People who were once selling bottles of water, soft drinks, and sandwiches in the street are now profiting from favelas becoming more accessible to tourists, who can even stay in special hostels or enjoy new year's eve within the elevated favelas, overlooking Rio de Janeiro.

There is still work to be done, but it looks as if Rio de Janeiro's favelas are definitely heading in the right direction.

in our work we list some of the favelas that could be of interest to foreign visitors for either logistical, cultural, or historical reasons, along with descriptions on links to a variety of resources that can be accessed to gain a deeper understanding of the history, culture, and evolution of favelas in metropolitan rio de janeiro.

further, we provide a description of the police force, called polícia pacificadora, that restored control in many favelas, and a list of companies that provide guided tours inside some of them.