Angra dos Reis and Ilha Grande Day Trip from Rio de Janeiro

We were staying at a hotel in Copacabana, and they had us meet at another hotel (15min walk away). The tour guide Eli just about ignored me when he called out my name and I had to tell him 3 times it was me. There were a good mix of people on the excursion, and Eli would speak in both Portuguese or English. I noticed that the English parts were much shorter than the Portuguese narration. But also, there was very little of this... not like some of the excursions I've taken elsewhere where there is more history and facts shared during the drive. I spent the bulk of the 3 hour drive sleeping since there wasn't anything being shared.The entire boat ride there's no guided tour, either. It was mostly musicians and then eating "appetizers" which were huge portions (they were good though) and drinking. We were there at the end of October, and so it already felt a bit chilly where we were, and if you wanted to get down at either of the two swimming stops, you had to jump into the water because there were no docks for those stops. We weren't able to swim at the first island/beach because the water was really choppy and the boat couldn't get close. So they gave us a full hour at the 2nd stop. It was nicer than Copacabana for the fact that the waters felt a bit more tame (in comparison) and that it felt more private, but honestly nothing super special about it (I lived in Hawaii for a while, so I might have a very particular preference when it comes to beaches). The third stop was where we ate. The food was really good (I love the fish and black beans), and it was cute enough to take pictures until we board back onto the boat.The last stop was this church on an island. It was gorgeous, but really nothing to see, we couldn't really go inside or anything. I don't even really know the story of the church. Would've been nice to get some kind of background/guided information about what I was seeing.The ride back was the same, quiet ride back to town. This tour is probably better if you really intend on swimming—and if so, maybe do so during the warmer Rio months when hopefully the water is more calm as well. It was great to get outside of the city (I did a city tour as well, and you pretty much see it all in a day), so all in all, I'm still happy I went and was able to see the beautiful sights outside of the city, but I think I had high expectations for this and felt like it was a bit of a bust.

This tour was all about selling you stuff, I personally wouldn't bother.

I recommend this tour if you want to get out of the city and out on the water. The drive to get there was about 3 hours from central Rio. Remember to bring sunscreen cream since the sun is really intense once you get on the water. My only complaint would be that of all of the stops we made, just one of them actually had a dock. The other stops involved either swimming in the ocean, or jumping in the water and swimming a short distance to the shore. It's definitely a long day, but I enjoyed seeing this side of Rio.

The tour was fun- filled and enjoyable. Two things that would have made it excellent were the weather which was cold and rainy, and although it was called a bilingual tour, we were the only two speaking English in addition to the tour guide, whose English was limited too.

Very well organized trip from Rio to Angra dos Reis and out into the adjoining bay. There were three main stops of about 30 minutes each. The food was good and the tour staff very warm and welcoming. My only wish was that we could have had more time at the Ilha Grande stops to allow for some hiking along the nature trails.

Really very good trip! Pedro, the tour guide, is very a kind person. Spend a great time in Andre dos Reies. Even in the end of July, there was sun and hot.

Amazing tour and wonderful crew... a do over for sure! Adorei mesmo !

This tour was great! Mao was a great tour guide... they spoke in three languages which was great and also the live music inside the boat (samba) was amazing I love the tour and the three stops at some islands so we can take a break, snorkel or just swim in the ocean. Thumbs up!!!

Great Tour. Everyone is so nice and helpful. Beautiful views and experience.

I recommend this tour, beautiful places! bring a water cover for your phone.