The streets behind Rio's most famous beach: the Garota de Ipanema park, the Sunday craft fair, the bar where the 1962 bossa nova song was born, two leafy squares and the canal at Jardim de Alah, finishing at the Leblon viewpoint at the foot of Dois Irmãos.
Best time: Sunday, when the Feira Hippie fills Praça General Osório and the beach-side road is a leisure area; end at the Mirante do Leblon in late afternoon.
The route, stop by stop
- 1Parque Garota de Ipanema
Park of 25,000 m2 opposite Arpoador beach, opened in 1968 and renovated in 2023, named after the song. 15 min
- 2Praça General Osório (Feira Hippie)
On Sundays the traditional Feira Hippie sells crafts and paintings here; the square also has a fruit and vegetable fair. 30 min
- 3Garota de Ipanema bar
The bar at Rua Vinícius de Moraes 49 where Vinícius de Moraes is said to have created 'Garota de Ipanema'; have a chope at the pavement tables (open daily). 30 min
- 4Praça Nossa Senhora da Paz
Square by the Nossa Senhora da Paz church and metro station, with a fruit and vegetable fair on market days. 10 min
- 5Jardim de Alah
Gardens along the Jardim de Alah canal, the lagoon's only link to the ocean. 10 min
- 6Mirante do Leblon
Viewpoint on the Ciclovia Tim Maia at the western end of Leblon, below Morro Dois Irmãos. 20 min
More walks in Rio de Janeiro
- Praça XV to São Bento: the colonial and imperial centre
- Pequena África and the port: Valongo, Pedra do Sal and Morro da Conceição
- Cinelândia to Lapa: belle époque avenues, the aqueduct and the Selarón steps
- Santa Teresa by bonde and on foot
- Glória, Catete and the Aterro do Flamengo
- Urca: Praia Vermelha, the Cláudio Coutinho path and the Mureta at sunset
- Leme to Arpoador along Copacabana beach
- Parque Lage, the Botanical Garden and the Lagoa
- Tijuca Forest: Cascatinha and the Mayrink chapel
- Laranjeiras and Cosme Velho: Parque Guinle to the Corcovado train
- Niterói by ferry: Caminho Niemeyer to the MAC