Praia da Barra da Tijuca

About this place

Barra da Tijuca is Rio's longest beach, a broad strip of sand running about 18 km with its continuation to Recreio, open to the ocean and roomy enough to feel far less crowded than Copacabana or Ipanema. The coastal Avenida Lúcio Costa runs alongside with a promenade, cycle path and kiosks. The district behind it is one of Rio's fastest-growing: a wild plain until the mid-20th century, it became a modern city of towers and malls, its population rising from 24,000 in 1980 to about 394,000 in 2020, and it hosted most of the 2016 Olympic events. Its name joins «barra», a sandbar at a river mouth, and «tijuca», Tupi for marsh, a nod to the lagoons behind it that reach the sea through the Joatinga channel. Each stretch has its own feel: near «Pepê» at the start kitesurfers and surfers gather, the middle is calm and family-friendly, and the «Reserva» section is wilder. Waves are strong on many days, so swim near the lifeguard towers.