Published on Jan, 2025

Wake up early and enjoy this tour! It’s so worth it! Marco is an amazing guide, full of energy that is organizing this tour in detail so you can enjoy every one of the stops! I totally recommend this tour! It was more than I expected!

Published on Nov, 2023

This is my first review on Trip Advisor but after the experience of the tour I felt it necessary to write a review. This was probably not the usual tour, well part of it anyway, arranged by most who visit Rio. It was carried out in two parts, firstly a trip to see the Golden Lion Tamarins located about two hours from the city and the second part to visit Sugarloaf Mountain for the evening sunset. This was a full day that lasted approximately 12 hours in total. The first point to mention is that Luis was not the original guide as planned but stood in at the last minute. We received a text message the night before indicating that pick up would be 5-45am the following morning at our accommodation. That is what happened, Luis came to collect us on time and politely introduced himself. We then left the city and travelled over to Tamarin reserve. Luis provided us with lots of information about the different city areas and historical facts that the time passed by quickly. Everything went smoothly, we met another small group who were also visiting the same area and joined them to enter the reserve. It must be stressed that this area is strictly private and under the control of conservationists, entry is only allowed with an approved guide. Evidence of covid and yellow fever vaccinations are mandatory to enter the site. Fortunately the Tamarins showed well during the visit and we had some nice close views, several small family groups were present at the time. Luis explained that his father had been actively involved in this work in the past. After spending around an hour or so at the reserve we visited the centre and explored the grounds in an off road vehicle that took us to an observation platform and to the outskirts to see the natural corridors built over the main roads that allow wildlife to cross safely into the forested areas. Following this, Luis took us to a really nice roadside self service restaurant and helped with anything that we were unsure about. The food was good and we both left feeling full. So onto the next stop, back in Rio. At sugarloaf the local area was very busy so Luis dropped us near to the cable car and went to park. It was very safe and when he returned went straight to join the queue which for us was only a short wait because we arranged fast track tickets in advance. I would recommend doing this for the extra cost as it will save a considerable amount of time during busy periods. During the ride to the top, Luis put us in the best positions to view and take photos / video. Once on the top Luis allowed us to take as much time as possible until we were ready to return, there was no pressure with regards to a time limit. We admired in the sights, had a drink, took photos and stayed until the sun had set down behind Corcovado Mountain. At the end of the day, we were returned to the entrance of our accommodation which was located in Cosme Velho at the top of a steep hill, not the typical city hotel entrance only a house set on the hillside. At no time during our tour did we feel uneasy or unsafe, Luis was excellent in his approach and full of information when we needed it. He was always polite and down to earth, very friendly and approachable. Would we recommend him as a tour guide, most definitely. Our only regret was not knowing about his services earlier, our tour happened on the day before leaving Brazil on our return to Rio. We would have used Luis on our first visit to Rio when arriving in Brazil for more tours of the city if we had known. If we return to Rio, we'll definitely be in contact with Luis again. Graham and Sandra

Published on Nov, 2017

We arrived in Rio after a 15 hour trip to an overcast and ultimately drizzly to rainy afternoon. We were not sure how this tour would work out, but Luis made it interesting and so worthwhile. He has great stories about growing up in Rio and has all kinds of interesting information about everything. He helped us get the most out of our trip up to Sugarloaf. His car is also very comfortable and he picked us up from the lobby of our hotel and dropped us back as well so it was so easy, which was great for us. We would recommend Luis and while we bought his Sunset at Sugarloaf, he is willing to totally customize a tour to anywhere in or near Rio.