The carnival parades are taking place in the Sambodromo, located close to the city center. The parades start at 20:00 or 21:00 (depending on the date) and ends around 4:00 in the morning. There are several parades in Rio's Sambodromo:

SAMBA SCHOOLS PARADES during Carnival

Friday - Junior and Group B Samba Schools

Junior Samba Schools
These are branches of the big schools constituted by children of each community.

Group B Samba Schools
Also called base groups, as they are the popular bases from which the big schools originated. These are small schools with up to 1,500 participants. The champion of this parade ascends to Group A next year, while the looser of Group A will join Group B next year.

Saturday - GROUP A = Grupo de Acesso A

There are 10 large and important schools that parade on Saturday with costumes and allegoric cars. The champion of this parade ascends to the Special Group next year, while the looser of the main parades will join Group A next year.
It is relatively easy to purchase tickets at the official price to this parade. We recommend watching this parade even if you intend to see the main parades.

Sunday and Monday - Special Group - Main parades

A total of 12 Samba schools parade on Sunday and Monday. (Until Carnival 2007, the number of Samba schools was 13, and was reduced from 2008).
This is the REAL show, and as such, tickets are mainly sold in the black market at a premium price. Before you purchase a ticket, read the Sambodromo info. be careful from purchasing faked tickets...

Saturday after the Carnival - Champions Saturday = Winners Parade.

The Samba Schools winners of the Special Group, from Sunday and Monday, parade on Saturday after the Carnival. This parade is not as good as the Main parades, as part of the participants in the original parade do not re-appear. Official tickets are sold at half price of the Special group tickets. However, you may be charged the black market price. We recommend to avoid this parade, unless if you can't afford the parades on Sunday or Monday.

The participants of the Carnival in March 2004 predicted that the price of the oil will go up several months later ...;-) Click the picture to enlarge it. The building at the back is Sector 2 - See Sambodromo info. See additional Photos of Carnival 2004, 2005 and 2006.

PARTICIPANTS IN THE CARNIVAL PARADES

The schools belonging to the Special Group are affiliated to the Independent League of Samba schools in Rio (LIESA). Each school has approx. 5,000 participants including celebrated Brazilian show-business and jet-set personalities.

Parade order - 2014

Parade starts at	2/3/2014	3/3/2014
21:00	Império da Tijuca	Mocidade
Between 22:05 - 22:22	Grande Rio	União da Ilha
Between 23:10 - 23:44	São Clemente	Vila Isabel
Between 00:15 - 01:06	Mangueira	Imperatriz
Between 01:20 - 02:28	Salgueiro	Portela
Between 02:25 - 03:50	Beija-Flor	Unidos da Tijuca

Samba Schools Rehearsals:

Everyone can attend the rehearsals that take place in weekends. The most popular samba school is Mangueira who receives up to 10,000 visitors on Saturdays. The entrance fee is in the range of 30 R$.

Mangueira - Rua Visconde de Niteroi 1072 - Mangueira - Tel: 3872- 6786/2567.4637

Salgueiro - Rua Silva Teles, 104 - Andarai - Phone: 2288-3065 - Saturdays from 22:00 hours

Unidos da Tijuca - Rua Sao Miguel430 - Tijuca - Phone 2263-9836 - Saturdays

Imperio Serrano. Avenida Ministro Edgard Romero, 114, Madureira, 2489-8722 or 2489-5696. Saturdays from 23:00 hours

Portela. Rua Clara Nunes, 81, Madureira, 2489-6440. Fridays from 23:00 hours

Vila Isabel. Avenida Boulevard Vinte e Oito de Setembro, nº 382, Vila Isabel, 2578-0077 or 2576-4120. Saturdays from 22:00 hours

Other schools (check availability in the web site):

Beija-Flor , Caprichosos de Pilares , Grande Rio , Mocidade

Porto da Pedra , Rocinha , Viradouro, Imperatriz Leopoldinense

Sambodromo (where the Carnival parade takes place). These rehearsals can be watched from the tier of seats and entrance is free of charge. Many local people arrive to these rehearsals, and it becomes very crowded.

PRICE Indications

The ticket prices for the tourist sectors for the 2013 Carnival Parade are listed below. The prices are estimated, in US$.

Sector 9
$ 700,00 per day - Sunday or Monday
$ 550,00 - Champions’ Saturday .

Sector 7
$ 300,00, a day - Sunday and Monday
$ 180,00 - Champions' Saturday.

Sector 9 – Front open air boxes
Rows B,C and D
$ 6.500,00, a day - Sunday and Monday
$ 3.900,00 - Champions’ Saturday

“A “ Group Samba Schools - Saturday
Sector 7 and 9 – Stands : R$ 30,00
Front open air boxes
Rows B,C and D : $ 600,00.

*Contact me in order to get information how to purchase tickets

See Sector location in the Sambodromo Map

See how the carnival parade carts are mounted

It happens only 4 days a year - On the day of the carnival parade, the carts are mounted near the Sambodromo. It is an interesting experience to see how it is done. Go and see the street near the Sambodromo !

What shall I bring to the Sambodromo ?

- Do not forget your entrance tickets

- Rain Coats and Umbrellas - it normally rains during the parades...

- Drinks and food (drinks and hamburgers are also sold inside, but the quality is not as in the city)

- Cameras and Binoculars

- If using Subway (Metro) Purchase in advance Metro tickets - avoid long lines

- Cushions (Also sold at the entrance)

Make sure you rest enough before the show - you will stay awake until the morning...

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