rqian

Hello everyone, I'm traveling to Manaus and Rio with a buddy to watch the world cup. Our rough itinerary is listed below. Does anyone have suggestions on how to obtain the best package price for the flights, hotel, and tour? Is it through travel agents, kayak, priceline, or some secret local agents? We are estimating the total to be around $3,000.

-- Flight from Miami to Manaus
-- 2-3 day group tour of Amazon
-- Flight from Manaus to Rio de Janeiro
-- 3-night hotel in Rio
-- Flight from Rio de Janeiro to Miami

Thanks,
Richard

luademochila

What do you really expect to see and do in Manaus that you want to cross the whole country to go there? Airline fares will be VERY expensive in World Cup, so I would stick to only one State. US$ 3000 is per person or both of you?

I expect that hotels will be very expensive as well. Maybe you'll find better deals on apartment rental sites, such as airbnb or homeaway.

rqian

Thanks Luademochila. $3,000 is per person so $6,000 total. Would you recommend other means of transportation from Manaus to Rio like train?

Marija

Manaus to Rio is a long haul. I know we had to fly by way of Sao Paulo since there were no nonstop flights. (And the connecting flight took off early, stranding us.). In Manaus, since we missed our transportation to a far away lodge, we had to overnight at the Lord Manaus hotel, a rather spooky place. If you want to experience the Amazon, you have to get out of Manaus.

Susan7

We used this travel agent based in Rio, they were excellent and have a variety of packages going to the Amazon, they could also organise your Rio trip if that's what you want.
http://brazil-ecotravel.com/

It's easy enough to book Rio hotels directly, or with one of the many hotel booking sites.

In terms of internal flights, I've used TAM mostly. They are fairly expensive by North American standards.

luademochila

There is no train to Manaus or almost everywhere else, which is a shame. You have to catch a flight to go from Manaus to Rio or vice-versa and I do not recommend it. Take a look at the air fares, they are hell expensive in World Cup. So, my personal recommendation would be to stick to Rio, only, skipping Manaus. You'll avoid very expensive domestic flights.

If watching World Cup is your goal, there will be matches in Sao Paulo (6h from Rio) and Belo Horizonte (8h), you can travel by bus or rent a car.

6 days in Rio, only, is perfectly fine. You may spend the whole 6 days just in the city, or go to "Região dos Lagos" (Buzios, Arraial do Cabo, Cabo Frio, etc), where you'll find some great beaches and diving spots.

You can do your research about domestic flights in submarinoviagens.com.br and decolar.com , but always buy directly with the airline.

US$ 3000 per person in 6 days would be more than you need in any time, not sure in World Cup though. You have to do your research about hotels. Like I said, I believe apartments rental would be cheaper. Stick to Zona Sul neighboorhoods (Ipanema, Leblon, Copacabana, Botafogo, etc), where you'll be close to most attractions and not far from Maracana stadium.

rqian

Thank you everyone! Ended up booking two direct flights and a connecting flight for $2,100 on TAM.