rio de janeiro metropolitan limits include two large bays - guanabara bay near the central part of the city, and sepetiba bay located in the western zone.

both bays have islands in their waters, although the islands of one bay are extremely different from the islands of the other.

both of these bays are home to many famous beaches and several islands very important to the local population for a variety of reasons.

guanabara bay is home to large and very important islands, while sepetiba bay is dotted by small islands used mostly for fishing.