Incredible Social Experience - Carlos was incredible, gave us a first hand view of the culture, life, and history of the favelas and the story of the people who have made this their home. You gave a different level of respect and intrigue for the people who live here. This excursion is worth checking out!

Great trip to the Rocinha favela. Highly recommended. Fascinating to see the life in a favela. - I was initially nervous about going on this tour but our guides Alberto and Bruno, who both lived in the favela, put me at ease and made us feel so safe. It was one of our best days in Rio. An absolute must. Highly recommended.

Excellent! - The personal insights of the local guides was very valuable and interesting. The group got to see a capoeira show by kids from a social project and also got to play football with another group of kids in the area. The atmosphere was chill and friendly and there was no pressure to buy or donate anything, just a nice walk through a lovely local and authentic neighborhood.

Incredible walk through real life - Incredible experience especially thanks to Edson, our guide; he not only took us safely through the favelas (starting from the best view of Rio we could ever imagine), he also explained the complicated dynamics of living in a favelas and most importantly he shared his challenging and interesting story with us. Thank you Edson, and Bruno.

Amazing tour. Worth the money - Excellent tour. Eye opening. Felt safe during the whole tour. Now we have a much better idea of the challenges with the residents living inside the favelas

Best authentic experience in Rio - A must do in Rio and the tour guide, Edson, was amazing he gave great background to the favella and great insight into the day to day life. The tour was great but made even better by Edson and the people we met.

Edson is a wonderful tour guide! - Edson was a wonderful guide who went above and beyond to answer any question and really show us what Rochina life is like! Absolutely 10/10 tour and guide.

Amazing experience rocinha walking tour - Excellent walking tour highly recommend gets the flavour of rocinha favela, including areas you can't photograph because dealers are there

Rocinha — An Experience Like No Other - Our guide Carlos, who is a resident of the Rocinha favela, was great. He was clearly passionate and knowledgeable about his community, and thoroughly invested in sharing it all with those of us on the tour. Yes, like many others, I questioned whether or not to do the tour because of potential safety concerns. However, at no time did I feel that the tour was unsafe. I appreciated being able to get away from the beach and seeing another side of Rio that is vibrant in its own way. Carlos provided an excellent introduction — in excellent English — as we made the drive to Rocinha. Upon our arrival towards the top of the favela, we visited a capoeira academy where we were given a demonstration of this martial art. The setting also provides an awesome view for photos. Be sure to bring some cash to give a donation, if you would like (the academy does also accept credit cards as well). From there we made our way down the favela by foot. Being inside the narrow walkways was like something I had never experienced. The tour included a couple of well-planned breaks or stops — one stop, right after capoeira, was to grab a quick snack and beverage. The other stop, towards the latter part of the tour, was to have something to drink. Both stops were welcomed so that we could have a small bite to eat and/or hydrate. Bottom line — the tour was something I am so glad I did. I can’t say that I am an expert on Rio, but I can say that I now know “the 1st Rio and the 2nd Rio” (in the words of the guide, Carlos). The “2nd Rio” being the favela.

May be eye-opening for some. But it’s not the kind of tour for me. - Capoeira presentation by the kids from the favela was the best thing about it It’s was heartwarming. However, it was the only thing that resonated with me. All others were really just walking the the favela without much organized thought on the stops and the information being shared. It was like walking into a neighbourhood and seeing what was just happening at the moment. No real structure or no real major relevance on where we were going. A lot of the words shared could have been said without needing to be in the favela because they were so unrelated. There are so many times that we were stuck in these alleys because of unnecessary chit chat bet guide and some guests that not everyone could hear. Also stopping to explain things in front of dog poop. Plus they also did not drop me off back at the hotel and was made to walk back 5 blocks away. This tour could be done in 2 hours tops and could be improved by having real structure and not just letting what was going on at the moment dictate what the tour was all about.