Brazil Transportation

Air: Brazil is rated Category 1 by the International Aviation Safety Assessment Program (IASA), indicating that the country’s civil aviation authority has been assessed by IASA inspectors and found to license and oversee air carriers in accordance with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) safety standards.

Bus: City bus stops tend to be unmarked, and maps of bus routes are rare. City buses in São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro are plagued by thefts, muggings, and armed assaults. Buses have also been attacked by protesters during incidents of civil unrest. Every city has a bus station, known as a rodoviária, and towns that do not have a rodoviária typically offer some form of transportation to the nearest station. All interstate bus trips require travelers to show proof of identification. Relative to city bus services, crimes targeting Brazil’s intercity bus network are less common. Attacks targeting tourist buses have been reported in Brazil. Tourists have been abducted, sexually assaulted, and robbed in such incidents.

Car: Road travel can be hazardous due to poor-quality road infrastructure and reckless local driving practices. State roads in Brazil are of higher quality than interstate roads; southern states tend to have higher quality road infrastructure. In remote locations, roads are unpaved, and surfaces may deteriorate after periods of heavy rainfall. Brazilian traffic laws are generally poorly enforced.

Carjackings are common. Many middle- and upper-class Brazilians use armored vehicles to prevent carjackings and robberies, resulting in an upgrade in technology used by criminals, including grenades and high-caliber assault weapons. Smash-and-grab robberies are also common, occurring when valuables are within a criminal’s reach or sightline, often while cars are stopped at traffic lights. In the Boa de Viagem neighborhood of Recife, carjackings are particularly common.

Taxi: Radio taxis are known to be reliable, though ordinary taxis are often fronts for scams. Robberies and assaults have been reported in unregistered taxis. Only use properly marked taxis, and book through a hotel if possible. Registered taxis are also available at recognized taxi ranks around cities and at most airports. Additionally, ride-hailing services such as Uber are available in Brazil.

Train: A few passenger rail lines link coastal cities. Some services to Argentina, Bolivia, and Chile are also available. Most travel by train is for scenic purposes, rather than an efficient mode of travel.

São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro have metro systems that are generally reliable and clean, though these systems are frequently crowded. Opportunistic crime like pickpocketing has been reported on the metro.

Water: In some parts of the Amazon as well as the coastline to the west of São Luis, boat travel is the only mode of transportation. Smaller towns or secluded locations can be reached with a speed boat operator.

A company called MACAMAZON offers regularly scheduled boat routes between major cities on the lower Amazon. There is also a regional boat service, or barco regional. Trips on regional boats take longer and make many stops in small towns.