A perfect mix of nature, gastronomy, and tours. Choose your style and build your itinerary.
Easy trails, bird watching, and landscapes for amazing photos.
Gigóia Island is small and crossed on foot in minutes. The point is not having a lot to do, it is the pace: no cars, no rush, the lagoon all around and Pedra da Gávea showing up in the background of your photos.
Almost everyone combines three things: a boat tour, a meal by the water and the sunset. On top of that come the extras — water sports, live music at weekends, the craft fair, or simply wandering the lanes with no destination.
There is no entrance fee. The cost is the crossing, a few reais, plus whatever you consume. You can spend a whole day here on very little or build a full programme — the two itineraries at the end of this page show how.
The most popular plan. The Carioca Pantanal safari enters the canals and mangroves, where caimans and capybaras are commonly seen. There are longer routes too, to the Marapendi Reserve and the Tijucas Islands.
Duration: 45 minutes to 5 hours
Seafood restaurants, snack bars and cafés, nearly all with tables on the water. It is why most visitors cross over in the first place.
Range: R$ 20 to R$ 200 per person
Late afternoon is the island's high point, with the silhouette of Pedra da Gávea behind the lagoon. Worth booking a table ahead or taking a boat tour at that hour.
When: about 1h30 before sunset
At weekends there are bands at the waterfront bars. Shows, parties and events are listed on the portal's calendar, updated as the venues confirm.
When: mainly Saturday and Sunday
Stand-up paddleboards, kayaks and jet skis are rented on the island itself and on neighbouring Ilha da Coroa, always with guidance from the operator.
Charged: per hour, on request
With no cars, the island is covered on foot along narrow alleys between the houses. At weekends there is a craft fair, and the whole walk is photogenic.
Cost: none
Half an afternoon, about 4 hours. Cross at around 2pm, have lunch at one of the lagoon-side restaurants and book a short Carioca Pantanal tour right after, when digestion calls for a boat rather than a walk. Be back in time for a coffee or a beer in the late afternoon and stay for sunset. This is the classic first-visit plan.
A full day. Arrive in the morning, have breakfast at one of the cafés and take the boat tour early — the best time for wildlife, with caimans sitting on the bank in the sun and the wind still light. Take a long lunch, spend the afternoon on a paddleboard or wandering the lanes, and close the day at a bar with live music.
With children, the lagoon route works well: it is short, calm and the wildlife goes down well. Prefer the morning, when the sun is gentler, and check there are life jackets in the right size before boarding.
On a rainy day, open-sea trips are cancelled, but the lagoon routes still run, because the water there is sheltered. And the covered waterfront restaurants turn out to be the best place in the city to watch the rain come down.
Half an afternoon gives you a good sense of it: lunch, a short boat tour and the sunset. A full day lets you add breakfast, a water sport and music at the end of the day.
You can, and that is what most people do. The crossing takes about two minutes and runs 24 hours, so there is no cut-off time to head back.
No. The island is a neighbourhood, not a park. What you pay is the boat crossing, a few reais, plus whatever you consume there.
On weekdays the island is empty, tables are easy and you can book a tour on the spot. Weekends bring live music and the craft fair but fill up — each has its advantage.
It is. No cars, everything on foot, and the lagoon tour usually goes down well. Since almost everything is by the water, agree on rules near the piers.
Trips to the Tijucas Islands, in open sea, are cancelled. The lagoon routes keep running and the covered restaurants stay open.
Prices and durations are references gathered from local operators and venues and change through the year. To build the itinerary with today's prices, talk to Gigi in the chat.
