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Rio: Christ the Redeemer, Selarón Steps & Santa Teresa

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Free cancellationTravelers' pick

1/23

Duration4h

GroupUp to 15

LanguagesEN · DE +4

PickupAt your hotel

The Christ Statue Stands 38 Meters Above Rio—and the View Changes Everything

You visit the Christ the Redeemer statue at the summit of Corcovado Mountain with 40-50 minutes to take in the views; drive through the historic streets of Santa Teresa; and stop at the Selarón Steps ceramic staircase for photos. Hotel pickup and drop-off in Rio's South Zone, professional guide, and all transport between sites are included, leaving your afternoon free.

Step-by-step itinerary

Van ride through Tijuca Rainforest
Arrive visitor center for snacks
Take van to Corcovado Mountain entrance
Visit Christ the Redeemer Statue
Explore Santa Teresa neighborhood
Visit Selarón Steps

The Experience

The van climbs through Tijuca rainforest for about an hour before you switch vehicles at the visitor center and head up Corcovado Mountain. By the time you step out at the top, you're standing in front of one of the seven wonders of the world: the Christ the Redeemer statue, arms spread wide, 125 feet tall. Your guide gets between 40 and 50 minutes to walk you around up there, and honestly, that's enough time to feel the scale of it—the city sprawling below, the bay, the mountains folding into each other. You'll take the pictures everyone takes. You'll probably take more than you planned.

After you come back down, the tour shifts into something quieter. Santa Teresa is the old Rio—cobbled streets, hills, a neighborhood that feels like it's held onto something the rest of the city let go. You drive through it, see the colonial buildings and the laid-back rhythm of the place. Then comes the Selarón Steps, and this is where you stop and actually stand still. A Chilean artist named Jorge Selarón spent years covering a staircase in ceramic tiles—blues, yellows, greens, patterns that don't follow any rule except color. You get about 10 minutes there, which sounds short until you're standing in front of it and realizing you need to shoot from five different angles just to capture one section. The whole tour wraps back at your hotel in Rio's South Zone.

The half-day format means you're done by early afternoon, so if you want to keep going—grab lunch somewhere, wander into a neighborhood on your own—you can. The guide and driver handle all the transitions and the van ticket up the mountain, so you're not negotiating traffic or figuring out which vehicle goes where. Just show up at your hotel at the pickup time, and the rest is arranged.

What’s included

Hotel pickup and drop-off in Rio's South Zone.
van transportation through Tijuca rainforest to Corcovado Mountain.
van ticket to access the Christ the Redeemer statue at the summit.
40-50 minutes with a professional guide at the top.
visit to Santa Teresa neighborhood.
stop at the Selarón Steps ceramic staircase for photos.
all transport between sites.

Good to know

Easy physical levelStroller friendlyPublic transport nearbyInfants must sit on laps

Operated by Gray Line Brazil

Is this one for you?Pick this tour if you want Rio's three most photographed landmarks in one half-day without arranging your own transport or tickets—the fixed schedule and included guide mean you see all three and still have the afternoon free.