Local resident and tour guide Daniel (AKA "Sushi") showed me what Rocinha is really like - and community-mindedness inherent to a favela really stood out. :) He provided some excellent contextual history, show me the sites with the stellar views to the ocean, and guided me through circuitous walkways and stairs connecting everything. Sushi introduced me to pequeno Capoeira students, lanches vendors, and made me feel welcome at every site. Plus he's just dang cool (everyone knows "Sushi"!). One of the most connecting things I experienced in my month in Brazil!

We had to the most amazing day with Roberto. It was a highlight of our one month in Brazil to visit the Favela and meet Roberto who shared so much with us. We are extremely grateful for his openness and that he showed us around in his Rio.

True experience with many surprises and with an excellent guide . Worth to try it 😎 Rio is more than the Redeemer statue .

Going into the walking tour I really didn't know what to expect and thought maybe I was going to feel unsafe because of the bad rep associated with favelas in Brazil. I was wrong! My friend and I did our tour with Roberto. Roberto assured us that all the misconceptions and bad reputations given to favelas are not all true. We felt perfectly safe the entire time being with him. We started the tour off with a motorcycle ride up the hill, walked around the Rocinha favela for a good 2 hours to observe everyday life of people and speak with some locals. He explained really well in English the favela's history and ongoing developments and projects in Rocinha. We also got the chance to visit a Capoeira school to watch students perform their traditional Capoeira martial arts. The Capoeira performance was one of my highlights of the tour because I grew up admiring Capoeira and to see it being performed live in front of me was awesome. The entire tour was the highlight of my trip in Rio. I felt like I connected with the experience and life of the people of the favelas because I know what it is like to grow up in poverty. Roberto was a great, calm, peaceful, and cool guide. We were lucky to have him. Thank you Roberto.

We have just had the most amazing tour with Roberto to Rochinha. Despite conflicting opinions on whether the favela tour is safe or not, we decided a trip to Rio would not be complete without a visit. The trip was insightful and safe thanks to the guide's superb knowledge of the area and workings of Rochinha. The journey to the top was quick, effortless and exciting in equal measures.. The visit to the narrow passages, homes and projects left us feeling we had a good understanding of how life works there. Roberto, was an excellent ambassador for Rochinha and at no point did we feel uncomfortable, intimidated or threatened, as he told us where, when and when not, to photograph. The communication from booking to pick up and post visit was superb. I would not hesitate in recommending Favela Brothers tour to anyone. Many thanks to all concerned 😟

Daniel. our guide, speaks very good English (self-taught), and was friendly and caring throughout the tour. There was a bit of discomfort at the beginning which quickly went away as Daniel explained how his city works and how safe it is to be there with him. This is a cultural item I would recommend highly to everyone.

The tour guide Carlos was really amazing and the experience in the Favela with the Capoeira group was awesome! Overall I totally recommend it - that you really see what is a favela.

Amazing favela experience with Carlos, our guide. It was very informative, interesting and exciting to walk in the streets of favela. The tour starts with a crazy motorbike ride to the top of it, so be prepared! :)

Thanks Roberto for his great service. He is very knowledgeable and caring. It is an eye opening experience for us especially with my teenage son.

Can’t recommend these guys enough. So attentive. Everything we asked for they went above and beyond to accommodate. Our number one was playing football. We played football with the locals for over 30 minutes. Our tour guide Roberto was legend! Clean energy and all around good guy! Would use them again in a heartbeat

Excellent guide. Carlos showed us the real life in the favela. The progress, as well as the challenges faced by residents

Our tour guide Gustavo showed us his Rocinha and we are very great full for this experience! He met us in our hotel lobby and we took an Uber to Rocinha and a motorbike taxi up to the starting point of the tour. From there, he showed us what makes Rocinha special for him - the people, the community and the art! We spent about 2 hours following him down through the narrow pathways and his insight and personal experience was invaluable to contextualise what we were experiencing. Having Gustavo with us gave made us feel safe at all times as well as seeing a number of other, similar tours!

Carlos is a great guide! We did this on day ine and it was perfect. It was an excellent way to get to know the neighborhhods and people of Rio. Spectacular views of Rio from up high and great street art i the winding alleys. Safe from crime. There is a fun motorcycle ride (no helmets) up windy streets on the back of motorcycles which is like a local taxi service. A lot of steps, mostly down, but also one steep but short upward stretch. Highly recommend.

Gustavo was an awesome guy and tour guide through Rocinha! He was kind and considerate and the whole favela experience was awesome for me.. to see the people working together, babies, the children, families.. living and appreciating what they have, eachother and bonds. Working hard to survive... Thats rare to find in a neighborhood that does have money, power and authority. Thank you for my last day in Rio, Gustavo! I highly recommend to any visiting foreigner.. to anyone. The ride on the bike to the top is super fun as well :)

Taking a thrilling motorbike ride at the entrance of the Favela and arriving at a house of culture where kids give you a Capoeira performance against the backdrop of the beach and Favela rooftops, kind and fluent guide Gustavo let you see the glimpse of what is going on in the Favela with a walking tour. I felt safe and protected walking along a Favela 'insider'. A must do experience in Rio de Janeiro. Great thanks from South Korea.

This was an interesting experience, well-known and comprehensible. A must-see experience and will return in the future.

I went alone so I was really scared and on edge at first. But it turned out to be an awesome experience. Carlos and the beautiful people of Rocinha made me feel at home. Really recommend this experience if you are in Rio , you will not regret it.

I had the most incredible tour of the favelas thanks to my amazing tour guide Roberto. Roberto was friendly, speak good english and knowledgeable. He made the trip both fun and educational. I felt safe the entire time as I could see the local warmly greeted and had a lot of respect for Roberto. I really recommend this tour with Favela Brothers for those who wanting to learn a different perspective of Rio. Truly a real eye opener experience. Thanks again Roberto and Favela Brothers for this awesome experience!

After going on many tours around Brazil nothing compares to this. Completely amazing and is clearly doing good and giving back to the community. Carlos spoke very good English and answered all of our many questions honestly and thoroughly. At no point was he in a rush and allowed us to make many stops. I would feel that i missed out on seeing the real Rio if we hadn't done this. Everyone we met in the area were very friendly and at no point felt un safe.

This is an absolute must! My highlight of Rio, I felt safe, learnt so much and appreciated our guide’s knowledge and passion.