Carnival time at PortoBay destinations

CARNIVAL TIME AT PORTOBAY DESTINATIONS

After Christmas and New Year, the countdown is on to one of the most keenly awaited parties of the year. ... Nobody forgets that February is Carnival month!!

Year after year, PortoBay destinations in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Búzios, Madeira, Lisbon and Algarve celebrate this occasion with all the pomp and circumstance it deserves.

The cities are filled with colour, live music and thousands of revellers ready to party like there is no tomorrow. After all, the origins of Carnival go back to the beginning of the fasting and sacrifices of Lent. ... So prepare your best mask, join the party and come celebrate!!

 

Rio de Janeiro: the city where everything happens

Talking about the Carnival in Brazil without mentioning the Rio festival is practically a sin. Although it is celebrated in several cities across the country, Rio is considered the Carnival capital of the world.
The first samba school emerged in Rio de Janeiro and was called Deixa Falar, created by Rio samba artist Ismael Silva.

Nowadays, samba schools hold organised parades, and highly competitive contests to elect the Queen of Carnival and the best school of the year.

The venue for the festivities is the Marquês de Sapucai samba drome in Rio, the first in Brazil, which attracts thousands of tourists and locals to the parades.

 

Street blocks and celebrations

The Portuguese brought Shrovetide to Brazil around the 17th century and at the end of the 19th century the first blocks began to appear in the country.

Each neighbourhood has its favourite Carnival block. There are more than 300 in the city, and each year the number increases. The most famous blocks are the Cordão do Bola Preta parade which goes through the entire city; the Banda de Ipanema parade marches through Ipanema on three different days; the Sovaco do Cristo parade is held in the Botanical Gardens just below the Statue of Christ the Redeemer and the Bloco das Carmelitas parade treks through the Santa Teresa mountains.

When the blocks pass, the streets are closed to traffic and only partygoers can enter!!

 

The party begins at the PortoBay Rio de Janeiro

From the 7-11 February, the Marvellous City is filled with joy and samba rhythms!! The pre-Carnival takes place on 3 and 4 February, the Carnival itself from the 10-13 and Post-Carnival from the 17-18, because one weekend isn't enough for so much revelry!!

From the streets to the samba drome, there will be no shortage of places to celebrate — and PortoBay Rio de Janeiro is the perfect starting point to join the party!!
At the Bossa Lounge, you can get into the spirit with live music during Pre-Carnival from the 7-9 February, from 6.00 pm to 9.00 pm. On Sunday 11th, Feijoada com Samba is back with a varied buffet that includes traditional Brazilian feijoada and of course. ... SAMBA!

The São Paulo Carnival

The São Paulo Carnival is made up of the samba school parade at the Anhembi samba drome, dances in clubs and street blocks. There are more than 500 blocks with around 100,000 participants filling the samba drome!!

After the Rio Carnival, São Paulo's celebrations are considered one of the biggest and most important in the country.

From 5-9 February, join the party at L’Hotel PortoBay São Paulo, located on Avenida Paulista — the perfect location to head off to the party.

 

 

Búzios Carnival

This year, Búzios Carnival will be celebrated with lots of entertainment and the traditional block parades.

The typical neighbourhoods of Rasa, Tucuns, Manguinhos and Centro are where you need to be not to miss a minute of the Búzios carnival celebration. And where better to enjoy the occasion than at your PortoBay Búzios hotel?? On 9 February you can enjoy Feijoada PortoBay with live music from 2.00 pm!

 

 

Lisbon Carnival

Authentic and with a hint of irreverence, the highlight of the Lisbon festival is the parade of floats that carry enormous characters every year to satirize current events.

A few metres from Avenida da Liberdade — one of the most iconic avenues in the city — and close enough to the centre of the party, the PortoBay Liberdade is the perfect hotel to rest after the days and nights of revelry in Lisbon.

If you haven't celebrated enough yet, head to Torres Vedras: 45 minutes from Lisbon, its Carnival party is one of the most famous in the country.

From 5-10 February, the parades and entertainment don't stop. This year the theme is Figures and Figureheads: have you thought of the mask you are going to wear??

 

 

Madeira Carnival

The festivities on the island begin with the Festa dos Compadres and are followed by parades, parties and the Parade Trapalhão, on Carnival Tuesday. Participation in this procession is open to everyone, individually or in groups, and the creativity of the revellers has no limits!!

On Saturday night, the colourful float procession takes thousands of curious people to the centre of Funchal to join the party. This is the main attraction of Madeira's carnival festivities: everyone in the procession moves to the sound of up-tempo music, with choreographed dances and lots of entertainment.

From 7-18 February, come to Funchal and celebrate Madeira’s Carnival in the best place possible — one of the PortoBay hotels in Madeira, of course!!

 

PortoBay Carnival Troupe

 

Saturday's Great Float Parade runs along the Avenida do Mar on 10 February. Guests staying at any hotel in the Madeira group can participate in this parade and will have a special space in the PortoBay Wing!! Are you ready ??

The Carnival in the Algarve

From Quarteira to Loulé, the Algarve Carnival has unashamedly adopted the sounds of the Brazilian samba schools and takes to the streets adorned in feathers and glitter!! There are many cities that elect the Carnival King and Queen, and the King Momo event on Ash Wednesday is a long-awaited and picturesque event.
There are also the more traditional flower contests held every year in various Algarve cities. There is something for everyone here!!
From 11-13 February, join the Loulé Carnival party and be part of the traditional Carnival Gala Ball. Dress up in whatever you want and don't forget: it's Carnival and no-one will take it the wrong way!!

 

 

Carnival rhythms

Are you feeling inspired and want to start practising your dance steps now?? Try on your Carnival mask and practice dancing in the procession to the sound of this play list of rhythms that we have prepared for you!!