Although Carnival (Carnaval in Portuguese) is celebrated in towns and villages throughout Brazil and other Catholic countries, Rio de Janeiro has long been regarded as the Carnival Capital of the World.

The Rio Carnaval is not only the biggest Carnival, it as also a benchmark against which every other carnival is compared and one of the most interesting artistic events on the Globe. Almost everyone has heard of the Rio Carnaval. Foreign visitors to it alone number around 500,000 every year.

Rio Carnival is a wild 4 day celebration, 40 days before Easter. It officially starts on Saturday and finishes on Fat Tuesday with the beginning of Lent on Ash Wednesday after which one is supposed to abstain from all bodily pleasures. Carnival with all its excesses, celebrated as a profane event, can be considered an act of farewell to the pleasures of the flesh. It usually happens in February, the hottest month in the Southern Hemisphere, when the Rio summer is at its peak.

There are carnival celebrations in virtually every corner of Brazil, the best-known ones taking place in Recife together with the neighboring Olinda (in the North of Brazil) and Salvador. But the biggest and most famous carnival is undoubtedly the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro.

There are fabulous carnaval balls, and street parades and celebrations throughout Rio that are unbelievably fun for everybody, and all are welcome to join in, but downtown Rio with its world famous Sombodromo, along with its world famous top samba schools can not be matched in any country.

Here you will see the most magnificent display of colors and dancing you have ever imagined. Giant puppets, decorated floats, and the most fascinating costumes for the participants are all combined to give the show of a lifetime.

As Carnaval is a year round industry and bigger than both Christmas and New Years in Brazil, the craftspeople work hard all year long to be ready for this big event, and much of there work can now be seen in the Cidade de Samba in downtown Rio.

The Sombodromo and the main parades is the place they all dream of throughout the year. Each of the 12 main samba schools participate with about 4000 dancers who must cover the Passarela do Samba in not less than 65 minutes and not more than 80 minutes. A tuff task, but in this time frame they will give the most visually exciting and complex performance of there lives and of any broadway show or musical you can imagine.

Each night 6 schools compete for the main title. Most of the schools are from the very poor neighborhoods and communities called "Fevelas". One of the most prominent of the schools is Mangeira, which was founded in1928. Many of the other scholls were started in the 1940's and 1950's. Grande Rio was founded in as late as 1988, but Portela has won the most Carnaval titles and was formed in 1923.

Each of the schools choose a different theme to be conceptualized by the "Carnavalesco"or director. The central display on there floats will be the main focal point, with the most elaborate colors and costumes being displayed.The "Passistas" or participants will number a minimum of 2500 with at least 200 more in the "Bateria" or percussion section. The "Porta bandeira" is the schools standard bearer, and no matter what the schools theme is, he is always dressed in lavish 18th century formal wear. Along with the "Porto bandeira" is the "Mestra sala" he is the schools dance master and he performs a complex series of dance steps as they usher the float along its route.

This is truly the most spectacular show and most fun you and your family can ever have on a vacation. The Carnaval, along with the 2007 New World Marvel, famous beaches, Sugar Loaf, and many other attractions, makes Rio de Janeiro one of the greatest destinations on earth.

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Carnival Dates:
2008 - February 3
2009 - February 22
2010 - February 14
2011 - March 6
2012 - February 19

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