15 Must-See Rio de Janeiro Landmarks
Photo: Getty Images1/15Although most people associate Rio de Janeiro with the beach and gorgeous natural vistas, it is also home to a rich collection of architectural landmarks such as centuries-old colonial churches and government buildings, architect Oscar Niemeyer’s futuristic masterpieces, and and the iconic tropical gardens and verdant parks by landscape designer Roberto Burle Marx. Taken together they create an entirelynew way to see the city. The options can be overwhelming, so we’ve narrowed it down to the 15 essential landmarks to see here.
The statue of Cristo Redentor sits on the peak of the 700-meter Corcovado Mountain in the Tijuca Forest National Park, which overlooks the city. Designed by French sculptor Paul Landowski and built by Brazilian engineer Heitor da Silva Costa, it’s made of soapstone and reinforced concrete and was completed in 1931 after nine years of construction. In 2007, it was named one of the New Seven Wonders of the World.
Photo: Getty Images2/15Built in the 1920s as a private mansion for shipbuilder Henrique Lage and his Italian-singer wife, Gabriela Benzanzoni, Escola de Artes Visuais do Parque Lage is now home to a visual-arts school.
Photo: AFP/Getty Images3/15Completed in 1996, when its architect, Oscar Niemeyer, was 89, the Niteroi Contemporary Art Museum is a playground of curvaceous lines, from the serpentine red path leading to the entrance to its three-story cupola. Recognized by its saucer-like shape, it overlooks Boa Viagem (bon voyage), a nearly 9,000-square-foot reflecting pool that surrounds the base of the museum.
Photo: Getty Images/Moment RM4/15The Teatro Popular in Niteroi is part of an assemblage of buildings designed by late Brazilian wunderkind Oscar Niemeyer. Made of reinforced concrete, the buildings highlight many of Niemeyer’s signature designs, from swooping curves to spiral staircases. The theater has a capacity of 460 seats, but an open square has room for 20,000 more. In addition to theater, the building is home to a variety of arts programs, from dance to photography as well as workshops and artist residencies.
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Photo: Courtesy of Museo Casa de Benjamin Constant5/15The Museu Casa de Benjamin Constant is the former residence of politician and military officer Benjamin Constant and contains his original furniture and personal belongings, as well as beautiful gardens overlooking the neighborhood of Santa Teresa.
Photo: LightRocket via Getty Images6/15One of the best examples of Brazilian colonial architecture, Mosteiro de São Bento was completed in 1671 and remains an abbey today. Though its exterior is rather plain, featuring two pyramid-topped towers, the interior of the church is ornately gilded.
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Photo: Getty Images7/15The concrete Museu de Arte Moderna do Rio de Janeiro in Flamengo Park was designed by Affonso Eduardo Reidy and completed in 1955. There are sharply angled external pillars and large windows that overlook the gardens, designed by Roberto Burle Marx.
Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images8/15Completed in 1889 by engineer Adolfo del Vecchio, Ilha Fiscal is a neo-Gothic, lime-green palace on Guanabara Bay and reminiscent of something out of a fairy tale. Originally built to house the operations of the port, the building is now home to a museum of cultural history and overseen by the Brazilian navy.
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Photo: Yasuyoshi Shiba/AFP/Getty Images9/15A Catholic church built atop a cliff in 1728, Igreja de Nossa Senhora da Penha offers some of the best views of Rio. Getting to the top requires either climbing 382 steps or taking a free tram.
Photo: Courtesy of Belmond Copacabana Palace10/15Considered by many as the preeminent luxury hotel in South America, the Art Deco Copacabana Palace Hotel was another landmark designed by Joseph Gire and completed in 1923. The hotel played a starring role (along with Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers) in the movie Flying Down to Rio.
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Photo: Jack Chang/MCT via Getty Images11/15Now home to the Ministries of Education, Health and Culture, the 15-story Palacio Gustavo Capanema almost appears to float, its base held upon three-meter-high columns. Completed in 1943, it’s considered one of the best examples of Brazilian modernist architecture. Led by Lucio Costa (who would go on to design the future capital city of Brasilía), the team included a young Oscar Niemeyer and legendary Swiss-French modernist Le Corbusier, who helped oversee the project, adding his signature brise-soleils.
Photo: Franco Origlia/Getty Images12/15Constructed between 1964 and 1979, the Catedral Metropolitana de São Sebastiäo is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese in Rio—a modernist incarnation of Mayan pyramids designed by Edgar Fonseca. Sometimes referred to as the New Cathedral, it features four rectangular stained-glass windows that soar 210 feet from floor to ceiling.
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Photo: Dmitri Kessel/The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images13/15Oscar Niemeyer designed Casa das Canoas as a private home for himself—completed in 1951—and features plenty of curved lines and glass walls. Niemeyer and his family lived here until 1965.
Photo: Yasuyoshi Chiba/AFP/Getty Images14/15The Carioca Aqueduct was built to carry fresh water from the Carioca River to the city. Inaugurated in 1750, the aqueduct was deactivated by the end of the 19th century, and though it no longer carries water, it has added a more contemporary function as the track on which the Santa Teresa Tramway runs, connecting commuters from the uphill Santa Teresa neighborhood to the city center.
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Photo: Christophe Simon/AFP/Getty Images15/15The largest library in Latin America (and the seventh largest in the world), the Biblioteca Nacional carries around nine million volumes. The ornate interiors rival those of the city’s opulent homes and hotels.
