Brazil is a popular South American destination that many people want to visit. The infamous Rio de Janeiro, with its gorgeous beaches and Christ the Redeemer, is on many people’s bucket list to visit. Visiting Brazil using points can be a bit more challenging than visiting other places on points and miles, but with a little planning, you can book a trip for almost free!
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Brazil Using Points
One of the first things you need to think about when planning a trip to Brazil using points is your itinerary and the length of stay. For my trip, I planned a five-day Brazil itinerary and also spent some time in Bolivia. I was semi-flexible on my dates (I knew I wanted to go in June) and booked about 3 months prior to the trip. If you plan further in advance, you will be able to find some better deals.
Brazil Airfare
The first thing you will want to do when booking a trip to Brazil using points is to find flights. If possible, you will want to be flexible with your dates. Flights using points to South America can be a challenge, so the more flexible you are, the more options you may have and the fewer points you will use. I knew I wanted to visit in June and had to fit it in a certain window in between classes.
Flights to Rio de Janeiro
I first flew to Rio de Janeiro from Los Angeles for 37,500 points and $52 in taxes and fees. I booked this through Virgin Atlantic, for which I transferred points from Chase. You can also transfer from Amex, Capital One, and Citi. Our flight to Rio was on LATAM Airlines economy with a 5-hour layover in Santiago, Chile.
Flights within Brazil
To get to São Paulo from Rio, you have several options when booking on points. You will most likely fly on GOL Airlines. This can be booked for around 6,000 points and $5.90 via Flying Blue or around 10,000 points + $35.50 via Aeroplan. Chase, Amex, and Capital One can transfer to both of these. I actually flew to Bolivia in between the two cities, so I had to book mine via Aeroplan.
Flights from São Paulo
From São Paulo to Los Angeles, I found an amazing redemption after lots of time looking. I spent 31,000 points and $63 in taxes and fees for a direct flight home in economy. I booked this through British Airways on LATAM Airlines.
Note that flights to and from South America can be difficult to find, so pretty much anything you can find when visiting Brazil on points for a reasonable price will be a great find!
Brazil Hotels
One of the more flexible things when visiting Brazil using points is hotels. There are a ton of options across all sorts of programs when booking a hotel in Brazil using points. It will all depend on what kind of points you have, what area you want to stay in, and how many nights you plan on staying.
Hotels in Rio De Janeiro
Hilton Rio de Janeiro Copacabana
Rio has several great hotel options, but I chose to stay at the Hilton Rio de Janeiro Copacabana. I knew I wanted to be right on the Copacabana beach, and my mom had a lot of Hilton points. We stayed for 3 nights, and it was 42,000 points a night. It would have been better to stay 5 nights because with Hilton, you get the 5th night free on award bookings, but it did not work with our schedule.
This hotel was a fantastic location and has an awesome rooftop pool and bar. The rooms are a bit dated and could use an update. If you have diamond status, you get access to the executive lounge with happy hour and breakfast each morning.
JW Marriott Hotel Rio de Janeiro
If you have Marriott points, the JW Marriott Hotel Rio de Janeiro is another good option. This hotel is also located right on Copacabana Beach. Nights in the off-season will start around 44,000 points a night. Like Hilton, Marriott also does a stay 4 nights on points, get the 5th night free. This is a great option if you have a lot of Marriott points to burn.
Grand Hyatt Rio de Janeiro
For those who may not have as many points and are looking for the best value hotels when visiting Brazil using points, then the Grand Hyatt Rio de Janeiro may be a good option for you. You can easily get Hyatt points by transferring from Chase. This hotel is still located on a beach, but it is about 30 minutes from the Copacabana Beach and the other main sites in Rio. Nights here will either be 9,000, 12,000, or 15,000 points, depending on the season.
Hotels in São Paulo
The hotel options in São Paulo to use points at can be a bit overwhelming. I had a very hard time choosing where I wanted to stay and which type of points to use. Hilton, Marriott, IHG, and Hyatt all have excellent options here.
Grand Hyatt São Paulo
Ultimately, I opted to stay at the Grand Hyatt São Paulo because I had the most available points for Hyatt and really did not want to pay cash rates. Nights here will either be 9,000, 12,000, or 15,000 points, depending on the season. The hotel itself was very nice, the rooms were spacious, and the staff was amazing. However, the location is about 30 minutes from the center of São Paulo. São Paulo has a ton of traffic at all times, so it takes a while to get anywhere.
I was very generously given a club access award to access the club for breakfast and happy hour each day. You can earn these through the Hyatt loyalty program, or you can get access with the highest Hyatt status.
Renaissance São Paulo
If you have Marriott points, I would highly recommend staying at the Renaissance São Paulo. This hotel is in an amazing location right in the center of São Paulo and is close to a lot of restaurants and museums. I do slightly regret not getting to stay here and would probably end up paying to stay here next time. Rates here start around 35,000 points, so it is a fantastic option if you have some free night certificates to burn.
Other Marriott options include the Sheraton São Paulo WTC Hotel and the JW Marriott Hotel São Paulo, both of which are located close to the Grand Hyatt. The Sheraton is a more affordable option, while the JW Marriott is more luxurious. The Sheraton starts at 30,000 points a night, and the JW starts at around 35,000 points a night.
Hilton Hotels
If you have Hilton points, you can opt to stay at any of the six Hilton hotels in São Paulo. The Hilton Garden Inn São Paulo Reboucas is the most affordable option, starting around 25,000 points. The Canopy São Paulo Jardins is probably the best location out of all of the Hiltons. That one starts around 45,000 points a night.
InterContinental São Paulo
If you have IHG points, the InterContinental São Paulo is a fantastic option. It is located right in the city center and starts at as low as 40,000 points a night, making it a great option to use a free night certificate. The other great thing about IHG is that if you stay three nights on points, the 4th is free. Thus, this hotel is a fantastic option. There are a few other cheaper IHG options, but the location and hotels are not as great.
Other Expenses to Keep in Mind
Transportation
The most expensive part of transportation in Brazil is getting to and from the airport. It is cheaper to use Uber, but we opted to book a private transfer for ease of travel. In Rio, this was about $40 round trip. In São Paulo, it was $40 one way, and then we used Uber the other way. Once in the city, it is very inexpensive to get around using Uber. Most rides cost $3-$5, and many of the rides were at least 20-30 minutes.
Tours and Admission Tickets
The sites in Rio de Janeiro cost more than the sites in São Paulo. We opted to do a tour in Rio that cost $90 and included admission to Christ the Redeemer, Sugarloaf Mountain, and transportation around for half a day. In São Paulo, most of the sites were free to get into or we were randomly there during some free museum days. With the museums, we would have maybe spent $20-$25 during our time there.
Food
Food when visiting Brazil on Points can be very cheap or a little bit more expensive, depending on how you pick your meals. With the status at the hotels, all my stays came with breakfast. For lunch, we would usually do something light and inexpensive, like McDonald’s or sandwiches. Dinner is where we would splurge. We went out to Brazilian BBQ two times, which ran around $40/person plus the cost of drinks. Other meals were around $15 for dinner.
Visa
At this time, US citizens do not need a visa to enter Brazil, so do not worry about factoring that cost in. Previously, visas for US citizens cost about $80/person.
Total Costs for Brazil Using Points
- Hotel: 123,000 Hilton Points and 27,000 Hyatt Points
- Airfare: 78,500 points plus $150/person
- Transportation: $40/person Uber + $40/person airport transfers
- Activities: $90/person
- Food: $200/person
- Total Cost Out of Pocket $420/person
Total Value of Points Used
- Hotel Value: $550/person $1100 total
- Airfare Value: $1100/person or $2200 total
- Total Savings with Points: $1650/person or $3300 total
Final Thoughts on Brazil Using Points
Brazil Using Points can make for a fantastic vacation to see a couple of amazing cities. You can easily earn points for the airfare by opening a credit card. Saving on airfare and hotel can leave more money for fun activities and make Brazil a very affordable vacation. If you have more time, make sure to add on some time in Iguazu Falls or Buenos Aires.
