Favela Santa Marta Tour: Authentic Experience by Local Guides Sharing Life Stories
4.9
304 Ratings
Botafogo

Embark on an authentic tour of Favela Santa Marta led by local guides. Discover the true essence of favela life and hear captivating life stories from those who call the favela home.

Duration: 3 hours
Cancellation: 24 hours
Highlights
  • Dona Marta - We will visit the Guide’s house and the drink is free for everyone. A visit where we will get to know your family, your life and watch a short video about the favela.
  • Michael Jackson Statue - We will visit the Michael Jackson Statue, bars and craft stores.
What's Included
  • Visit the residents’ association
  • Guided tour by local guide and team
  • Visit the community daycare
  • Story of the favela through alleys
  • Visit Laje do Michael Jackson and statue
  • Alcoholic beverages
  • Visit the home of the local guide
  • Visit craft stores
  • Insurance for personal accidents
  • Inclined Plane (cable car)
What's Not Included
  • Private transportation
Additional Information

Explore the favela tour that boasts over 16 years of expertise, international acclaim as the top hiking tours in Latin America, and the TripAdvisor Travelers’ Choice award. As a finalist for a Responsible Tour at the WTM Latin America 2024, this tour’s dedication to authenticity and sustainability guarantees an unforgettable and impactful adventure….

see more
Location
R. São Clemente, 307
Rua São Clemente
Our meeting point is at the Shell Station on Rua São Clemente 307, Botafogo, where the gas station is located. Inside the "SHELL" station there is a store called "Select", where we meet everyone inside the store when the tour is confirmed.
Cancellation Policy

For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.

Customer Ratings
4.9
(304 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Mgf1737zk
Aug 29, 2025
Don’t miss this tour when you are in Rio - With our guide Raissa we got an authentic and unique experience. She was very kind and answered all sorts of questions that came up while we were going through the little streets. The tour also included a short football game with the local kids and a drumming performance at the end. We learned a lot about the community and are super grateful about the values that were transmitted. We can definitely recommend this tour.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Relax48628125385
Aug 19, 2025
The real experience you must live in Rio, unforgettable🤍 - Incredible visit to the Favela, the most real part of Rio. Juliana, our guide, shows herself to be an expert in the subject, fluent English and Spanish too! It is a very complete tour, with my partner we felt safe at all times (if it has to be said that we saw everything you can see in a favela, but nothing that made us lose track of the tour). Juli made the experience and the tour 100% enjoyable for us, very informative, solves all the doubts and sometimes not even necessary, as her explanation encompasses everything and more! Besides, the guys in the chute made this day only more endearing... We will keep this day in our most precious memories🤍 Thank you tour favela santa marta for such a good Welcoming, for the professionalism, for inviting us to learn from life in favela and the love that they put to this, a pleasure to recommend and why not, come back!🇧🇷
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Elisa_f
Aug 17, 2025
It was an experience... - It was an incredible experience. Juliana is super cool and excellent guide. I will definitely recommend it to others.
Review provided by Viator
Sabrina_p
Aug 12, 2025
Courtesy and availability - The guides, two guys really helpful, told us in great detail the whole story of the favela and accompanied us on this path, allowing us to get in touch with the locals who live there. Experience that I recommend.
Review provided by Viator
Maria_m
Aug 8, 2025
Great tour by a local - Really enjoyed this tour. Went at a good pace. Gave a good insight into some of the realities for those living in the favela. Was also safety conscious. Only for the open minded I’d say, as some of stuff you see may be uncomfortable but the people we encountered were friendly and I loved that we went into the tour guide owners openers home, they live on the favela , and they are clearly trying to help the young people to enhance their lives- through the community centre and samba band that played for us. You can buy stuff from the community shops but no one was pushy. Really glad we did it. Great views too from the top of the favela. Our guide was energetic and really personable. A great tour.
Review provided by Viator
Y7222ksjoannaj
Aug 1, 2025
Great tour - Great tour. Sensitively done for people looking to understand the favelas without being patronising. Very informative guide Juilanna was fantastic.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Dani_stefdias
Jul 21, 2025
Unforgettable visit! Amazing guides! - Very informative and we'll organized. The van that took up was very comfortable. The guides were really nice and personable. Juliana's English is easy to understand and the translations were quick and accurate. The people in Santa Marta were very welcoming and pleasant. We felt very safe. We highly recommend it!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Crisl921
Jul 19, 2025
Favela Santa Marta tour - Since you go with Thiago who is a local adds a bonus, because he knows the area perfectly, on the other hand there is Breno who speaks Spanish well and rating that he is a fan of history, because it gives you a lot of context of the favela. They are very comfortable and have a screen.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Ellie
Jul 16, 2025
Should be a part of every traveler's visit to Rio - Our family did this tour and it was absolutely incredible. My children are 9 and 11 years old and I can honestly say this was a life-changing. Our guide was incredibly knowledgeable and has been doing this tour for 10 years. We felt completely safe the entire time. The tour organizers have close, long-standing ties to the favela and its residents (the owner's family still lives there) and we felt welcomed by everyone we interacted with. There was a beautiful Samba performance by the locals that our kids joined in on and loved. This particular favela has closer ties to the surrounding community and is generally considered safer with better infrastructure than some other favelas in Brazil (ie we were able to ride a cable car up to the top and walk back down to the bottom over about 2 hours). We learned so much about the history of Brazil's population and the resilience of favela residents who have been marginalized and largely abandoned by the government. I think this tour should be a part of everyone's visit to Rio.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Carl_b
Jul 13, 2025
Excellent and Insightful Tour- Must See - This tour was excellent and highly recommended to really understand Brazil and the Favelas. Pedro was Fantastic. He knew everyone, was authentic, honest, personable, funny and made the tour truly great. I know there maybe some people afraid to take this tour, there is not need to be worried. Way more crime happening everywhere around you anywhere you go, and the Favelas felt totally safe. Pedro's English was also great, so understanding the area and what we were doing was very easy. I highly recommend this tour to see the real side of Rio and definitely with Pedro!
Review provided by Viator
Check Availability
From $30
From $30
up to 15 guests
1 - Adult
Select a date
Cancellation: Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start of your experience (local time).