Kite Surfing & Surf in Rio de Janeiro; a little guide

So you want to surf in Rio? To start with I must inform you that I may not be the best guy to tell you about surfing. I go body surfing here and then but I have never really gotten into the part with boards. I guess I never really got over my first serious try to become a surfer; It was in Saquarema and a decision of not wearing a rash shirt (sissy stuff) resulted in me and my good friend Matti having bleeding very sore nipples. We became the laughing stock of the surfers in our hostel and I never really got over it. However, I have met many surfers so I have picked up a little here and there and with their help I have been able to put this page together.

Like a glove
To Surf in Rio is something well integrated in the culture, it fits really well into the whole obscession with the beach and people with surf boards is a common sight on the streets. Unfortunately there is not a consistant break in the city, my mate Rob stayed her for a few years and put this Surf Guide Rio together. It not only includes the breaks in the city, he also gives some good info about the whole state.

A bit of history
People started to surf in Rio around Arpoador in the 1940īs (at the time there was a Pier there), the first surfers in Brazil started in Santos a decade earlier but it was in Rio it all took off. In the beginning you couldnīt really talk about a pure surf culture, it was more part of a rising beach culture. In the 60īs, like all over the world, surfing established itself as a culture on itīs own. The long hair, freedom, rock and pop all fit into the new ideas of the time. The persecution by the Police then controlled by a dictatorship rule also gave Surfing an air of belonging to the free Brazil.

Crowded waves
With an increasing number of surfers and better boards more and more beaches became part of the repertoir and nowadays if there is something to surf you have surfers. As a consequence of the high density of surfers on every wave the attitude can be quite hostile, especially towards outsiders and fights are not to uncommon. Around Arpoador, reputation has it that there is a connection to the drug trade going on in the favela nearby, it is really tense and it is not a place for beginners.

Slang I have put together a little Carioca Surf Slang Dictionary where you can find some common gírias.

Buying boards in Rio is pretty cheap and there are some shapers around that can make your custom board for a good deal, read more about it in my Buying / Renting Boards section.

Kite Surfing has grown a lot in popularity and in Rio you have some good opportunities both to learn and to practice this, just go to Kite Surfing in Rio to find out more.

Getting there Go to Getting Around Surfing to get som valuable info on how to get to the best breaks in the city and around the state.