Arrival
You're most likely to fly in to Rio or arrive by bus; the city's train station is now only used for commuter services. Be warned that opportunistic thieves are active at all points of arrival, so don't leave baggage unattended or valuables exposed; be especially careful of dangling cameras and wallets stuffed into back pockets.

By air
Rio de Janeiro is served by two airports. The one at Santos Dumont (tel 021/3814-7070) deals mainly with the shuttle services to and from São Paulo, Brasília and Belo Horizonte, and is at the north end of the Parque de Flamengo, immediately east of Centro. From here, every 40 minutes an air-conditioned executivo bus ($7) will take you through the Zona Sul, stopping wherever passengers want to get off along the beaches of Copacabana, Ipanema, Leblon and São Conrado. Ordinary taxis (yellow with a blue stripe) are readily available from outside the terminal but you're likely to be overcharged by drivers not willing to activate the meter if you're obviously new to town - the fare should amount to around $12 to Copacabana. If it's your first visit to Rio or if your Portuguese is poor, a less stressful option is to purchase a voucher from one of the many radio-taxi stands within the terminal. You'll be directed to your cab and will be charged a flat rate of around $20 to Copacabana. Alternatively, cross the road and catch an ordinary bus from Avenida Marechal Câmara, which you can reach by crossing the pedestrian walkway in front of the airport terminal: #438 to Ipanema and Leblon via Botafogo; #442 to Urca; #472 to Leme. For Copacabana, #484 goes from Avenida General Justo, over which the walkway crosses.

The international airport at Galeão (tel 021/3398-4526), which also serves most Brazilian destinations, lies on the Ilha do Governador in Guanabara Bay, 14km north of the city. On arrival make sure that your passport is stamped and that you retain your immigration form, as failure to do so can cause problems come departure. In the arrivals hall, consult one of the official tourist information desks - Riotur, TurisRio or EMBRATUR. Avoid those which represent private concerns, trying to pass themselves off as official agencies. The official desks will check hotels for vacancies for you, but not at the very cheapest places. Changing money is not a problem, as the airport has a casa de câmbio, as well as a branch of the Banco do Brasil.

To reach your hotel, catch one of the air-conditioned executivo buses ($5), which run every half-hour between 5.20am and 11pm, either via Centro to Santos Dumont, or along the coast, via Centro, to Copacabana and on to São Conrado. Outside these hours, a taxi ride is the only alternative. Buy a ticket at either the Cootramo, Coopertramo or Transcoopass desks, near the arrivals gate, and give it to the driver at the taxi rank; to Flamengo costs about $22, Copacabana $30. It's best not to take the ordinary taxis - you're likely to end up being overcharged - and don't accept a lift from one of the unofficial drivers hanging about in the airport. The drive takes about fifteen minutes into the centre or around half an hour to Zona Sul, unless you meet the rush hour.