at a glance

guaratiba is geographically a large neighborhood, located in the zona oeste (west zone) of rio de janeiro - it is composed mostly of wetlands, with residential clusters in a few key points and delimited by the pedra branca ridge to the east, and by the atlantic ocean to the west and southwest.

from the south to north it is also surrounded by the neighborhoods of barra de guaratiba, recreio dos bandeirantes, vargem grande, campo grande, inhoaíba, cosmos, santa cruz, sepetiba and pedra de guaratiba.

'guaratiba' means 'several cranes' in the native tupi language - the region was occupied by the portuguese in the end of the 16th century, after the victory against the french, and at the time there were several indigenous communities living in the lands surrounding sepetiba bay.