Rio de Janeiro – It’s Carnival Week
Celebrations got underway this past weekend in Brazil, as the 2024 Rio de Janeiro carnival came to town. As ever, they will continue all week and conclude with the Parade of Champions, which is on Saturday 17th February this year.
When the famous carnival is in full flow, Rio de Janeiro is certainly the most colourful and liveliest city in the world, as almost everybody takes to the streets to celebrate. The Carnival has dazzling and vibrant costumes, incredible floats, street parties and samba-soaked parades.
This year’s event has included floats and performances celebrating the Amazon communities of Brazil, with one samba school paying tribute to the country’s largest Indigenous group – the Yanomami – during its parade.
Around 200,000 tourists flood into the city for the event every year and while Rio De Janeiro is the main attraction, around 50 million people throughout the country will have participated in the celebrations by Sunday.
The carnival’s origins date back to the 17th century, although it did not actually make its way to the streets until the turn of the 20th century. It was not until 1917 that the dancing and music style was officially coined ‘samba’, which has been a part of Brazil’s musical heritage ever since.
Rio de Janeiro benefits from an economic boost of around $900m during this phenomenal week, which is registered as the biggest carnival in the world by Guinness World Records.
