Christ the Redeemer

What makes it special

The statue stands 38 metres tall and weighs about 1,100 tonnes, on the summit of Corcovado, a rock peak 704 metres high inside Tijuca National Park. It can be seen from almost the whole of Rio, and it is one of the New Seven Wonders of the Modern World.

Most of it was built in Brazil, but the head and the hands were moulded in France and brought over. Those are the parts to study from the base, where you look straight up at the face and the outstretched arms.

The train you ride up is older than the statue: it opened in 1884 as the first tourist railway in Brazil.

A small chapel to Our Lady of Aparecida sits beneath the statue, and it is still in use.

Visiting

Pick a date and boarding time first: every ticket is a timed slot on the train from Cosme Velho or an official van, with monument entry included. Arrive 15 minutes before your slot, and show an online ticket on your phone screen. Check the weather that morning, because cloud can hide the view and it shifts through the day.

The train climbs through the Tijuca forest for about 20 minutes. The vans take the park road, and they are the only vehicles allowed to drive up it to the monument.

Both leave you at the same landing below the summit. While the escalators are being replaced, you go up by lift and then stone stairs to the plateau.

At the top, the crowds bunch at the viewing points along the railings. Step back from those points and there is room to look up at the statue. Leave time to see it from below before you queue for the ride down.

Guided or on your own

A guide is optional here, and the visit is easy to manage on your own with a timed ticket. The park provides no guides, so arrange one privately before you go if you want commentary or a tour that handles the transport. Hire only a guide registered with the park, and turn down anyone who offers a tour on the mountain itself.

Tips

A van ticket is a round trip from the stop where you bought it, so you come back down to the same place. Swimwear is not allowed at the monument, so cover up if you come straight from the beach, and leave pets behind: only guide dogs with proof may enter.

Free chilled drinking water and toilets, with baby-change rooms, are on the stair route. Do not climb, sit or lean on the low walls and railings for a photo, and leave speakers and megaphones at the hotel.

Late afternoon brings warm light for photos and a wide view over the city. If you walk up from the city instead, allow two to three hours, and pay for monument entry at the top in cash. Never do that walk alone, and carry nothing of value.