Barra?

[bigguyinpasadena]

I have some (lots)of frequent gust points to use up and one of the programs is Starwood.

They have 3 propertied in Rio-the two that interest me are the Meridian in Copacabana and the Sheraton in Barra.

I stayed in Copa the last time and enjoyed it.The Meridian looks pretty nice-but the Barra looks great.

I just do not know where it is.:o

[buckguy]

Barra is the next bit of sprawl beyond Ipanema, quite a distance from the usual haunts. An upscale area of the city, it gets mentioned in most guidebooks.

[+ Axiom2001]

As the previous writer stated, Barra (pronounced like Baja) is far, far out. It's a modern area that has been dubbed by the cariocas as the "Miami of Rio." There are two gigantic shopping centers in the area, too.

 

When I went two years ago, one of the centers was so large that I did not or could not muster enough energy to take all of it in, thus I took the bus back to Copa-- a very, very long and slightly tedious ride unless you're on one of the big, modern air conditioned buses.

 

If you want to go to the saunas and other venues that are centrally located, I'd recommend that you stay in Copa or in Ipanema.

[Funseeker 22]

I stayed at Le Meridien on my 1st trip to Rio. Had a great oceanview room and liked the property plus they have a very good restuarant.

Since it was my initial Rio trip I didn`t think about bringing anyone back to the hotel but they did have tight security so don`t think it would have been easy to slip someone by.

I did have my fun at the saunas and a short term hotel that a guy I met at Le Boy took me to see.

;-)

[trilingual]

Barra is vast Miami-style suburbia with almost nothing of interest for gay travelers except an occasional foray to the malls or a day at the nude beach in the Nature Reserve. Otherwise it's about as fascinating as South Miami or the San Fernando Valley. It's an expensive cab ride from Barra into town -- between R$30 - 35 one way. In short, it's not recommended for gay visitors unless you're visiting friends or family in Barra or have business there. If you don't, then you should stay in the Zona Sul within easy reach of all the gay attractions as well as the standard sightseeing attractions.

 

The Meridien is perfectly nice although security is extremely tight. You can always take pickups to the Hotel Lido (a by-the-hour place at the corner of R. Ronald de Carvalho and Viveiros de Castro) just a few blocks away. The rooftop restaurant, Le St.-Honoré (dinner only) is one of Rio's finest. The fourth floor restaurant, Café Fleury, is the "everyday" restaurant, serving excellent thematic buffet lunches and a find weekend brunch buffet. Definitely the choice to make rather than anything in Barra! Enjoy! :-)