Rio - Other Practical Info

[trilingual]

Please post info about airport transportation, taxis, buses, metro, drugstores, doctors, etc., here.

[trilingual]

RE: Rio - Doctors/Meds

 

The American Consulate in Rio, at http://www.consulado-americano-rio.org.br has a list of medical practitioners in Rio that have been used by consulate staff. Just click on "U.S. Citizens", and then look for the list of doctors (which also includes dentists, ambulances, and veterinarians). There is a separate list of attorneys.

 

Similar lists are probably available on the websites of U.S. consulates in other cities around the world. Just search the net to see what you can find.

 

As for meds, there are large drugstores all over Rio. Drogasmil, Max, Pacheco and Leme are just a couple of chains that have branches in Copacabana. Viagra is available, as are its new competitors, Cialis and what's-its-name? which are both supposedly cheaper. Cialis is longer-lasting (up to 36 hours); the other new competitor lasts about as long as Viagra, according to the news article I saw here announcing that the new drugs have gone on sale in Brazil. According to the article, 20mg of the new drugs is equivalent to 100mg of Viagra, so perhaps the new pills can be cut in half, too, to get more bang for your buck!

 

Except for things containing narcotics, you rarely will find that you need a prescription for drugs in Brazil, including antibiotics. If you do self-medicate with antibiotics, remember to follow the directions and take the drug for at least 10 days (even if your symptoms clear up long before then) to avoid creating drug-resistant strains of bacteria.

[trilingual]

RE: Rio - Taxis/Airport Transportation

 

Although there is public bus transportation available, your best bet for ease and convenience when arriving at Rio's International Airport, especially after a long and exhausting overseas flight, is to go to one of the taxi cooperative counters just outside the customs area. DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT (repeat DO NOT) succumb to the various taxi touts who will besiege you. You have no idea who they are, where they will take you, or if you will ever reach your destination!

 

An aside: if someone is passing out free AT&T maps of Rio at the immigration/customs area, grab some! They're EXCELLENT!!! Better than H. Stern's, which also gives out free maps.

 

Look for booths labelled COOPERTRAMO, TRANSCOPASS, etc. The folks who staff the booths speak English. You will pre-pay a taxi voucher (currently R$56 from the airport to Copacabana) which you can pay for by credit card. This will ease problems if you haven't yet changed money and want to wait until you reach Copacabana to find an ATM. You give your destination to the people at the counter, who will include it on your voucher. An aide, or the cab driver himself, will then escort you to your taxi and you'll be whisked away to your destination in air-conditioned comfort.

 

For cab service within Rio, or from your hotel back to the airport, many M4Mers have used Wellington, who used to work at Roger's but has parlayed his earnings into starting a cab service. We like to reward this kind of enterprise! Wellington understands basic English. You can contact him at the following phone numbers in Rio: (21) 9928-9515; 3820-9325; 3820-9207. The first is his cell phone, so you're likeliest to find him there. His e-mail is brolo@globo.com (or maybe it's brolo@globo.com.br -- it looks like there's a misprint on his business card). Service from Copacabana to the international airport is R$50. Just call and tell him where you're staying and what time and day you need to be picked up. You can also discuss with Wellington using his services for driving around town to tour or shop in more distant areas like Barra da Tijuca (like a trip to the nude beach at the Reserva Ecologica).

[Reed]

RE: Rio - Taxis/Airport Transportation

 

Like everyone else, I hate the horde of drivers waiting for you as you are ready to leave the airport. On the first trip I muscled my way to one of the desks. On the two subsequent trips I just allowed myself to be latched onto by one of the horde. In each case, the ride to the Atlantico cost between R$50-55. It would be great just having someone at the airport to meet you. Wellington's Copacabana-Airport rate of $50 is certainly competitive. Does anyone know if he will come out to the airport for a fare?

 

Today I got confirmation of a room for the October meeting and reconfirmation of my trip at the end of May. For the first time the Atlantico offered to arrange airport pickup...for R$75. Has anyone used this service yet? It would almost be worth the extra money to have someone waiting to whisk you to the hotel.

 

Also, on the last night of my last trip, I spent the evening at 117. I was running a little late so I grabbed a metered cab and headed back to the hotel to check out. I asked the driver to wait, while I went to the room, changed clothes, and checked out. That took about 15 minutes. When we got to the airport, the meter just registered R$40....after having started at 117. Not bad.

[trilingual]

RE: Rio - Taxis/Airport Transportation

 

I think Wellington would pick passengers up at the airport. E-mail or phone him to find out. He (or one of his drivers) would be at the exit to Customs waiting for you with a sign with your name.

 

I'm glad to hear you didn't pay more for a ride from one of the importuning drivers at the exit to Customs. However, I think you're much safer using the recognized taxi coops. If anything goes wrong, you've got someone to complain to.

 

I've used regular yellow taxis to return to the airport, and it currently runs abour R$35 - R$40. However, the private/radio cabs (like Wellington's) are usually larger cars, which is helpful if you're bringing back a lot of luggage (I always overspend on books and records, so there's always extra stuff to lug back home). Also, if you've made a reservation in advance with Wellington or one of the taxi coops, you are more sure of making your flight if it turns out that it's raining or there's some other major event happening at the time you need a regular taxi. They can be a bit hard to hail during such times.

[Guest twocanbethree]

RE: Rio - Taxis/Airport Transportation

 

Hi everyone. I tried to email Wellington about arranging taxi service from the airport but my email was returned as undeliverable when I used the two links provided on this site. Has anyone been successful using these addresses or does anyone have a better address? Thanks very much.