february / march  - falling in either february or march depending on the year, carnival is one the biggest parties on earth and the most visited 'attraction' of rio de janeiro hosting upwards of two million visitors per day.

taking place the friday to tuesday (fat or shrove tuesday) before lent starts on ash wednesday, the origins of carnival in brazil can be traced back to as early as the 1720s, but most believe it became popular in rio in the mid 19th century with european style balls being held at the copacabana palace hotel and local theatres.

however, carnival did not truly become brazilian, and reflect the ethnic melting pot that brazil is, until the 1930s with the introduction of the samba schools and the samba parade.