Hotel
Copacabana Palace, A Belmond Hotel
A symbol of Rio, opened facing Copacabana Beach in 1923, with a half-Olympic pool, the Michelin-starred Mee and a guest list of legends.
Philippe Starck's first project in Brazil, an 89-room hotel facing Ipanema Beach with a rooftop infinity pool and Gero restaurant.
Good to know
Hotel Fasano Rio de Janeiro faces Ipanema Beach on Avenida Vieira Souto, with views towards Arpoador. It is part of the Fasano hotel group, and the building was the first project in Brazil by the French designer Philippe Starck.
The hotel has 89 rooms and suites divided into five categories. The highlight is the infinity-edge pool on the roof, which looks over Ipanema Beach, and from the hotel the views take in Arpoador, the Dois Irmãos peaks and Corcovado. The pool bar on the eighth floor is reserved for hotel guests.
Food and drink are at the heart of the Fasano name. Gero Rio serves classic Italian cooking and in 2026 won the award for best Italian restaurant in Veja Rio's Comer e Beber guide. Fasano Caffè serves breakfast and lunch and hosts events, and Baretto-Londra is used as an event space. The spa, on the first floor, is open to non-guests as well as guests.
The hotel suits couples and design-conscious travellers who want to be on the sand at Ipanema, with high-end dining under the same roof.
For bookings and information the hotel lists +55 21 2149-1800 and [email protected]. Food lovers should also note that, according to the Michelin Guide, the two-star restaurant Lasai is moving to the 21st floor of the Sofitel Ipanema at Avenida Vieira Souto 460, on the same seafront avenue, from December 2026.
The location is one of the best in Rio for a beach holiday. Arpoador, with its sunset viewpoint and surf break, is at the eastern end of the beach, and Ipanema's lifeguard posts, including Posto 9, stretch west towards Leblon. On Sundays the road along the beach closes to traffic and the Feira Hippie fills a square in the neighbourhood. Rancho Português, the Ipanema branch of Empório Jardim and Ferro e Farinha are all on Rua Maria Quitéria in Ipanema.
Ipanema's beach, 2.6 kilometres long from Arpoador to the canal at Leblon, is the setting for The Girl from Ipanema, written in 1962 by Tom Jobim and Vinicius de Moraes, and staying here puts visitors at the heart of that legend. For those who want to compare, the Copacabana Palace in Copacabana and the Janeiro in Leblon offer different takes on the luxury beachfront hotel.
Philippe Starck; it was his first project in Brazil.
89 rooms and suites in five categories.
Yes. A rooftop infinity pool overlooks Ipanema Beach, with a guests-only pool bar on the eighth floor.
Gero Rio for classic Italian cooking and Fasano Caffè for breakfast and lunch.
Yes. The first-floor spa is open to the public.
Arpoador, the Dois Irmãos peaks and Corcovado.
By phone on +55 21 2149-1800 or email at [email protected].
Arpoador, Ipanema Beach and the restaurants of Rua Maria Quitéria.
Attraction
The Art Deco statue of Christ on the summit of Corcovado, dedicated in 1931 and reached by a rack railway that has run since 1884.
Café
A Belle Époque café founded in 1894, with Antwerp mirrors, carved furniture and a stained-glass skylight above its upstairs tea room.
Thing to do
A 4-kilometre curve of white sand along Avenida Atlântica, framed by Roberto Burle Marx's wave-patterned promenade and two historic forts.
Tour operator
A Rio food tour company running since 2011, with a five-hour daytime tasting walk, an evening bar and samba tour and a Brazilian wine experience.