General info on moving to Brazil

In May 2017, Brazil's Immigration Laws were completely rewritten, making it easier for refugees and stateless persons to move to Brazil, and somewhat harder for everyone else (and it already wasn't easy).  In November 2017, the regulations implementing the new law were issued, and that's the regime under which we're operating, now and for the foreseeable future.
To move to Brazil permanently from the United States, you have to meet one of these qualifications:
-- have a bona fide job offer in hand from a Brazilian firm, or an international firm that wants to transfer you to Brazil.  The offer needs to be approved by the Brazilian Labor Ministry; or
-- have a Brazilian spouse or domestic partner; or
-- have a Brazilian child or grandchild; or
-- be the child or grandchild of a Brazilian, or of a Brazilian permanent resident; or
-- be the sibling of a Brazilian, or of a Brazilian permanent resident; or
-- be the legal guardian of a Brazilian child; or
-- plan to invest at least the amount of capital in a new Brazilian business, and to create the number of jobs, required for approval by the Labor Ministry.

There are also temporary options, involving education, medical treatment, religious activity, and volunteer work.  You can find out  more about them on the Visas pages of any Brazilian Consulate's website. 

And of course, there's tourism.  Before trying to qualify for permanent, or even temporary residency, you should probably get to know Brazil a little:  it's an incredible country, and a Visitor's Visa ("VIVIS") is easy for an American to get. 

Brazil, like the United States, is a huge, monolingual country.  You can get by as a tourist in the major tourist cities without much Portuguese, but you want to acquire some basics if you plan to spend much time here, especially in a historic, interesting, but very remote city like Cuiabá.  Any questions, ask away -- you've come to the right place.

So I'm an avid rock climber and a member of the AMGA (American Mountain guide association).  Im currently trying to get in touch with some guiding outfits down there about potential work.  Im also considering doing an English as a Foreign Language certificate to further increase my options.  I've worked for years in high end hotels and might be able to find a job in a hotel as well.  I definitely plan on learning some Brazilian Portuguese as well.  Another option I have is my Godmother's son is a full citizen of Brazil and has a farm but I'm not sure where he's located. 

My timeline is pretty open, but it's a long term goal of mine to relocate to somewhere in South America.  Do you have any suggestions for online language classes?  I speak English and French, and a little Spanish and Italian so I think I'll be able to pick up Portuguese relatively quickly.

In terms of self-directed language study, a number of people speak well of Duolingo.  We had a Venezuelan Uber driver last week who's been in Brazil six months, and has practically cleaned the Spanish accent and usages out of his  Portuguese using it (not easy to do:  just as well that you only have "a little Spanish"  )  Clearly, this guy is smart, and works at it a couple of hours a day, but it shows the results that are possible.
For a more directed program, I think highly of Rafael Tavares's "Learn Portuguese with Rafa":

https://www.learn-portuguese-with-rafa.com

He's Portuguese, but he has teaching materials for both European and Brazilian forms, and he knows his stuff.

You're not going to walk into a high-end hotel in Copacabana, whatever your background, and get a job:  there are too many Brazilians available for any job you're qualified for, and hiring you isn't worth the hassle the hotel would have with the Labor Ministry.  Your only hospitality options are to join an international chain and get them to transfer you here, or to bring a big sack of money, and open your own hotel, employing a bunch of Brazilians.  In that case, they'll welcome you with open arms ... after checking you out for several months.