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Where is the best place to stay in Rio?

Travel Info
Where is the best place to stay in Rio? I have heard all kinds of stories about the high crime rate, so safety is obviously a concern. I want to be near the best nightlife, but not if it means a very expensive hotel or a bad neighborhood either. I also want to be near the beach, but not necessariliy oceanfront.

Travel Tips

I've been twice: once to the Sheraton Leblon and once to Praia Ipanema.
Sheraton leblon is a great hotel with their own private beach in front and 2 huge pools. It is a bit on the far side, I mean you cannot walk to Ipanema and Copacabana from it, you need a taxi ride. But the hotel faces Ipanema so all the rooms have a wonderful view, escially at dawn. The breakfast buffet is the most wonderful things I've seen in my life. This hotel is VERY safe and it's a 5 star hotel.
The second time I went to Praia Ipanema, just in front of the ocean in Ipanema but on the side which is closer to Leblon. It ws a great hotel and quite safe too, I walked at night with my friends and nothing happened to us (we carried no purses, stuff in our pockets, just in case) It was a 4 star hotel and very nice and chic.
I would NOT stay in Copacabana, that could be very dangerous. Try and stay closer to Leblon, and if you don't mind being quite far from Ipanema, try Barra De Tijuca, there's an Intercontinental there and a Sheraton Barra too. They both have a beach in front.
The best nightlife is in either Ipanema (great barsm discos, restaurants) or Barra, but Barra is quite far away and you would need either a car or a reliable taxi driver.