Copacabana Beach is famous for Rio de Janeiro's New Year's Eve fireworks and white-clothed crowds.
Rio's Réveillon celebration centers on the broad beach and its waterfront promenade. Millions of revelers have gathered there in major years, while fireworks are launched from barges offshore. Many participants wear white, a color associated with peace and renewal, and some make offerings connected with Afro-Brazilian traditions.
The beach's setting helps explain the spectacle: Copacabana is a densely built urban neighborhood with a long crescent-shaped shoreline, hotels, public spaces, and direct views across the Atlantic. Concert stages and temporary infrastructure turn the waterfront into a large public festival zone.
Copacabana is not the only place in Rio with New Year's celebrations. Ipanema, Leblon, and other neighborhoods also host events, but Copacabana is the internationally recognized focal point.