September 17, 2004 -- Who hasn't fantasized about experiencing Carnival in Rio? Marching bands and samba dancers. Elaborate floats accessorized by scantily clad hotties. Endless nights of dancing at balls and parties. Luckily, I've found some deals that can make these dreams come true -- and for less money than you might have imagined.
Fly South Vacations (www.flysouthvacations.com) is now offering a solid tour package that lets you experience Carnival for yourself. A five-night Carnival in Rio package, which departs from Chicago and Washington, D.C.'s Dulles, only costs $959. According to Fly South, availability is limited, so book today. The package includes roundtrip airfare, five nights in a hotel, daily breakfast, hotel taxes, and service charges. Book by December 23, 2004 for a fixed departure date of February 2, 2005.
As if Carnival weren't fun enough, Tours Gone Wild (www.toursgonewild.com) offers tour goers a vacation filled with club passes into the VIP rooms of Rio's best nightclubs. Don't know how much daylight you'll see, but they practically guarantee you a better than good time. The five- or seven-night packages start at $1,199 (depending on your departure city) and include passes to the Tour Gone Wild party (no, Snoop Dog will not be there), round-trip airfare (a tour perk listed after the party passes), top-notch hotel accommodations, and daily breakfast (like you'll be up for that). A disclaimer at the bottom of the site's page says they are not affiliated at all with Girls Gone Wild. Who cares. Still sounds like fun.
Believe it or not, Brazil isn't all about Carnival. The beaches are less crowded and the streets a whole lot safer the rest of the year. Despite a cheesy-sounding name, Brazil Hot Deals (www.Brazilhotdeals.com) offers well-priced packages. For $749, travelers receive round trip airfare from New York's JFK or Miami's Airport on Varig's Brazilian Airlines, 5 nights at deluxe hotels, and a city tour. Airport taxes and security fees are not included. Rates change slightly during the year based on better travel periods so book the time you want. The tour company offers different day-trip add-ons for an additional cost.
Beach trips to Brazil are in the same range. Traveland (www.traveland.com) offers a seven-day tour of two beach towns (Rio and the choice of a number of other Brazilian beach towns). Starting at$939, the trip includes round trip airfare from Miami and four- and five-star hotel accommodations. You need to depart before November 30, 2004 and weekday departure is mandatory if you want to keep the trip below $1,000. For $699 Traveland has a five-night trip with similar accommodations. With this tour, however, you get a souvenir statue of Christ the Redeemer.
Note: No introduction to a girl from Ipanema is included with any of these trips. You'll have to find her yourself.