barra offers high quality lodging alternatives, along with beautiful and relaxed beaches, and a variety of shops and restaurants on the side closest to zona sul. 

from barra, journey times to the zona sul must be planned carefully due to heavy traffic, especially when enormously popular blocos such as the banda de ipanema and afroreggae are scheduled to march in ipanema.

in general, if visitors decide to stay in the outer districts, renting a car maybe an interesting option, as taxi fares to the zona sul can add up quickly, and relying on public transportation could be frustrating.

recently, many smaller forms of accommodation have been made available, due to the 2014 world cup and the 2016 olympics.