Where to stay in Rio with kids

Hi Simone,

Thanks a lot for your reply:-)

We arrived in Rio the 1st of September, and are now settled i Barra de Tijuca. Last week we bought a car, and we are moving in to a house in Rio Mar in the beginning of November.

So far every thing is fine, our daughter goes to a small school and is happy. It is not bilingual, only Portuguese, but she is doing fine.

So, where do you live? And how old is your son? I would love to meet up one day for lunch/playdate/coffee.

My cell number is 21 8594 3880

Best regards,

Helen

Hi helen
we moved to brasil last year , and we found Niteroi (a city cloce to rio de janeiro) a good place to live. ItŽs calm and nice and, there is a canadian school, where the kids learn english as mother languague and the groups are little.
I hope this information will be usefull.

CG

Hello,

We already moved to Barra de Tijuca on the west side of Rio the 1st of September, and we like it a lot. A calm and nice place to live, with good school options.

Thanks a lot for your suggestion, I will keep it in mind.

Best regards,

Helen

Hi Helen,

would you mind telling me the name of the school you are happy with it?

I am trying to move to brazil in july, and do not know how to start finding a school for my 8 and 6 year old...

Many thanks!

Hi helen, I just move in to Barra Rio2 last week.I am looking for a cheaper private school for my 2 kids i.e. 8 and 10years old.
Can you tell me what is your kid's school name? How is the school
programmes? Where are you from? Are you chinese?

Helen,

I am originally for Rio.  I am now living in Denver, Colorado returning to Rio in July 2011.

I believe the best area to live is Barra da Tijuca or Recreio dos Bandeirantes.  Both very modern, quiet and very safe.  Barra da Tijuca has an American School ( assuming you are an English speaking expat ) Those two towns are very middle class and they are where the young families choose to live at.

The cost of living is very high in Rio.  Hiring help still affordable but not as cheap as used to.  To avoid legal problems you should consider paying all employment dues.  The minimum wage is about BR $400.00 per month, but expect to pay the base salary for the specific professional you are hiring. A full time driver will cost you about BR$ 1,500.00 or so per month (US $1,000.00).  The employment dues should be about 100% of their salary.  Driving in Rio is a nightmare to say the least.  I know the city very well but hate driving there.  Barra and Recreio are very driver friendly and was planned as an american city.  They have very wide freeways and large shopping center.  No problem driving there. But, driving to Zona Sul ( Copacabana, Ipanema, ... and Downtown Rio) is just crazy busy traffic.

The cost of a full-time maid is about BR $ 1,300.00 per month plus all the employment taxes that the employer plays which is about 100% of their salary.

It is not safe to go downtown Rio at night and there is very little to do there at night with exception of the Opera (which is a must see), Sala Cecilia Meireles, the Theaters.  There is also a place called Lapa on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays which is generally busy with thousands of people roaming the streets.  Very fun place to go to on those nights. Downtown has great buildings, museums and libraries to see during the day.

Well have a great time in Rio.

helen68 wrote:

Hi,

I'm new on this blog, and happy to receive some information about moving and living in Rio.
Me, my husband and my daughter are moving to Rio in September, and I don't have a clue about where to start organizing our new life in Brazil.

So, can anyone please help me answer a few question?

1. Where is the best area to live with a 3 year old daughter? Hopefully close to a good international school and other expats.

2. Is it recommended to drive a car, or to hire a driver? If so, what is the average cost for the driver?

3. what is the average cost for a maid?

4. Is it safe to go downtown in the evenings/nights (I have heard the crime rate is pretty high)

Well, this is it for now, hope anyone can help out.

Helen

Hi, we are looking at the option of moving to Rio in 2013.  We have 3 children currently 12,10 and 8 who are all pretty bright and sporty.  I've been onto three school websites - the International school, the American School and the British School.  it's hard to see what they are really like - I'd like to be able to call anyone who has kids at these schools to find out more.  Especially british people who can compare to UK schools.  Thanks alot

Juliets... Have you moved to Brazil?  My husband and I are considering an offer, but we're concerned about schools as well (still negotiating tuition in our expat package).  His office would be located in Botafogo, so I think that would rule out Barra da Tijuca for us and limit us to the American School in Gavea.  Our children are 11, 10 and 8, and we're from Atlanta, GA.  Would love to know your thoughts if you have moved to Rio:)

Hello mariettamandy and welcome to Expat.com!

Juliets' post is dated 2011.
If you have questions, do not hesitate to start a new thread on the Rio de Janeiro forum.

Thank you,
Aurélie

Hi! I am a brazilian, but I can help you with your questions. Botafogo and Humaitá are great places to be, very near there are german, swiss and british schools. But maybe you will prefer to face the traffic and live in Barra where quality of life is much better, and much safer for your kids... botafogo is not dangerous for brazilian standards, but barra is much safer and your kids can walk around alone in closed condominiums. In barra you will find British and american school which are moving to here at 2014 (they are already finishing the building). Already set up in Barra is the Rio International school. In any of these expect to pay at least R$1.500 per month (lowest price you will get in an negotiation), plus subscribing fee (can be only R$2k or R$20k as in swiss school). If your kids is 5 years old or below get a normal brazilian school for R$700-R$1200/month, since language won't be a barrier, in fact they can learn portuguese fast, what would be great.

For those thinking about getting a maid, it will cost R$120/day... up to 2 days a week without contract. For 5 days a week with contract will cost R$800 + brazilian fees and extra salaries (13º month and extra for vocation month), what can reach total cost of R$1200/month. Although traffic is crazy up here (drivers are really aggressive) it is easy to get used to it, so no need for a driver.

minimum wage in brazil is R$678, but in Rio is R$803.

Hi Helen,

Email me and I can give you some advice.
Jiminbarra@gmail.com

Hi James Jones,

Please note that this post is quite old.. 2010

It would be good if you can share the information on the Rio de Janeiro Forum as it might be helpful for the other members or you can start a new topic with some updates maybe

Thank you

Maximilien
Expat-blog Team