About this place

The Sugarloaf cable car system, known locally as the bondinho, provides the primary means of access to the summit of Sugarloaf Mountain. The journey is completed in two stages. The first line connects the base station at Praia Vermelha (Red Beach) to the top of the lower Morro da Urca, which stands at 220 meters. From Morro da Urca, a second, longer cable car line ascends to the final peak of Sugarloaf Mountain (Pão de Açúcar) at 396 meters. The view described is primarily from this second, higher ascent.

The Westerly Perspective

As the cable car travels on the second leg of its journey, from Morro da Urca to Sugarloaf, the panoramic view opens up to the south and west, looking back across the city. This perspective is dynamic, with the angle and elevation constantly changing during the three-minute ride. The cable car's glass walls provide an unobstructed line of sight to the coastline and the mountains inland.

The Landmarks in View

To the left of the direction of travel, the full, sweeping crescent of Copacabana Beach becomes visible. From this elevated perspective, the beach's entire 4-kilometer arc can be seen, from the Leme neighborhood at its near end to the Copacabana Fort at its far end. The view highlights the sharp, man-made line of high-rise hotels and apartment buildings that border the sand, contrasting with the natural curve of the shoreline. The distinctive wave pattern of the Copacabana promenade, designed by landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx, is often discernible.

Further in the distance, set against the backdrop of the Tijuca National Park, is Corcovado Mountain. At its 710-meter peak stands the Christ the Redeemer statue. From the vantage point of the cable car, the statue appears small but is clearly silhouetted against the sky or the dense green of the forest. It serves as a key reference point, anchoring the view inland and providing a sense of the city's scale and the relationship between its urban areas and the dramatic, mountainous terrain that surrounds them. The Atlantic Ocean stretches out to the south, bordering the coastline and completing the panoramic scene.