Brazil - tour operators

[FMH]

Hello. We are planning to visit Brazil in August 2026. Does anyone have any recommendations for tour operators that can offer tailored private tours? Thanks

Hello. Every time I travel I usually book mine here https://gowithguide.com/ you could try checking them out. They are private tours and also you can customized your itinerary if you want and they are very nice. I hope this helps!

Thank you I will check this out

@FMH We used Audley travel. (Used our companion flights). Everything went very well.

We had a tour of Rio (and time to do our own sightseeing), a trip to Iguacu Falls (and into Argentina, north of Rio to Salvador and Praia Do Forte, as well as a trip into the “gold” towns of the Minas Gerais state. We hired a car for that but you could get a driver I expect. Driving was easy though - except driving back to the airport.

We didn’t go into the Amazon as had been into the rainforest before in Peru and Ecuador. There’s also the Pantanal you might consider. Also check weather for where you want to go. Should be ok though. We used Lonely Planet book to decide what appealed to us and asked Audley to design around what we liked. It’s a very good holiday!

Many thanks! We have also used BA companion vouchers for our flights. I am thinking of visiting similar places to you plus Amazon. I am hoping the weather will be ok in August, though am prepared for some rain. Will check out Audley.

@FMH I think it will be great. We went in Jan and it was hot. I see Audley recommend August. The rainforest - expect rain! All rainforest areas are exciting!

Just to add: Steppes Travel are reliable and Journey Latin America might be good but we’ve not used them. We tend to use Audley to infill the holiday between our flights.

Thanks @TizerorFizz ! Yes I am excited! I will contact Audley and will also look at other options as I know that Audley tend to be on the pricier end. I have heard good things about Trailfinders so will contact them too.

@FMH As you need internal flights, (you will), there’s only a certain amount of wriggle room. I found a fantastic little bed and breakfast by the beach in Praia Do Forte and that was better, and cheaper, than their suggestions. They booked it for us. Or you can book yourself. The price difference is in hotels and what compromises you will make. Audley add in tours you might not want so just say “no thanks” and DIY. However they are companies designed to be profitable but do compare like with like. Not basic with very good. In Rio we stayed on Copacabana beach. I found that hotel too. I like smaller places and it was friendly and very good. So do a bit of homework and you can save money. Your Audley specialist is there at all times and they have emergency help if you need it. Depends if you think that’s worth the extra.

@TizerorFizz that is really helpful- I didn’t realise that you have flexibility to find and book your own hotels if using someone like Audley. Thank you!

@FMH We do it quite often. We know what we like. We tend to take the bones, eg internal flights and car hire plus some of their suggestions but we have found our own in USA and Canada as well as Chile, Brazil and Argentina. Not for the whole trip, just when I could do better for less money. So check out where they use and see what you think. Some places will have various price point options.

Super helpful - thank you!

I use Rainbow Tours for South America. They do private tailored tours, whatever you want, if you want to do your own flights, hotels etc, that’s fine.
I've also used Audley for other holidays and they too, are very good.
Neither are cheap but I’m of an age that Im happy to pay a bit more for someone else to do all the organising. I only use them for more complicated trips where there are lots of transfers, internal flights/trains etc, and they do all this. Tour companies are only as good as the local agents that they use, and I’ve found both these companies to be excellent. Audley do worldwide, Rainbow specialise in S America and Africa.
Have fun, we loved Brazil.

@FMHWhrn doing long haul, you need to do enough with a tour operator to make sure it’s a package as defined by Abta. So you need a certain amount to be organised. Also tour operators use booking agents. Not every hotel/B&B can be booked by your tour operator. That is when you book your own. Do keep the bones of the holiday though to ensure it’s keeping its Abta protection for you.

@LookingforPaddington and @TizerorFizz thanks very much. I usually organise holidays myself but given the amount of internal travel in Brazil, I think I would prefer a tour operator. I have never heard of Rainbow so will check them out and obtain a few quotes. Thanks so much for all the tips!

We used LLama Travel, & I'd recommend them.
Something did go wrong, (not their fault) and their handling of the problem could not be faulted.

Thanks! That is another one I wasn’t aware of so will add to the list.

@FMH Llama will be difficult to compare as they don’t publish hotels on line.

I would recommend Trailfinders which we have used a couple of times.

Thanks everyone for the advice. I am getting excited about planning now! We are going for 3 weeks and hoping to go to Rio, Iguassu Falls, Amazon, Salvador and Praia do Forte. Hoping that is manageable in 3 weeks but I know it will be a lot of travel time in between places as the country is huge!

Sounds amazing. Just be aware that you won’t see much wildlife in the Amazon as it’s so dense. Sailing on the river is an amazing spectacle but don’t expect to see jaguars, tapirs etc as the chances of seeing these sort of things is pretty non-existent. You’ll see lots of birds, maybe monkeys, sloths up trees, but for the bigger stuff head to the Pantanal. We saw umpteen jaguars in North Pantanal, swimming, hunting plus several anteaters, two tapirs, macaws, various monkeys including tiny black faced marmosets, tortoises, a huge selection of birds, caiman etc.
Its also quite a trek to fly to the Amazon, we flew Rio to Sao to Manaus which took basically the whole day.

Thanks. Maybe Pantanal would be better then if we are likely to see more? Though I would love to go to the Amazon too! Would Pantanal plus Praia do Forte work do you know, or is the distance too great? We definitely want to end with a few days on the beach and will have to choose somewhere based on weather, given it will be winter.

You’ll definitely see much more wildlife in the Pantanal than the Amazon. If you’re thinking of staying in a lodge in the Amazon, then I’d say do Pantanal only. There’s North and South, generally I’d recommend North although the lodges there are more expensive. You can walk, drive, ride, boat, in the Pantanal. To see jaguars, you’re best to do a day trip to Porto Jofre where you spend the day on the river on a speed boat.August is a pretty good time of year to see them.
Amazon - we spent 5 days on a small motor yacht, we did jungle walks and went out in small skiffs everyday, due to number of days we had there, we saw the river at its best, the vast size, the smaller inlets, the meeting of the waters at Manaus, we kayaked with pink dolphins and went piranha fishing. We saw/did much more than if we had been lodge based.
Id say do lots of research as to where to go and do. A specialist travel agent will advise but it helps if you have a good idea beforehand.
Are you going with kids? The Pantanal lodges generally have swimming pools and (very important for me) air conditioning, which many Amazon lodges will not have . We went in Sept and the temperature was high 30s/40 degrees with 100% humidity in the Amazon, you will sweat a lot!!
Havent been to Praia but we were in Rio and even mid Sept it was HOT, could easily lie on the beach.
For both Pantanal and Amazon, make sure you have an English speaking guide as this is not a given. And where using a good travel agent will ensure this is organised for you.

@LookingforPaddington thanks very much - good to know! I had been focusing on the Amazon (and yes we would stay in a lodge) but you have now got me thinking that Pantanal might suit us better in terms of seeing wildlife. Our kids will be 14 and 17. Air conditioning is a must! I will do some research. Thank you!

@FMH Pantanal is possibly best but you fly in and generally have a long road trip. You won’t drive from anywhere else. Can I guide you to the detailed info provided by Wildlife Worldwide on the south and north Pantanal. Each have advantages!

Plus - we thought the Argentinian side of Iguazu was better. Make sure you cross the border. Good operators know this.

Hi @TizerorFizz thank you so much for pointing me to Wildlife Worldwide - a lot of info on there which looks really useful and I will take some time to read it. Re Iguazu - yes we definitely want to visit both sides so would look to spend 2 nights in Foz de Iguazu so we have time to visit both. I have a lot to think about! Also - would you mind sharing where you stayed in Praia do Forte please?