, abeit emerging.
As the dollar declined, the violence in Rio rose, the favelas grew and the tourism business took a hit. The gringo dollars became scarcer and the operators slashed prices to stay in business. I saw people grow more savvy (on both sides - tourist and owners) and saw my commision diminish to half. I could no longer justify trips to the airport to pick up clients, nor free cell phones.
We saw the dollar drop as low as 1.50 and people were complaining that it just wasn't worth it anymore, especially when Mexico or the Bahamas was so close and so cheap. Still, it is hard to match the magic of Rio de Janeiro, or Brazil. Now, as the economic situation in the U.S. grows worse, the dollar for some strange reason has begun to rise again. Economics I do not understand.

Apartments for rent in Rio de Janeiro

I have rented apartments in Rio de Janeiro for the last 7 years. I started back in 2001 when I was living in Seattle, Wa. My mother in law, who lives in Rio de Janeiro, had a couple of apartments sitting idle and I decided to put one of them on Ebay for a one week rent. I rented it out a couple of times using this method and soon realized that I should create a website and place them online. I started getting more and more traffic and requests and soon realized I should make a business out of it.

We moved to Rio de Janeiro in August of 2002 and I officially went into the business of renting apartments. I was one of a handful of rental agencies back then that catered to vacation travelers and businessmen. I started out with a website called http://www.spectralight.net/ and soon saw myself at the top of google.com. As the years passed, I decided to diversify and bought the domain http://www.apartmentsinrio.com/. While numbering well over 150 apartments, even then, I was still being bombarded with requests from local owners to put their apartments online. Since I found that consolidating servers was more economical (and easier to manage) I obtained a new domain with http://www.riovacationrentals.com/ and now have over 250 apartments registered.

Now I am faced with five or ten times the competition as when I first started, it is easy for just about anyone to create a website and put an apartment online. I guess what singles me out from the rest of the competition is the length of time I have been doing it, and the insight that I have from years of experience of living and working in Rio de Janeiro. I can be contacted for anything concerning Rio, whether it is renting or buying apartments, or knowing which restaurant has the best deal on sushi. I have a passion for all things Rio, let me help you figure out what is worth the time and money