Rio Carnival Parade

You’re going to the Rio Carnival Parade, Where Will You Sit?

The Rio Carnival Parade is part of the Rio Carnival celebration that takes place every year in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This year, the Rio Carnival is February 13-17, 2010. The Rio Carnival parade, which is the most popular event and a great fun during the Rio Carnival, is also referred to as the Rio Samba Parade.

The Rio Samba Parade is actually a competition between the Rio Samba schools. The Rio Samba Parade takes place in the Sambodromo which is the stadium of samba. The Sambodromo is off of Parading Avenue. The area was designed by Oscar Niemeyer, the world famous architect, and was specifically designed for the Rio Carnival Parade. The Sambodromo was finalized in 1984 and seats around 70,000 spectators. Oscar Nieyemer did a great job with his design of Sambodromo that is proper for such a magnificent show with a perfect acoustics and a perfect view of the parade. It is really a great fun to be in Sambodromo during the carnival parade.

Rio Carnival tickets are sold in advance. Carnival tickets can be purchased online or at the event however, there may not be any left at the time of the event. Decide what day and sector you want to go to the Rio Samba parade, and decide if you want to purchase allocated chairs in a front box which are the VIP areas, or if you are content staying in the bleachers with the other spectators. There are different sectors of seats which can range from the middle section or slightly to the end of the run way section. Sector 2 has VIP seating and services. Sectors 5, 7, 9, and 11 have good views of the runway.

Most judges are located in Sector 7 so some would say Sector 7 is the best view of the Rio Carnival parade.  Carnival tickets for Sector 9 seats are the most expensive for watching the Rio Samba parade and there are usually few locals from Rio de Janeiro that sit in Sector 9. So, if you want a real taste of the Rio Samba parade you may consider sitting where there are more locals and really participating in the festivities. Overall, the luxury seats in Sector 2 are considered the best tickets with the best views and VIP treatment with a free buffet, dinner and drinks. Apparently this is the “A” or “in” crowd in Sector 2. The best carnival tickets for those people on a tight budget are the seats in Sector 3. Tickets for seats for the Rio Carnival Parade range from $200 U.S. dollars to $2000 U.S. dollars.

The Rio Samba parade takes place on two different days and different samba schools march and compete on those days. Samba schools choose a different carnival theme every year and  they prepare their costumes and shows to illustrate the carnival theme of that year. For a list of which Rio Samba schools will march and compete on which day, search the internet, you can see a complete listing on many different web sites which are dedicated to the Rio Samba parade. The best samba schools chosen by the judges march once more at the Winners parade. Carnival Sunday night and carnival Monday night are the most popular nights to attend the Rio Carnival celebration.

Being at Sambodromo during the Rio carnival celebrations, watching the carnival parade of the samba schools is a great fun that has to be experienced at least once in a lifetime and cannot be compared to watching it on TV.

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