favela tours have become a very popular excursion amongst tourists and visitors of Rio, providing them with rare insight into the vibrant and eclectic communities that pepper the city.

There are nearly 1000 favelas in metropolitan Rio, mostly climbing the mountains and hills of the city, and they are home to around 20% of the city's  population.

In recent years, through large scale government and police operations, a large number of these favelas have been 'pacified' - meaning that the police have regained control of the territory from the drug cartels. This has made them much safer for visitors and has bolstered what is known as 'favela tourism'.

Some of the most popular favelas for these types of tours are vidigal, rocinha, santa marta, babilônia, chapéu mangueira, and providência.