If you are staying in East Copacabana or Leme, then the metro is they way to go.

Borrowed from 123rio.com

Hope this is helpful.



I'm working on a "Monger Map" and will start a new thread.

Cool Map. I heard that they were working on extending the line that runs to Copacabana. Anyone know anything about extension work?

Monger Map? I thought that we all were going to Rio for the caipirinha's and the beach

The green Cardeal Arcoverde stop should be blue now; so far, it's the only Copacabana stop. It's located where Rua Tonleros curves into Rua Barata Ribeiro. The construction site/pit at Rua Toneleros and Rua Siqueria Campos will be a future Metro stop. If it is finished according to Carioca time, it will be awhile.

Here is the link for the metro http://www.metrorio.com.br/ If you want to see a map of the stations then click on estação then click on the individual station that you are interested. For each station they have a description of the station, points of interest around the station, and a map that you can click on to see the various streets and things located around each station. In some cases, they have buses that connect out of the station.

There is a bunch of other information as well (in Portuguese) including schedules. Looks like it runs from a little before 6am until about 11pm.
Note: the map above that Dood posted will give you a better idea spatially where you end up but the metro site has some good info tambien.

Good News:

Rio de Janeiro Subway to Receive US$110.5 Million Loan

Brazil’s National Development Bank (BNDES) has approved a US$110.5 million loan to extend Rio de Janeiro’s subway to the center of the Copacabana district, in the city’s south zone.

The extension, which will be built by Riotrilhos, will increase by 70,000 the number of passengers using the subway on a daily basis - 17% more than the current volume.

WTH...how is that going to help me get from Tenn to Rio more often Dood...

Thanks for the update Dood. This is great news - I'm looking forward to my first trip from central Copa on the train to Termas 65.

Who cares about Tenn. They need to extend to LAX.

HEY...you have all kinds of women in LA...I live in the middle of nowhere here...

I grabbed the subway downtown for the first time. It costs 1.47 reais from Botafogo. I was really impressed with it. The stations all had marble walls and were extremely clean. It whisked me downtown in just a few minutes. It is too bad that the metro does not really serve Copacabana very well. There currently is one stop in Copa but it is on other the end of Copa from where I usually stay. There currently is another station underconstruction but it only covers central Copa. The bus is a heck of alot more exciting anyway. The bus drivers are crazy which leads to an exciting ride;they drive those things like a 13 year would drive a go cart.

metro station siqueira campos will be opened on 21/12 this year.iggy. sca.

I used the Metro to go into Centro and it was very easy. There is a special Metro bus traveling in Copacabana until the Siqueira Compos station opens and the bus will take you directly to the subway. Pay one price and get the bus and metro for 1.43reais

New subway station in Copa opens next week

The much-awaited subway station on Rua Siqueira Campos, Copacabana, is finally opening next Monday, February 3rd. Governor Rosinha Matheus will visit the site on Thursday.

The previous state governor, Benedita da Silva, wanted to inaugurate the service in December, but the construction did not meet its original deadline. The national agency of transportation also found a number of technical failures and would not issue an operation license. One of the failures was the absence of a boarding platform. Without the specific platform, outbound passengers would board the trains using the same platform as incoming passengers. Au automated security system had to be installed, as well as fire-fighting equipment. A new contract between the state of Rio de Janeiro and the license, Opportrans, was also signed.

The new contract regulates the fee Opportrans pays for managing the subway system. If the new station handles 68,000 passengers a day, the licensee pays the state the amount of R$1.25 million/month. Without the new contract the state would be paid nothing. The next phase of the expansion of Rio’s subway lines is the construction of the Cantagalo station, located between Copacabana and Ipanema. New loans will be necessary to fund the project.


Published January 28th

Is there a bus that can take you from NS Copacabana to Siqueira Campos Estacao? Usually busses go straigh through to Princess Isabel.

Athos, I have no idea. I make my first trip to Rio in April. I posted the article from ex-pat news as it seemed like useful information. It stands to reason, if they just sunk tens of millions into the station, the bus routes must somehow connect. Who is in Rio to check it out?

Nomar
The taxi will run you 5R from Help so it's not as if you're saving muito dinheiro but it'd be nice to have a straight shot with a bus. Taking a bus then walk to station would seem like a waste of time. The station is 2 blocks north of terma Luomo. A guy could literally do 2 termas in centro in afternoon, and finish with 2 more termas in Copa with a single metro ride.

Can anyone post walking directions from Carioca Station to Quatro+Quatro. Thanks..

Trex
It´s quicker to take next stop Uruguayana.
From Uruguayana, as you leave turnstile, walk straight for 20 yards then you can make right to go to ave Pres Vargas (look for sign posted in orange) or left.
Choose to go to the left and walk upstairs, then faced with 3 choices, left goes to Vargas, right goes to Buenos Aires, but best is to head straight till you hit main Ave Branco, about couple of blocks, you should be able to see main ave walking towards it. On Branco, turn right, then Buenos Aires should be next, go left and walk for about 3 blocks.
65 on rosario is one street further, same direction as 4x4, 65 is maybe 2 blocks further than 4x4.
Leaving either terma walk back to Ave Branco to take taxicab.

Thanks Athos, Excellent Directions, I am going to try the Metro for Centro.

I would NOT walk those blocks after the sundown.
I usually take the metro to go downtown at 300pm and leave the termas at midnite with a taxi back to Copa.

I was is Copacabana for a month last November and tried all the means of tranportation available -- day or night. Rented a car for 2 weeks, took the non-airconditioned buses, the air-conditioned buses, took taxis, did the Metro for a week while staying in a hotel in Gloria. Even took the small van plying the Av. Atlantica to go from Copa to Leblon -- I never once felt in danger.

I might try the metro when I get to Rio in two weeks but I am too chicken shit to use the public bus system. I know TOOOOOOO many people who have been robbed on the public bus to take a chance. Bandits jump on with guns and rob everyone on the bus and then jump off, takes all of 3 minutes. Rather take a cab, not worth saving the 10 reals.

Not to mention the buses sometimes go up in flames.

I actually use the bus often. But what do I have to live for?

Rich --

Does this mean you are leaving F to me in your will?

SF_Hombre. Do not get greedy!

CP

I want the cool looking bowling shirt.

CP -- Ok, I admit it, my eyes are often bigger than my...but let's not go into that.

How does one get from the Gloria Metro stop to Rio Antigo termas? Is it within walking distance?

Visitors to Rio may be interested to know that The Metro line 1 is now open to Cantagalo station. This is about a 1km extension from the Siqueira Campos station. This will be of interest to those who stay in the South Copacabana area and use the subway to get to the Centro area termas. Work continues to extend Line 1 to General Osorio station near Ipanema beach. This extension is scheduled to be completed in about 1.5 years.

I've been hearing for the past year that General Osório was scheduled to open this December, so I was surprised to read today that it's still due to open on December 17.

They have made quite a bit of progress....the actual station in Ipanema is being built. There is also a progress sign close to the Cantagalo station at the entrance to the tunnel work area, which shows how many days are left to complete the tunnel. I think it is 170+ days, but its been awhile since I passed that sign.

I passed by the tunnel today and now it is down to 117 days until the tunnel is finished. Getting closer!

If it's like Cantagalo, the sign will get down to about 40 days and then go into reverse for a bit. Have they started the construction of the station at General Osório?

BTW, here's an updated map:




(Message edited by Bwana_dik on August 22, 2009)

There is quite a bit of activity at General Osório with the station. The basic structure is already there. Looking good.

Almost there - one more week for the Ipanema station to open. I saw a sign today and it looks like the inauguration is on December 21st.

That will be awesome! I hated that freakin' integration bus.

I went to eat at Terzetto which is just across the street and the station is almost complete. The entrance in the Praça is enormous. There is also another entrance on Barão da Torre.

Another question. Still all the Metro link buses go to Sigueiro Campos. With the new station, will they change the routes?

That ought to help traffic a lot in Copacabana.

The station may open next week, when will it be really open for operations though?

How was Terzeto? I was going to eat there tonight, but went to Carretao instead, which I thought was no big deal.

I don't think they will change the route of the metro bus, because they still have to pick-up the people from Gavea and Leblon along the way. Picking up the Metro integration bus in Ipanema sucks because it is usually almost always full, plus getting to Sigueiro Campos took awhile due to the traffic. Then at Sigueiro Campos the metro was usually full as well.

Once the Ipanema station is open, getting a comfortable ride and seat should easier if you embark there.

I guess the only downside to this is, unless they increase the frequency of trains, they'll be even more packed after 3:00 PM or so. At this point, if you get on at Cantagalo, you get a seat, and maybe Siqueira Campos. But seats are usually full after that, and half the world always seems to get on at Botafogo so it's sardine city the rest of the way.

For me it was pure hell ... most of the time standing room in the bus, getting stuck in traffic, and then also having to stand most of the time in the metro at the Siqueira Campos station.

What I started to do instead was take a regular bus from Ipanema - where I can sit and do not get stuck in the same traffic as the metro bus - then get off close to the Cantagalo station. It is just a quick walk, but often saved time and added comfort as Catocony mentioned above you can usually get a seat if you get on at Cantagalo. Added R2.30 to my trip, but well worth it.

Terzetto in my view is one of the best restaurants I have ever visited in my life. I have been there probably a hundred times and I almost always seem to have a wonderful meal.

Here's what excites me about the opening of the General Osorio station: after a long afternoon/evening of partying at 4X4, I can take the metro directly to Ipanema and have dinner at a place like Terezeto or Café Felice. Heaven!

From the apartments on Sa Ferreira, the stop in Ipanema is about the same walking distance as Cantagalo, about 10 minutes or so. Certainly a nicer walk without all the people on NS Copa and dodging traffic up Miguel Lemos.

I do know this - as soon as that stop is operational, I'm going to look for apartments over on that side. I know they're a lot more than Copa but I'm pretty burned out on the whole Copa scene at this point. Either something back around the Copacabana Palace/Praca Lido area where I had that place 4 years ago, or over in Ipanema/Arpoador/Posto 6 is needed.

B.T. Thanks for the recommendation about Terzeto.I'll think that I will head over there in the next few nights.

Took the metro to centro from the General Osorio station yesterday. A nice station...huge. It almost seems like they tunneled a walkway from Ipanema to the Cantagalo station versus bringing the train actually to Ipanema :-)

There's supposedly an entrance on Sa Ferreira, so that sounds about right. The Arcoverde station, the tracks are under the morro a few blocks it seems from the entrances. Cantagalo is the same, you walk quite a ways from the turnstiles to get to the platform.

If there is an entrance on Sa Ferreira, that really makes that area a good place to stay. No more 10+ minute walk around the hill to get to the Cantagalo station.

Yeah Cat, i just remembered that! That is a super long ass walk from the ticket booth to the actual train tracks!!!! The first time I brought my brother down to the Cantagalo station he asked "WTF?! Are we walking to 4x4?" LOL

I imagine that the walk from the Sá Ferreira entrance to the trains is a long one!

Is the SF entrance open yet? The Rio Metro website is unclear, mentioning that one or two of the entrances will open in March, but doesn't indicate which.

I'll take a GPS watch my next time down, but the Cantagalo station platform is at least 150 yards west of the little park where the Miguel Lemos entrance is. The General Osario station is probably the same, with the platform well to the north and under the morro. Looking at Google maps, I'm guessing that, as the crow flies, the corner of Sa Ferrera and Raoul Pompeii is only about 600-700 yards. If the actual station is a block or two north of the park, that puts it a hundred yards closer and all they need is a pretty long tunnel - about a hundred yards or so - from the corner of Sa Ferrera and Bulhoes Carvalo to the turn-styles/ticket booth - sort of like the Xavier de Silvera entrance to Cantagalo.

The long walk, plus the 15-20 minutes the train waited to depart made it a long journey...The new station is nice, but it didn't save me as much time as I first thought.

I was up in Ipanema and thought I would save a few bucks and time going to Luomo, so I thought I would take the new General Osorio station to Siquera Campos.

First off, it is quite a long haul walk even getting to the ticket booth. Probably a good 5-minute or so walk. (I could been 1/2 walkway to Copacabana).

Okay, getting to the ticket there was one ticket agent serving probably 20-25 people waiting in line. As you might expect, people fumbling about trying to find the correct change for the 2,80R Metro (why don't the just make it 2,50 or 3,00R??). At this point, I am already at the 10-minute walk. I'd be at Sa Ferreria at this point,

Of course, you have to walk some more and I start to see people running....I know there has to be a train there and so I start walking/jogging. I thought I make it, only for there to be 2 police there saying that car was full and I need to go up another 50 feet...sure enough the doors close. Fuck!

So, I wait and wait and wait some more. Another train appears, I board and wait some more. At this point, I am probably a good 15-20 minutes into the process. Which I estimate I could have been somewhere around Rua Bolivar/NS Copa by this time had I just walked.

So, it is fairly quick ride to Cantagalo station. I estimate 2 minutes. We of course stop and wait some more. Since it towards the end of the day and lots of people catch that stop, the wait is a good 3-4 minutes. So, now I am up to 20 or so minutes. (That is about how long it would take to walk up to the corner of Siquera Campos/NS Copa). So another 2-3 minutes ride from Cantagalo to Siquera Campos.

Okay, so 2.80 Reais and I would estimate 22-25 minutes later I arrive at the Siquera Campos. Exit the train, walk and walk some more to exit the station and then walk another 2-3 blocks to get to Luomo. It took me a fucking half-hour and 2,80R to just go from the end of Ipanema to mid-Copacabana on a "rapid" transit system. I shit you not, I definitely could have walked faster and saved myself the 2,80R or paid 7-8R and took a taxi.

Unless you are going from Zona Sul to downtown, the Metro is a fucking waste from this station into Copa.

It just takes too long to do the walking to get to the damn train and if you aren't lucky you wait even more. AND you have to pay for it. It should be free for how inefficient it is.